Wrong Path

Suspense Stories | Jan 12, 2013 | 14 min read
108 Votes, average: 4 out of 5
Suspense Stories

Wrong Path

Ryan Tandy
Follow
Scott was drunk. He'd known it three pints ago, when he'd nearly slipped off his stool trying to pull his wallet out of the back of his jeans. He'd managed to catch himself on the corner of the bar before he hit the floor, but the barmaid had still looked at him funny as she gave him his change. Now, as he sat on his own at the bar and tried desperately to keep things in focus, he knew he should give it up and go home.
"Sue! Another one, when you're ready, luv." He said, catching the eye of the young barmaid who had been serving him all night.
Sue hadn't been working here long, and was young enough to have a streak of concern for the wasters who spent night after night in this dingy hole, trying to drink away the pains of the day. She looked up, exchanged a dark look with the girl she'd previously been in deep conversation with, and then walked over to the lonely corner where Scott sat.
"Are you sure you haven't had enough, Scott?" Sue asked. "It's getting pretty late, are you not heading home soon?"
Scott fixed her with a hard stare and reached into his back pocket, taking care to not fall again. He retrieved his last five pound note and tossed it casually onto the bar, the crumpled currency landing in a pool of beer.
"Another pint." Scott sneered, his tone more threat than request.
Sue pulled a clean glass from under the bar and began to fill it as Scott continued to stare. She grabbed the five pound note from the counter and returned momentarily to deposit a full pint and the change back down in front of him. She scuttled quickly back down to the other end of the bar where she fell back into deep conversation with her friend, occasionally casting dark looks in Scott's direction. Oblivious to this, Scott lifted the pint to his lips and took a sip then stood and walked unsteadily out into the beer garden at the back of the pub.
Outside the night was as gloomy as the interior of the pub had been. A low, damp mist hung in the air, coating everything in a thin layer of moisture. Scott wiped down one of the benches with the cuff of his jacket and sat, retrieving a crumpled packet of cigarettes and a lighter from his inside pocket as he sat down.
Placing one in his mouth he clicked the flint on the cheap disposable and lit up on the small, flickering flame. He exhaled a lungful of smoke and sat back, stewing on his exchange with the young barmaid. Who did she think she was, telling him what to do? It wasn't as if the Red Horse could afford to turn down the business, with its ancient decor and terrible location. The Horse's only clientele was local teenagers, who knew they could get away with severed without ID, and a group of hardened regulars that drank there because they always had. Change wasn't big where Scott came from, and if you got into a routine you were likely to be in it for the rest of your life.
Scott took another drag from the cheap cigarette then finished half of his beer in two swift gulps. He'd considered staying here until the pub closed before making his way home, but his attitude before meant he was unlikely to get another beer tonight. Andy, the bar's behemoth of a landlord, lived above the pub and could be summoned down at a moment's notice to deal with any punter that was causing trouble
No, Scott thought to himself, no need to deal with that nonsense tonight, home it is. But at the thought of this Scott felt his mood grow blacker, and he finished his beer before throwing the glass over his shoulder. Pausing to listen for the smash he lit another cigarette from the embers of the first and got to his feet. He made his way through the side gate and onto the main road, his hands balled deep in his pockets and his shoulder hunched to try and keep the cold chill from his chest.
The road itself was lined on either side by dense forest and had no street lights lining its sides. Once you left the glow of the pub's security lights the darkness swallowed you up, seemingly wiping you from the face of the earth. But Scott had walked this road many times before and let his feet move on autopilot as his mind turned over, anger seeping into every nerve ending. When he'd been young, Scott had always vowed he would never end up in this situation, stuck in the back end of beyond, working a dead end job and drinking himself to death in the same shit hole every night. He'd dreamed of joining the army and travelling the world, seeing all the countries he'd only ever seen on a map and meeting people whose world view extended beyond a factory and the boundaries of their village.
