The Ladies of Horror
Picture-Prompt Writing Challenge!

Way Out
by Nina D’Arcangela

There it was, just ahead. I saw him drop it, but the rumble had started, so I knew better than to go for it. The wake of its passing flung my body against the wall, the air shattered around me. The ground shook so hard that the cloud of rising dust choked the breath from my lungs. Tears streamed from my eyes, but my mind stayed sharp. I knew where it was, I just had to get there.

As the quaking subsided, and the station settled, I looked again – yes! It was still there, and in better shape than me. I began to crawl toward it, the noise in the tunnel cranked up a notch, but eye on the prize, right?

I was almost there when the commotion echoing off the brick and tile grew deafening. But I didn’t care, that french fry was probably the only food I’d find this day. A rat’s gotta eat, and no better place than where humans gather. Such filthy creatures.

So I dove for it, coming up just shy of the rail; the fry – still out of reach in the gravel. But no matter, I’d be there with a quick jump. Little did I realize that I wasn’t the only one doing a swan dive. As my clawed hand stretched for that out-of-reach morsel, the light grew dim. I glanced up just before the body slammed onto the tracks. My final thought, at least I don’t have to worry about eating tomorrow.

.

Fiction © Copyright Nina D’Arcangela
Image courtesy of Pixabay

More from Nina D’Arcangela:

Mental Ward: EXPERIMENTS

A dank basement, shadow filled hallways, the deep echo of a metal latch being thrown while faint screams are heard… These are the things you might experience in a place where the unspeakable happens, where conscientious action and moral turpitude turn a blind eye in the interest of advancing one’s own personal pursuits in the most deranged and unjustifiable manner. The type of place where power corrupts, and depravity runs rampant among those imbued with it. A place where the unfortunate are abandoned to the devices of those who convince themselves their actions are in the best interest of science.

Mental Ward: Experiments is a collection of ten short stories that demonstrate the worst of humanity’s ambition in the interest of ‘civilized’ advancement. Step into a world where sanity is left behind, and horror is what the doctor ordered!

Available on Amazon!