“Nightmare” by Dawn Braun

Vladimir Longauer Photographs

To celebrate Halloween, we asked all creative writers to submit a spooky story. Congratulations, Dawn! You gave us chills and goosebumps. Enjoy, everyone!

Nightmare

She awoke with a gasp; her heart pounding inside her chest, so loudly, she was sure someone else would hear it too. The darkness enveloped her and she couldn’t make out her hands as she passed them in front of her face. She could hear the sound of running water to her right and the cool air was damp and heavy, making her clothes stick to her skin. A snap of a twig, to her left made her suck in her breath and lay stone still. She felt around on the ground, moss covered rocks, dirt and leaves rustled at her touch. Where was she?? She pushed herself up, quietly, to a sitting position and kept peering through the dark, only to have darkness stare back at her.

Another sharp snap of a twig and she was up running blindly, hands in front of her body. Her long red hair, normally kept in a neat ponytail was wildly flying behind her. She ran towards the sound of the water, tripping over felled logs and twigs. Her feet hit the icy water with a splash as she stumbled forward, the cold stung as it drenched her clothes. She picked herself up and quickly waded through the water to the other side. The only thing she knew is she must get away. Whatever was out there was coming for her. Hands outstretched, she continued to find her way through the thick brush, her arms burned from the scratches thorns and branches dug into her young pale skin.

She stopped suddenly next to what felt like a stone structure. She felt around for an opening, running her hands along the cool large boulders. She felt glass and could tell that the window had been broken. Finally her hands felt the rugged grit of an old door; she grabbed hold of the handle and quickly slipped inside.

Her back against the old door, she paused to catch her breath and listened for any noise that would alarm her to move on. In that same moment, a smell so foul enveloped her lungs. Her face wrinkled in disgust as she moved inward to find something, although she wasn’t sure exactly what she was looking for. Thoughts of her cozy warm bed filled her head as she groped through the darkness for something to wrap around her shivering body, but the smell seemed to get worse as she slowly moved though the building. Her fingers touched a scratchy wool blanket and she gave it a tug to set it free for her own use. It didn’t move. Running her fingers along the edge of the blanket, she reached out and touched something cold, hard, slimy and wet. She drew her hand back quickly. Whatever was occupying the blanket at this moment wasn’t about to give it up. The smell grew stronger as did her curiosity. She turned sharply in the room and felt around for a heat source or a lantern. Her thigh bumped into a table and it jumped with a groan. She grazed her hand along the table and found a lamp near the middle. Now how would she light it? Slowly shuffling her feet along the ground, she came upon a bookshelf, which was caked with dust and cobwebs. A quick hunt on the shelves and her hand nudged a book of matches enough to make them shake. She grabbed the matches and then taking a huge breath, struck one to the side of the box. The match burst into flame before settling into a nice hot glow. She held the match higher and as her eyes adjusted to the light, her mouth fell open into a silent scream. There on the bed lay a body. The eyes, nose and mouth were filled with slimy flesh eating maggots.

The match burned too close to her fingers and as she dropped it, it went out, causing her to be enveloped again in darkness. She knelt down and then using all the strength and bravery she could find struck another match against the side of the box. She took a deep breath and this time stepped forward just enough to retrieve the lamp on the table. Lighting the wick inside, a soft glow settled over the room and as her eyes came into focus, she began to take in her surroundings. A wooden rocking chair sat next to a small fireplace in the corner of the room. There was the table where the lantern had been sitting and a lone wooden bench off to one side. The bookshelf held a few dusty cans of food and a brown bag. She knew she couldn’t stay here, especially with the rotting body on the bed, but she also knew if she went back out into the darkness, whatever was out there would do unthinkable things to her… She cocked her head to one side and a scream ripped through the darkness outside. Her trembling hands dropped the lantern, making it shatter onto the floor. Alone in the darkness once again, she was unsure of what to do next. She felt a warm breeze and the hairs on the back of her neck prickled. She felt a hand grab her shoulder, causing her to scream and jerk forward. Another cold hand pressed over her mouth, silencing her screams…

She awoke, the sun streamed through her windows and creating playful shadows on her comforter through the leaves in the tree outside her window. She was home! A sigh of relief escaped her mouth, as she nestled back into her down pillow. She closed her eyes and smiled and a cold hand once again rested over her mouth. Her eyes flew open but her jerks were of no comparison to what held her down. Her worst nightmare had come true and she wouldn’t live to tell about it.

Dawn Braun
www.dabblewithdawn.blogspot.com

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