The Ladies of Horror
Picture-Prompt Writing Challenge!

My mother used to warn me,
“Never go to the shores at dusk.
Never listen as the waves lull you in.
Ignore the gentle wind gesturing this way.
It’s all a trap, his vicious game.”
I would laugh and frolic in response,
but her warnings always bit at my heels,
dug deep into the sands left behind my footprints.
When the sun would melt into water
and the wind played with my hair
I ran home,
but I didn’t run home today.
Instead, I stood mesmerized before a shipwreck.
The golden pink skies fell softly against broken wood,
the sands whispered of love and loss.
My body folded against the hand of the wind,
the laughter of children melted my soul.
For a moment, I was here,
but then shadow fell.
Something cold ripped from my chest.
I opened my eyes and saw his ghostly hands painted crimson.
My heart a dark red gem.
As he turned to disappear into the dark blue waters,
I fell back into the golden sands.