But when his then girlfriend Emma had excitedly told him that she was pregnant, he saw all those dreams come crashing down around him. Suddenly he'd gone from dreams to burdens, and at the age of seventeen he knew that any plans he may have had were dead and buried. He'd been marched down the aisle in a daze by Emma's father and given a crumbling cottage that had once belonged to her grandmother, that stank of mould and decay.
Scott had tried to make good on his vows, and had secured a job at the local paper mill. For a few weeks they did their best to make the cottage habitable as they repainted the whole house, paying special attention to the small room next to their own. But, three weeks before the birth, everything had fallen apart. Scott had come home to find Emma on the sofa, her young face covered in sweat and contorted with pain. He had rushed her to the hospital as fast as he could, every second feeling like an eternity, but in the end it was too late.
After that Scott began to emotionally detach from everything around him. While his mind had screamed for him to leave, to run away and see the world, he stayed and fell into the routine of the self loathing man. Even as she had grieved for the loss of their child he could not bring himself to touch her, to engage with her on any level at all. She tried to talk to him, to rebuild the links that had once been so strong, but he had already turned his back on the world.
And so it went, with both of them hating their lives but neither having the strength to leave. As the years had rolled on their once brief conversations had faded to nothing, and the house fell silent. Emma's zest for life dulled and she became a shadow of the person she once was, tortured by her loss. Scott continued to drink and brood, the self loathing he felt gradually turning outwards until he eventually viewed Emma with nothing but contempt. As he walked through the darkness Scott sneered, replaying the words of the barmaid in his mind.
"Are you not heading home soon?" Scott said aloud "Jesus Christ, I hope I never see the fucking place again!"
As he stewed Scott became aware of an approaching light behind him, and he turned to look for the source. A car was coming up the road behind him, heading out back towards the city. By the roar of the engine and look of the lights Scott guessed the car to be a roadster. Bastard, he thought to himself, probably heading back to his penthouse flat, getting into bed with a beautiful woman who loves him. Scott stepped back of the road and glared at the car, willing it to pass.
"Knowing my luck, the sod will probably hit me." Scott murmured idly to himself.
As the words left his mouth, Scott began to consider what he was thinking. Well, it might hurt, he thought, but at least it would be my decision and no-one else's. All of his adult life the major decisions had been made by other people, and he was sick of it. While a small part of him knew that this was merely the drink talking, at that moment he felt like this was his only way out. It was a chance to escape this prison of a life and walk away on his terms, in control of his own destiny.
He turned slightly as the car approached where he was stood and braced himself, preparing to launch himself into the car's path. He knew he had to time it right, or he ran the risk of missing and merely bouncing off the side of the vehicle. He needed to make sure he landed in the path of the car as it reached him, so as to make sure he definitely died. Scott was aware that this decision was going to scar the driver for life, but he felt that the bloke probably deserved a little misfortune in his life. The car was almost alongside him now, merely seconds away, and Scott bent his knees to jump.
Suddenly a crashing noise came from the woods directly behind Scott, causing him to start. He turned to look behind him as the car passed, and the combination of slipstream and momentum caused him to tumble to the ground and land heavily on his shoulder. Scott lay there for a few seconds before climbing to his feet, his eyes watching the retreating taillights of his would be suicide device. He mumbled a few choice swearwords before turning to the direction of the crashing noise. Scott stared into the darkness, squinting as he tried to pick out any movement. A lifetime spent growing up in the countryside meant Scott had a fairly good knowledge of the forest, and knew the sort of noises it could make. The noise he heard had sounded like a large branch breaking, as if considerable weight had been placed on it. Scratching his head, he continued to stare into the darkness for a few seconds more before turning and resuming his journey into the night.

