Louis froze with fear as he stared at the deadly message he just read. His throat was dry and he felt a sharp pain in his throat as he tried to swallow. Jake called out to Louis even louder the second time as he was getting pretty impatient. Louis hurriedly got back into the car and threw the phone into Jake’s lap.
‘Thanks man. Whats up with you?’
‘Er…nothing. Let’s just get out of here, okay!’
‘Sorry you had to see…you know…’
‘Yeah yeah, lets just go now’
Jake started the car again and set off while Simon tried to make a call with their dead friend’s phone. Simon couldn’t make a connection either and said he would try a liitle later so as not to drain the battery. Louis deliberately didn’t want to cause a panic with the new information only <i>he</i> knew about. He sat quietly but kept fidgeting uncontrollably. Jake kept his eyes on the road but Simon noticed Louis’ suspicious behaviour.
‘Why are you so edgy Louis? You’re biting your nails and…’
‘I’m fine. Just try making another call, alright!’
‘Ok. Don’t worry, we’ll get through this.’
Louis didn’t believe that. He believed he was marked for death. He just wanted to know how to prevent it. He was too scared to look at the face-embedded trees they kept passing so he looked straight ahead. Suddenly he could feel the car slowing down.
‘What are you doing?’
‘It’s not me. Oh sh*t! We’re almost out of petrol! Not now for f**k sake!!!’
The tank inevitably became empty and the car stopped. Simon kept asking what they were going to do but Jake and Louis didn’t know what to say. They all tried their mobile phones again and they were desperate to hear a familiar voice at the other end. Indeed they got more than they bargained for when they heard a muffled voice in the car. No one admitted hearing the sound at first but suddenly there was a continuous bang coming from the boot of the car. It was a male voice crying to be let out. Simon sat up anxiously. The banging was getting louder and more aggressive with each passing breath.
<BANG!><BANG!> <Jake! Hello! Simon! Louis! Get me out of here!>
‘What the f**k? That sounds like…that sounds like…Vince?’
‘That’s impossible. Vince is DEAD!
<Is that you Jake! let me out! guys! can’t you hear me?> <BANG!><BANG!> <Jake, Simon c’mon let me out! Louis please!…it’s dark in here!> <BANG!><BANG!><BANG!>
‘He’s trapped in the boot guys! We’ve got to let him out’
‘Simon, Vince is dead! You saw it, I saw it, Louis saw it!’
‘Can’t you hear him or is it just me! He’s alive! He was alive all along! We need to get him out!’
<BANG!><BANG!><BANG!> <Please guys! Let me out!!!>
‘Be my guest but i’m staying put. This shit is all f**ked up and my head is really f**ked up’.
‘Well I can’t take all this banging anymore. I’m going to get him out. You guys are unbelievable’
Simon gestured to open his door but <Photo 1>Louis commanded that he stayed in the car. The banging was increasingly becoming erratic. When Simon refused Louis shouted at him and blurted that Vince and the old lady were not in the boot when he went to get the phone earlier. Jake and Simon were stunned after Louis spoke. They both looked at Louis with a puzzled expression but strangely enough the banging had coincidentally stopped.
Before anyone could say a word, they heard a sound like a key unlocking. The creaking sound came from the boot and all the guys simultaneously turned to the rear windshield to see what would happen next…
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The boot unexpectedly burst open with a thunderous bang…
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…everyone one in the car gasped and they quickly locked all the car doors
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Simon sunk into his back seat and started muttering a prayer…
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Louis crouched as much as he could but Jake trembled as he looked in his rear view mirror…
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At first he saw the opened boot but he noticed four shriveled fingers at the top edge…
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In a split second, the fingers slapped the boot shut to reveal the bloodied, darkly dressed old lady
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and this time…she wasn’t smiling…