The road was wet and slick, stretched out and winding around to meet the ocean below. Droplets of warmth fell to the frozen pavement to melt into the stillness. The stillness merging into darkness………….and then came the screams.
Blood curdling screams ripped through the silence only to be met with more silence. Petra fell onto her knees consumed with weakness, inhaling the winter air. Her hands were starting to go numb from the cold. She knew she had to stand up and continue down the road to the beach. She would be safe there for the rest of the night.
Eight hours earlier
Petra lay in bed watching the leaves flutter in the wind outside her bedroom window. It was a beautiful clear sunny day and she wondered if it were as warm as it looked. Reluctantly, she pulled the covers back and stretched out long and lean. It was Sunday, around 2 p.m., the time Petra usually got out of bed on Sunday’s.
Walking through her parents’ home towards the kitchen, a welcome relief washed over her that she didn’t have to listen to the usual lecture. The lecture she would usually get from her father about being productive during the day rather than late into the night. Her parents would be back from Europe in a few weeks though, so she still had time to enjoy her current schedule and then get used to a new one before they arrived back.
As Petra began to make coffee, it suddenly occurred to her how silent it was in the neighborhood. She leaned over the kitchen counter to look outside. Everything seemed to be fine, except for a knocked over trash bin with half the contents spilling out into the street and no sign of the usual neighborhood kids playing ball.
“Maybe everyone else is just having a lazy Sunday too,” she thought as she opened the refrigerator door for cream. She reached into a dark fridge and immediately turned around to look at the coffee pot.
“Damn, the powers out!” she said out loud in frustration. She knew if she wanted coffee she was going to have to get dressed and make a run to Starbucks. As Petra stood leaning against the kitchen counter, the unusual silence began to overwhelm her. There was something different in the air, she just couldn’t quite put her finger on it. “It’s probably nothing,” she thought as she made her way back up to her bedroom to get dressed. She opened her window to check what the weather felt like outside and was happy she only needed to throw on a sweater and jeans. After all, a fifteen minute drive down the mountain on a bright Sunday afternoon was something Petra had always loved doing. It reminded her of how lucky she was to be living amongst so much nature. Beautiful redwoods stood tall and strong on each side of the road and she always had the amazing view of the ocean to greet her as she neared the bottom.
