The Ladies of Horror
Picture-Prompt Writing Challenge!
I Should Have Noticed
by Rie Sheridan Rose
The river was like copper glass in the cool early morning of sunrise. I always tried to get out on the water as early as possible—to avoid the summer children splashing, and the motorboats breaking up the stillness. The reflection of the tree line was mesmerizing as I slid my oar through the glassy water. Forest above, forest below…swathed in the mist of dawn.
The silence struck me then. The absence of birdsong. One of my favorite things about my early morning rides was the chorus of bird calls. I lay the oar across the gunwales, straining to hear even a single song.
All at once, the mirror shattered as the river erupted in a burst of rising water and angry growls. Scaly arms grabbed me out of the canoe and pulled me into the river. I didn’t have time to grab a breath as they whisked me into another sunrise. The reflection hadn’t been perfect. The trees were not the same.
I should have noticed the sentinel watching for prey…before I became it.
.
Fiction © Copyright Rie Sheridan Rose
Image courtesy of Pixabay.com
More from Author Rie Sheridan Rose:
Overheard in Hell:
Dark Poetry
Poems exploring hell and damnation. Tales of sorrow, vengeance, betrayal, and redemption. Ghosts, ghouls, and demons stalk these pages. Don’t read in a lonely house…in a darkened room by a single candle…
…unless you like the touch of an icy finger up your spine.
Spreading the Writer's Word 
An excellent story.
Really clever interpretation of the prompt. I was totally lulled by the first paragraph as I have a boat and, being a night owl, the reflections of dusk are captivating – might look at them a bit more warily next time we’re out on the river. 🙂