Footsteps

== FOOTSTEPS IN THE NIGHT ==
=== By Cristelle Grenade ===
Publishes in StarStory 2014
Jen reached for her phone in her purse only to realise it was dead. “Great!” she said and tossed it to the passenger seat. She inhaled and exhaled deeply before lashing out on the steering wheel, releasing all the frustration of the day. 'This day is just getting better and better.' She said to herself. Not only was she late for work again this morning, because the damn alarm didn’t ring, but her boss was particularly cranky today. Needless to say he read her the riot act when she walked through the door half an hour later than she was supposed to.
To punish her ass, he gave her the worst assignment ever. How could she make a name for herself in the journalistic world if she were to write articles about the how-tos? That’s just bullshit! What about serious matters? Poverty? War? Conspiracy? What about them? This was what she wanted to write. She should be on her way to the White House interviewing the president about the war in Asia; instead she was on her way to interviewing 80 year-old Mr Ellis about how to grow a Parrot Beak. Who cares if he won the Great American Gardener’s award for growing that stupid flower with its stupid name? And who the hell names a flower the Parrot Beak anyway? Now the damn car broke down and her phone was dead. 
Jen raised her head from the steering wheel and looked outside the car window. She was in the middle of nowhere. She opened the door and stepped outside the car. She swept her gaze around taking in her surrounding. There were barely streetlights along the roads. They were so faint it wouldn’t have made a difference if they were off. Giant trees aligned the sides of the road creating big scary shadows. No house was fully in sight. Though she could make the outline of a house in the far distance due to the light it exuded. She raised her head toward the sky and noticed a half moon. The temperature outside was what was to be expected on an autumn evening. Chilly. 
Jen got back into the car, put on her jacket and pondered her options. She could stay in the car and wait for a passing vehicle, but she’d been here for almost two hours and not a single vehicle drove by. She could walk towards the lighted house. Maybe she could borrow a phone and call a car service to come pick her and car up. 
She looked considerably at the dark road and almost abandoned the idea, but her stomach growled and she realised she’d not eaten anything since breakfast. If she didn’t get some food down her stomach soon she’d starve. 
Jen closed the opening of her jacket and gloved her hands. She then picked up her purse and her lifeless phone and got out of the car. She locked it, placed her clutch purse on her shoulder and started walking. 
The autumn chill crept through her bones the longer she was exposed to it. She crossed her arms in attempt to warm herself as best she could. Her hair blowing in all directions, creating a chaotic mess as the wind raged through it. The trees suffered from a similar damage as the wind stripped them of their leaves and branches. 
Jen continued on to walk all the while admiring the chaos around her. Suddenly the wind blew harder than ever and a branch cracked above her head. She jumped from the noise and in time noticed she had to get out of the way. The branch landed beside her on the ground barely missing her. Her hair lifted on her nape and arms and adrenaline spiked through her system. She just escaped death. Her senses became more alert as she continued along the dark road. Somehow, the beautiful autumn scene now seemed creepy. 
The hair on the back of her neck rose to attention and the sensation of being followed crawled up her back. She quickly turned to look, but saw no one. However trepidation had already taken root in the deep recesses of her mind and she began to walk faster. She peeked up under her lashes and saw the light from the house getting bigger as she neared it. She wasn’t far, she thought. A faint light of hope ignited inside of her as it dawned on her that her nightmare would soon cease. She’d find a phone and call the car service to come rescue her. Then she’d….. her train of thought abruptly cut off when she heard the sound of clicking heels on the road. She stopped to listen only to hear complete silence. She was alone. She started on to walk again when the heels started clicking once more. Again she stopped to listen and thought maybe the sound was coming from her. She looked down at her shoes to inspect them and realised she hadn’t wore heels today. In fact, she had on her best sneakers. She cast a quick look behind her and once more no one was in sight. This time she picked up her pace a little and again she heard footsteps nearing her the faster she walked. Fear snaked through her and she started to run as fast as she could, adrenaline pumping in her blood stream. She didn’t looked behind again instead she sprinted alongside the road toward the light. 
The nearer she got to the house the nearer the footsteps sounded. She kept her eyes on the house as it grew bigger and bigger as she swallowed the distance step by step. Her heart bursting in and out as exhaustion took hold of her body. Before long she was banging on the wooden door shouting; “Please… Please… let me in... Please.” The footsteps came closer and closer. Her heart raced, nearly exploding in her chest. She banged and shouted louder and louder. “Too late” she said to herself as her senses registered an inhuman presence had engulfed her shaking limbs. The door opened and she passed out in Mr Ellis’s arms.
Category:Grenade
Category:StoryStar