This received an Honorable Mention in Allegory e-zine (vol. 24/51)
It’s more of a straight horror story about a young couple driving through the country who happen upon something not quite human.

Rain pounded the front windshield like they were driving through a carwash. The wipers darted back and forth with their constant rhythmic hum, but did little to aid the view. It was just good fortune the road was empty—almost nothing could be seen ahead, even with the headlights at their brightest. An oncoming car would likely create blinding white glare.

Laurie Brooks had been staring out the passenger window, seeing little more than the rain slide down and across the glass at an angle. Near the ground, water sprayed outward as though they were on a speeding boat. Beyond was near total darkness. She was able to make out some open fields of wheat or weeds, but as far as she could see, they might as well have been driving through a tunnel.

She looked at her husband, Tom, and noted his normally boyish, carefree face set with stern concentration. He looked stiff and uncomfortable, like someone watching a movie and anticipating a loud jump-scare. She’d seen that look when he was studying for law school. She sympathized, but also found his seriousness endearing at the same time.

“I say if the next town doesn’t have a motel,” she said, “we just pull over and sleep in the car.” Continue reading →