The Ladies of Horror
Picture-Prompt Writing Challenge!

The Stairs to Nowhere 
by Kathleen McCluskey 

It was a crisp October evening when I found the stairs. They started abruptly at the edge of the forest, leading down into the dark, tangled undergrowth. The sun’s dappled sunlight shone majestically through the bountiful branches. Curious and emboldened by the fading sunlight, I descended.

The stairs creaked and groaned underfoot, each step resonating like a whisper in the trees. The forest seemed to swallow the sound, leaving an unsettling silence in its wake. I noticed the wood of the stairs, ancient with moss covering the edges. The air grew colder with every step.

I’d heard the stories, of course. Everyone in town knew about the stairs that appeared out of nowhere and led to nowhere good. The legends spoke of disappearances of those that ventured down and never returned. But stories were just that – stories. I needed to see for myself.

About halfway down, the light dimmed significantly and the canopy above thickened. The trees loomed closer. Their branches reached out like skeletal fingers. An unnatural chill swept up my spine and I paused. I actually thought of turning back but the stairs seemed to pull me forward. An invisible force that urged me to continue. As I descended further, I noticed the forest floor was no longer visible. A dense fog had rolled in, swirling around the base of the stairs like a living entity. My heart pounded in my chest, each beat echoing in the silence. Then, I saw them. Shadows moving in the mist. I strained to see but they were elusive, flickering in and out of existence.

I heard a voice, indistinct and ghostly, calling my name. Panic surged through me, but I couldn’t turn back now. I was too far in. The voice grew louder, more insistent. I quickened my pace, the stairs groaned louder in protest. Suddenly the fog parted and I found myself in a small clearing. In the center stood a dilapidated house, its windows dark and devoid of life. The stairs ended sharply at the entrance, as if depositing me at the doorstep of some unforgotten realm. The voice that was calling my name was now clearer and coming from inside.

Against my better judgment, I push open the creaking door. The interior was dark and the air was thick with the scent of decay. I took a cautious step inside and the door slammed shut behind me. I was enveloped in darkness, the voice now a whisper in my ear.

“You shouldn’t have come,” it said.

I turned to leave but the door was gone, replaced by a solid wall. Panic clawed at me as I fumbled for an exit, any exit. The voice continued, its icy breath on my neck. “They all come down the stairs,” it hissed. “But none of them ever leave.”

I realized then that the stories were true. The stairs didn’t lead deeper into the forest, they led to a place far darker. A place where shadows lived and voices called. A place where escape was impossible. I was trapped, another victim of the wooden stairs that led the curious and the brave to their doom.

As I sit here and write this, the darkness closes in. I can hear the faint creaking of the stairs above, beckoning another soul into the depths of the haunted woods.

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Fiction © Copyright Kathleen McCluskey
Image courtesy of Pixabay.com 

More from Kathleen McCluskey:

The Long Fall: Book 1: The Inception of Horror

Lucifer always cunning and intelligent challenges father to a battle of wits. Being the angel of light he casts a judgemental eye upon mankind. He begins a war with his fellow archangels and God. Michael, along with his siblings defend their home and mankind from their deranged brother. Broad swords and hand to hand combat drench heaven in blood. The four apocalyptic steeds are released, each having their own destructive power. Betrayal and lust are at biblical levels. Understand the very creation of evil and the consequenses that transpire in the first of THE LONG FALL series.

Available on Amazon!