Why Are You Here?

Lisa McCreed first noticed the woman in black at the gas station in her Georgian home town. The woman looked very out of place in her old fashion dress, complete with hat and a dark veil concealing her eyes. Lisa got chills seeing this walking version of some Victorian past. She shook thoughts if this strange woman out of her head, removed her credit card from the pump, and left.

Lisa drove the three blocks to her destination, wheeled into a parking place at the hardware store, her heart filled with the excitement of seeing her boyfriend, Ryan, who worked there. She went in and saw him inventorying the small hand tools. They had a quick conversation about where to go for dinner, finally deciding they would cook themselves at Lisa's apartment. Ryan said he'd be happy with anything she decided to prepare. She was happy with their decision, and with a quick kiss goodbye, she exited the store.

As the door closed, Lisa smiled and began the walk to her car. Looking around she was startled to see that oddly dressed woman in black coming toward her with her hand outstretched. Lisa felt a moment if panic, like she wanted to turn and run back to Ryan. But instead, she quickly decided that she wanted to know who this woman was and what she wanted. Lisa went straight up to the beseeching woman and asked, "Do I know you?"

The woman remained silent but continued to reach until she grabbed Lisa's wrist. The woman's grasp was like a vise and and icy cold. Then the woman spoke, softly and eloquently, "Why are you here?". Real panic now ensued Lisa's entire being. Escape is all her mind screamed...this must be a crazy person. Lisa jerked her arm away from the crazy woman and ran to her car as fast as her feet could carry her. As she got safely into the car, she looked to see if the crazy woman had followed her. The woman in black remained in the same spot, but was beckoning to Lisa with a hand wave.

Lisa backed out and left as quickly as possible. She knew her driving was erratic, so she slowed down. At the red light a block down the street, she kept her eye on the woman, still on the sidewalk, still beckoning to her. Her mind conjured up all kinds of things as to why this woman had fixated on her. Lisa shivered, but chalked it up to being just another southern crazy lady. After all, the south was known for many strange and unusual people and customs. She proceeded on to the grocery store. In small southern towns, everything is close by, so her trip was short. She parked, got out, and retrieved a shopping cart from the nearby corral.

Once inside her unease went away and she began planning her dinner menu for the evening. She decided on filets and shrimp with a salad and cheese biscuits. Lisa took her time gathering everything she needed for the meal, then headed to the checkout. She remember that she'd need a dessert, so she changed course and headed toward the bakery part of the store . She argued with herself whether to get a cherry pie or cake and ice cream. She finally decided that the cherry pie was the best for their meal. She looked up and there in front of the glass dessert case was something her mind could not comprehend. The woman in black stood there patiently waiting, hand outstretched towards Lisa. Lisa could still her her voice, echoing in her head, "Why are you here?".

Lisa's absolute panic returned. She abandoned the shopping cart and ran for the doors. Her mind filled with the terror of knowing this woman was following her, stalking her. But why me her mind screamed at her. Why me? She fumbled her phone from her purse, dropping it twice as her frantic fingers pressed the buttons. The call to Ryan finally went through as she jumped into her car again. Ryan answered and she told the tale of this odd woman to Ryan through a barrage of tears. Ryan took a couple of minutes to calm her down, then told her to head to her Dad's house in Greenville, about 30 minutes away. The entire time Ryan was talking, she kept her eyes on the door, but did not see the woman. Ryan said he'd take care of this threatening woman. Lisa agreed, pulling out of the grocery store parking lot, travelling the three and a half miles, and made the right turn onto Highway 109 toward Greenville.

Ryan went straight to the stores owner, Mr. Hamer and explained an emergency had arisen and he needed a few minutes to get something straightened out. Ryan promised it wouldn't take but a few minutes and he'd be back by 3:30 pm. Ryan left, headed towards the grocery store where Lisa had last seen this woman in black. As he turned into the lot, he immediately saw the woman for himself. He thought that she must be insane to be dress in a black wool dress in the hot Georgia summer. Filled with anger, he pulled up close, almost hitting the woman, threw the car in park, and jumped out.

"Lady, why are you harassing and following my girlfriend?", Ryan screeched at the woman.

The woman in black raised a black gloved finger to her lips and said, "Shhhhhh...no need to raise your voice. I was not harassing Lisa McCreed, I was just surprised to see her still here in LaGrange at this late hour."

Ryan was very confused at this point. He said, " So you know my girlfriend, Lisa? And why were you surprised to see her here?"

The woman in black calmly said, " I only know her because I am Death. And I was very surprised to see her, because... " She pause to check her watch, " I have an appointment with her at exactly 3:30pm on highway 109, just outside the town of Greenville." With that, the woman turned walked three steps, the black veil wafting back and forth in the sweet southern breeze, then disappeared, leaving a screaming Ryan in the parking lot, alone.