Read No Evil: Anthology of Terror

ManBearPig

This story was contributed by henry_scott

Beth woke with a start. Her surroundings were oddly silent. From the lack of light, it must still be nighttime. She sat up, momentarily forgetting where she was until her head scraped the side of the tent. She found herself cold, alone, and zipped up tight in a sleeping bag.

Now, she remembered. She had retreated to the woods to clear her mind. Nature always brought everything into perspective for her, that and the half-empty bottle of whiskey lying next to her pillow. Her boyfriend of two years had dumped her. She thought Matt was the one, her soulmate, but he wasn't, so she had to get away from everyone and everything.

Before she could lay back down, she heard a growl. It was low, deep, and chilled her to the bone.

Was that a bear? They were common in Northern California. She'd heard horror stories of bears eating people alive. She wondered how long you could live, screaming as they chomped on your insides? One minute? Two minutes? As quietly as she could, she dug in her backpack for the gun.

She heard it again.

It was closer this time. Every muscle in her body clenched up in fear. She was an experienced outdoors person, so her food was hung high up in a tree at the edge of the camp. However, there had been those teenagers that had arrived right before dusk. Had they left food out? Probably. Now their stupid mistake would get her killed.

At the bottom of her pack, her fingers brushed against the cold metal of her pistol. Slowly, she extracted it, turned off the safety, and cradled it in her lap.

She waited. The forest was too quiet. Not even the sound of bugs buzzing or crickets chirping.

The side of the tent pushed in, followed by more grunting. She fought for control of her bowels. When she knew she wouldn't need new underwear, she brought the gun up and aimed it at the side of the tent, but her tormentor had retreated, and she couldn't shoot blindly into the night. What if it wasn't a bear? It could be a drunk kid trying to play a prank on her.

An ear-piercing scream shook the forest. It was so loud it rattled the very marrow in her bones.

Her broken heart fell into her stomach and stopped beating. The scream sounded inhuman. It was the worst thing she'd ever heard. Her underwear would be wet this time.

A full minute went by, but nothing else happened, so she undid the tent seam and stuck her head out. The clearing was pitch black; the full moon hidden by the cloudy night. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a dark shape move away from her. Hurriedly, she exited the tent and got to her feet. The shadow stopped its retreat. Using two hands, she steadied her aim on the menacing shape. Slowly, her eyes grew accustomed to the night. Whatever it was, it was big. Real big. Tall and wide. And standing on two legs.

It took a step towards her. Then another. Bears could walk on two legs, but not when they felt challenged. It would charge her on all four legs like a freight train. No. This had to be a man.

"Who's there?" She yelled.

No response.

"I have a gun."

It took another step closer.

"Stop or I'll shoot you."

Two more steps and a grunt.

Stupid. Why hadn't she thought to grab the flashlight from inside the tent? It was only a rough shape in the night, but she was now convinced it was a man.