Deadly Pursuit

Deadly Pursuit

It was a moonless night, the kind that wraps the world in shadows and whispers secrets to those who dare to listen. Emily had just finished her late shift at the diner, wiping down the greasy counters and stacking the chairs. The neon sign outside flickered, casting eerie shadows on the deserted street. She pulled her coat tighter around her, the collar brushing against her neck. Emily made it to where her car was parked at the far end of the diner. She unlocked her car door, slid inside onto her seat and closed the door behind her. The empty streets stretched out before her, the only company the flickering streetlights and the distant hum of her engine. As she merged onto the highway, she noticed a car behind her—a gold colored sedan with tinted windows. Nothing unusual, except that it seemed to mimic her every move. Emily’s pulse quickened. She’d heard stories of women being followed, but she never thought it would happen to her. Emily took a deep breath, trying to convince herself that paranoia was playing tricks on her mind. Maybe the driver was just heading in the same direction. But as she exited onto a deserted country road, the gold sedan followed suit. Her unease grew. She tried to shake off the fear. Maybe it was a coincidence. Maybe she was overreacting. But when she turned onto a narrow dirt path, away from any signs of civilization, the sedan stayed right on her tail. Panic clawed at her chest. Emily’s mind raced. She looked over where her purse was sitting in the passenger side seat. She reached inside and tried to grab her phone. To her dismay there was no signal. “Damn these dead zoned roads,” said Emily. The driver in the gold sedan heavy on her trail. Emily wondered if it could have been someone at the diner who she offended somehow. That could've been the case. She was nice and kind to everyone she met that came into the diner. Why did she listen to her boss to come to work of all nights on her day off. This was all she needed some deranged crazy person out to find a victim to kidnap or worse. The thought circling around in her head made her feel even more anxious than before. There were no places to go to hide for safety. Emily couldn’t lead this stranger to her home. She needed to lose them. She swerved onto a side road, tires kicking up dust. The gold sedan followed, relentless. Her heart pounded as she considered her options. Ahead, a bridge loomed—a rickety old thing that spanned a deep ravine. Emily floored the gas pedal, praying the bridge would hold. The sedan stayed close, its headlights blinding in the darkness. She reached the middle of the bridge and slammed on the brakes. The sedan skidded, its tires screeching. Emily leaped out of her car, heart pounding. She sprinted across the bridge, the wood creaking beneath her. The sedan’s engine roared, but it was too late. The bridge collapsed, sending the car plummeting into the ravine below. Thick, acrid smoke and flames billows from the wreckage, obscuring the surrounding area. Flames lick at the twisted metal, consuming what’s left of the car. The air smells of burning rubber and fuel. Emily caught her breath, staring down at the wreckage. She’d escaped, but questions swirled in her mind. Who was the driver? Why had they followed her? And how had they known about the bridge as she walked back to her car, she noticed another vehicle parked nearby—a pickup truck with a friendly face behind the wheel. The driver an older man with a beard, rolled down the window, concerned. “Are you okay?” he asked. Emily nodded, tears welling up. “Thank you. You saved me.” He smiled. “Just doing my part. Always trust your instincts.”

That was the same advice her mother gave her before she left home. Emily missed her family back home in Cartersville, Arizona. She just wanted a change of pace from her old dreary life. Tonight was too much excitement for her to bare. Emily watched as the good Samaritan pickup truck vanished from her sight. She was still quite shaken from her ordeal. She had never experienced anything like she did tonight. Emily walked back up the road towards where her car was parked. It was late and she wanted to make it home to feed her car Midnight. From the distance she could see dark smoke coming up from the ravine. It looked eerie mixed with the darkness of the night. Emily got back into her car and slowly began to drive away. Emily never learned the identity of her pursuer. The sedan’s driver remained a phantom, lost in the depths of the ravine. But she carried the memory with her—the adrenaline, the fear, and the stranger who’d appeared just in time. From then on, Emily always trusted her instincts. She became more aware of her surroundings. When she lived home in Arizona, she never had to have a weapon to protect herself. Most of the people back home where family and friends. Moving to a different state with people whom you barely know can be really scary. Later on in the week, she decided to purchase her a gun. She went to the local gun rage and learned how to use it and handle it to keep herself safe. In case something like this would happen again she would be more prepared for the inevitable. Emily would think back to what happened that lone night on the desolate road. When the night was darkest, she’d glance in her rear-view mirror, half-expecting to see the sedan’s ghostly headlights. But it never returned, leaving her with a lingering question: What secrets had she stumbled upon that fateful night? But she also remembered the kind stranger—the one who had stepped in when she needed it most. Sometimes, in the darkest moments, kindness shines through like a guiding star.