The Shuddering

by Ania Ahlborn

The drips of blood that trailed him like scarlet breadcrumbs assured him that this wasn’t a dream.

The clouds that had been thousands of feet overhead were suddenly nothing but a fog slithering around the bases of tree trunks, whispering across a glistening onyx tarmac.

Before he had enough time to process the scope of what was happening, the monster began to eat, pulling entrails out of Pete’s belly like an unbroken cord of sausage. A scream ripped its way out of his throat.

The sun, which had been absent all day, was now setting over an invisible horizon, and the endless gray that blanketed the sky grew heavy with impending night.

her tears shining like diamonds upon her cheeks.