Pick Your Poison

The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window. When I saw the dark shadow of the structure and the flickering light in the distance, relief flooded me.

Hours ago, my car broke down on the highway somewhere between one little town and another. My college roommate just bought a house an hour outside the city and invited me to dinner. I was driving home, singing along to the radio when my car began making strange noises. Turning off the music I listened as the engine stopped working. I coasted to the side of the road cursing and then called AAA.

The evening was balmy and I sat on the hood to wait for the tow truck. Maybe if I had stayed inside my car, things would have been different.

The road was pitch black and the moon offered just enough light that I could see the shadows of the large trees that lined both sides of the highway. Fifteen minutes passed when a large truck pulled off the road in my direction. Its headlights blinded my vision as they cut through the darkness. Squinting, I stood up, thinking it was the tow truck. Laughter and cigarette smoke poured out of the truck's windows. The hairs on the back of my neck stood. Something wasn’t right. I took a step back to my driver’s side door.

The truck's doors swung open in unison. Two large guys wearing jeans and band t-shirts emerged.

“What do we have here?” asked the driver.

“Looks like the lil’ miss needs a hand or four,” answered the passenger.

“Um, thank you guys, but help is on the way,” I said with a shaky voice.

“But we are already here. Now be a good girl and let us have a peek under your hood,” said the driver.

“Yeah, I can check your oil with my dipstick,” laughed the passenger.

I was alone, in the dark, surrounded by an uninhabited forest, with two predators who would undoubtedly hurt me. My first thought was to barricade myself in my car. It wouldn’t drive and they could figure out a way to break the windows or something to get to me if they wanted to. Running was my only hope. Before I could talk myself out of it, I darted into the tree line.

Footsteps thundered behind me and I tried to move faster in the unfamiliar landscape. A hand grabbed at my shoulder, causing me to stumble into a tree. My arm scraped against the rough bark, but I couldn’t let that stop me. I ducked my body down, pulling from the hand that tried to capture me, and I continued forward running in a zigzag, from tree to tree. I did everything I could think of to lose them.

Out of breath, I stood behind a thick tree. Trying to quiet my breathing, I listened. Were they still after me? My heart drummed and my ears took in every sound. I could hear as leaves rustled, an owl hooted, and then close by I heard a stick break. It was so dark that it was difficult to decipher the dark shapes I saw.

A hard body crashed into me, slamming me into the tree. All oxygen was forced from my lungs, and my brain panicked. A meaty hand held me in place as the other pulled at my dress.

“I won’t call for Donny if you behave,” my captor said.

He leaned in and drug his nose from my collarbone, up my neck, inhaling deeply. Licking my ear, he pulled my dress down so it pooled at my waist. He moved his lips to mine to kiss me.

His tongue ran along my lips, I opened my mouth, and his disgusting tongue slipped in. He tasted like beer and cigarettes. He must have thought that I was going to comply and he moved his hands to his belt. As he tried to release it, I bit down on his tongue as hard as I could. I tasted his blood. Not letting my fear deter me I brought my knee up and made a direct impact, causing him to double over. I ran. I could hear him cursing in pain and yelling directions to Donny. If they caught me again, I knew I wouldn’t get out unharmed. That’s when I saw the candlelight flickering. As I ran toward it, the shape of a large uncared-for cabin materialized.

I ran to the door and began pounding. “Help me. Please let me in!” I yelled. The door opened and a young man stood looking at me. From the outside, the cabin was dark but through the door, the space was warm with light from a fireplace and gentle laughter trickled out. “Please, my car broke down and two guys showed up, they were trying to hurt me. Can I please come in?”

He stepped back and nodded. I rushed in and turned to close the door. Outside I saw the two men, their expressions were scared and they turned and ran back the way they came. I felt relief flood me.

I followed the young man into a large room. The left wall had a small open kitchen where a woman stood at a stove stirring something that smelled delicious in a large pot. She wore a brown dress with a flowered apron protecting the front. A man sat to the right in a large leather chair before the fire reading a newspaper. Two girls were laying in front of the fire on an aged blue rug playing a card game. They all stopped what they were doing and looked at me.

The boy who let me in had disappeared and I retold my story with a shaky voice. The woman came to my side, rubbing her hand soothingly on my back.

“That is awful. Are you alright?” she asked. She noticed the angry scrap on my arm and retrieved a damp kitchen towel to clean the wound. While she gently attended to me she introduced her family. Her name was Sandra and her husband was Paul. They had two children, Emily and Amanda.

“I’m sorry but our phone is out of order. You can spend the night here and in the morning Paul will take you back to your car and see if he can help,” said Sandra.

When she was satisfied that my arm was okay she led me to a chair at the kitchen table. She served heaping bowls of stew and homemade bread. The family sat around the table eating with me. Amanda was quiet and sullen but her sister was inquisitive. Emily asked me questions about my life, the world, and how I did my makeup. At every question, Amanda shot looks of disdain at Emily and I did my best to remain upbeat. The truth was I was a wreck from my earlier experience. I wanted to call the police but it would have to wait. Exhaustion spread through me.

Sandra seemed to notice my fatigue. “Emily, why don’t you take our new friend upstairs and show her the bathroom and her room,” Sandra instructed.

Emily bounced from her seat, took my hand, and pulled me up the stairs. She pointed to a closed door and told me that’s where I could sleep and then pulled me into the bathroom. She told me she would get me some pajamas and returned quickly with a soft sleep dress. It was white and covered in faded blue flowers.

“We are going to be the best of friends,” she giggled before closing the door and giving me a moment to clean up.

What did that mean? I didn’t plan on staying beyond the morning, why would we be best friends? Shaking my head I showered and used my finger to brush my teeth.

Walking across the hall in my borrowed sleepwear, I was anxious to get some sleep and put this day behind me. The room was sparse. A full-size bed with a handmade quilt filled most of the space. In the window stood a single candle, the one that beckoned me here. In the corner was a bookshelf. Old familiar titles ran across the shelves. Alice in Wonderland, The Wizard of Oz, The Hobbit, and so many more. Tucked in the bottom corner, the spine of a scrapbook caught my attention. I pulled it out and opened the first page. A portrait of the family downstairs, all with straight unsmiling faces standing in a group. The next page had a newspaper article. The same family portrait was showcased under the heading “Tragic Fire Kills Family”. It was dated July 8, 2002. Confused, I turned to the next page. It was another article “Missing Local Boy Presumed Dead” on July 8, 2012. Under was a photo of the boy who answered the door. My hands shaking, I turned to the next page. One more newspaper article dated July 8, 2022. There was a picture of me and the heading “Missing Young Woman’s Car Found”.

A small giggle made me snap my head up. Amanda was standing next to the window smiling at me. It was the first time I’d seen her without a scowl. She slowly reached to the candle sitting on the window frame and picked it up. Looking at me in the eyes she dropped it. “Ooops,” she said and then started laughing.