C. N. Garraway

Prompt

Write this scene. You are running through the woods with your dog, and you hear a click.

My Response

My lungs burned, each breath making my throat raw. My legs screamed with every stride—I hadn’t run like this in years. Branches whipped against my arms, the ground of the woods uneven beneath my sneakers, but I pushed harder.

Then—click.

I froze. My eyes dropped, and my stomach lurched. Steel teeth framed my foot but didn’t snap shut. A trap.

“Shit!”

I looked up, searching for Fluffy. She stood by a tree a few yards ahead, ears perked, tail low. Waiting. Watching.

“Come here, girl.”

She whined, paws shifting nervously in the leaves, but finally trotted over, pressing her warm body against my leg. I stroked her head with a shaky hand.

“It’s okay, girl. I’ll be fine.”

A voice cut through the trees, low and deep. “Not even close.”

I looked up—and froze again. A man stepped out from behind a large tree, the barrel of a gun leveled at my face. Behind him, three men emerged one by one, their guns drawn.

“You and me are going to spend some time together.”

His lips curled into a slow smile. My chest tightened, my mouth dry. Fluffy growled, a low rumble vibrating through her small frame.

The man tilted his head, savoring the moment. I felt my heart hammering so hard it drowned out the surrounding sounds. Every nerve screamed at me to run, to fight, to do something. But I couldn’t move.

Your Turn

What happens in your version of this scene? Respond in the comments.