••••••

Scott ploughed on through the night, his body still coursing with adrenaline. While the combination of the near miss and the unidentified sound had calmed his suicidal tendencies for the moment, depression still clung to him like the night's fog. He was so wrapped up in his own thoughts that it was several minutes before he realised that he had not seen this area of woodland before.
He stopped and peered around, trying to get his bearings. He was in a small clearing of woodland that was denser than any he had seen in this area, with a huge canopy which seemed to engulf him and block out all light and sound. He reached into his back pocket and retrieved his lighter, spinning the flint as he brought it up. Once again the flame burst into life and he held it in front of him, desperately searching for any familiar landmarks or pathways.
As he stared into the darkness Scott heard a twig snap behind him and he spun around, nearly losing his balance for the second time that night. He stared into the black, brandishing the lighter in front of him like a weapon.
‘Who's there?' He said into the darkness, ears straining for a response.
At first Scott heard nothing, and was about to write off the noise as a falling branch. But as he stared out he became aware of a sound, emanating from the same direction as the first. Slowly the noise became louder and Scott narrowed his eyes, trying to locate the source. At first he'd thought it was the wind but now, as it became louder, he realised that he was hearing the sound of breathing. Heavy, guttural breathing that seemed to be building in volume with every passing second.
Scott lowered the lighter nervously and mentally pictured all the animals that could be lurking in the woods. To his knowledge not one of them would make a noise like the one he was hearing now. He stooped down, his gaze not leaving the patch of darkness in front of him, and felt around the woodland floor for anything that could be used as a weapon. After a few moments his hands closed around a large branch. He got to his feet and, brandishing the fallen wood like a sword, took a faltering step forward.
‘Come on then, you bastard! Come out and face me' He said, both the weapon and the alcohol lending fuel to his courage.
Scott held his ground, braced for the first attack. But as he stood there he realised that the breathing noise had stopped, once again plunging the clearing into an eerie silence. After a few seconds he lowered the branch to the ground and turned, eager to put some distance between him and whatever had made that noise.
As he paced hurriedly away, Scott found his mind drifting back to the last time he had been in a situation such as this. Early on in their relationship, before babies and responsibilities had crushed their young dreams, Scott had taken Emma for a romantic walk through the woods near his house. As they had wandered hand in hand down the narrow pathway, their gazes never leaving one another, a huge wild boar stepped out in front of them. The animals were often spotted in the area but had a reputation for being nervous around humans. Scott had later reasoned that this boar was a female, protecting her piglets. But at that very second his only concern was Emma. He stepped in front of her, his body shielding her from the animal, and picked up a large rock from the side of the path. Reaching behind him to grab Emma's hand, he started to walk slowly backwards.
Luckily the boar made no attempt to follow them, but its eyes never left Scott's. Once they had reached the safety of the road Emma broke down in tears, and it took Scott several minutes to calm her down. As he held her close to him, feeling her sobs subside, he realised that he too was on the verge of tears. Not through fear of the boar, but because the idea of Emma getting hurt was more than he could bear. He lent forward and kissed the top of her head, knowing that she would be the only girl he would ever love and that he would do anything to protect her.
As he trudged through the darkness Scott realised that, for the first time in a long while, he was smiling. Not just grimacing but really smiling, the memories of that long forgotten love making him feel lighter than he had for years. The weight of heartbreak had poisoned these feelings, forcing them down into a place that he hadn't been able to access, but the emotions he felt now pulled at his chest in a manner that was almost painful. He pulled the collar up on his jacket and picked up his pace, keener to get home than ever.

••••••

Scott walked for another twenty minutes before the first feeling of panic set in. He had not seen anything other than forest since he left the clearing and was starting to question if he hadn't managed to walk in the wrong direction entirely. His journey home usually took no more than ten minutes, and he had left the pub at least an hour ago.
Scott peered around again, trying to catches his bearings, when he noticed a bright light some way in the distance. At this range there was no way of telling what was causing it, but Scott struck out towards, eager to find a way out of the woods. As he walked towards it the path grew lighter, and he was able to make his way more gracefully past the roots and fallen branches. Just as he was beginning to think his luck was changing a hideous scream echoed through the woods, causing Scott to stop dead in his tracks. He spun around to locate the source of the noise, eyes straining once again to catch sight of any movement. As Scott took a faltering step towards the source of the noise a movement to his left caught the peripheral of his vision, and he turned to face his unknown stalker.
Whatever Scott had been expecting, it was not the creature that now stood before him. As wide as it was tall, the beast towered high above the ground. Its huge body was covered in dark, coarse hair that sprang unkempt from every patch of skin. The head was almost human; save for the snouted nose and long tusks that sprang up from the lower jaw. It focused both its glowing red eyes on Scott, the brow twisted in a malicious gaze of hatred, and squared its shoulders towards him.
Scott stood, rooted to the spot, and desperately tried to process the monstrosity that stood before him. For a brief moment neither party made a sound, then the creature let out another ear piercing shriek. Scott felt hot spittle hit his face as he peered into the creature's gaping mouth, counting rows of jagged, pin sharp teeth. The creature let out a second cry and then charged, its sudden shift momentarily catching Scott by surprise.
Scott threw himself to the left and managed to roll aside as the creature reached him, its trajectory taking it directly through the spot Scott had stood only moments before. As soon as the creature had passed him Scott was on his feet and running, sprinting like he had not done since his youth. Fear lent him speed as he picked his way through the forest, trying to reach the source of the light.
Scott tripped slightly as he picked up speed, his feet momentarily siding from under him before he could right himself and carry on. Another roar caused him to turn his head, and he saw the creature was pursuing him. It moved across the forest floor like some monstrous ape, all the while shrieking at the top of its lungs. Scott realised that this stumble and glance had cost him distance over the beast and he turned back, pumping his arms to pick up speed again.
Once upon a time he could have easily covered this distance three times over, but age and intoxicants had reduced his capacity for sprinting. Scott could feel his legs tiring and his chest burning as he ran, but as he looked up he realised that the source of the light was no more than one hundred metres away from him. At this distance the light was dazzling, and he resisted the temptation to shield his eyes, lest he trip and fall into the creature's embrace.
Scott glanced around again and saw that the beast was still behind him, and had closed the distance again. Scott turned to face the light again, but he knew instinctively that this second lapse had cost him. Where once he had felt a burning desire to end his life, Scott now felt only a desperate desire to survive. Every fibre of his being was fighting to stay alive and he did not want to let them down. The light was now in front of him, so close he could almost reach out and touch it, but all at once he felt the creature's fetid breath on his neck. He cried out at one massive hand closed on his shoulder, and pulled him back into the darkness....................

••••••

Scott reached out for the light, desperately trying to find purchase and stop the creature from dragging him away. For a moment he held his breath and squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the first tear of razor sharp teeth into flesh, before realising that the air was now quiet. The screams of the beast were gone, replaced by the sound of what appeared to be crickets.
Scott gingerly opened his eyes and saw only sky, its inky blackness dotted with tiny beacons light. He pulled himself upright and instantly regretted it, a sharp pain in his head causing him to draw a sharp breath. He looked around, utterly confused, before realising that he was on the same path he had been walking earlier that evening. He climbed to his feet and reached a hand up to the back of his head. Instantly a sharp pain jumped through him, and he felt sticky wetness across the top of his scalp. He brought his hand back down in front of his face and sniffed, registering the metallic tang of blood on his fingertips.
He reached into his pocket to retrieve his phone, thinking that he was probably in no fit state to walk the rest of the way home. As the handset lit up Scott narrowed his eyes, trying to make sense of the display, before realising it was still on silent following the alcoholic vigil of his own misery earlier that evening. So not only had he been lying in the ditch for the past two hours but he had accumulated fifteen missed calls, all from his home number. As he stared Scott realised that his eyes were welling up, the idea that Emma could still care about him after all this time touching him to his core. He pressed the dial button on the phone and lifted it to his ear, eager to hear her voice for the first time in years.

Tags:

  
Report This Story 
Notice (8): Undefined index: User [APP/View/stories/story.ctp, line 227]
Notice (8): Trying to access array offset on value of type null [APP/View/stories/story.ctp, line 227]

Recommendations

Recommendations

Reviews

Ryan Tandy Jan 18, 2013

much appreciated.

Velma golden Jan 13, 2013

What a great story, every thing in a nutshell. Great read, enjoyed it and was kept in a state of what is next. Thank you.

Julian Jan 12, 2013

I love the fact that, far more than most stories on this site, you've taken the time to create an atmosphere and a character to care for before the horror makes an appearance. The story is centered around Scott rather than about the monster-and that's wha

Download the Short Story Lovers App

Read and write stories anytime, anywhere with the Short Story Lovers app

"Short n Scary Stories"

is a throng of rare and

true horror stories of witches, zombies, monsters and unidentified spirits

around us. Here you can share your paranormal experiences and read world's best haunted stories to thrill your imagination.

BE A SHARER
STORIES
WHAT'S NEW
MORE INFO