Short Stories

*Warning: there are slight mentions of rape, readers and viewers are advised.*

Albert hid in the shadows as he watched the older man leave, leaving his wife behind. Making sure the close was clear, he found a way into the house from an open window with a black mask covering his face, only exposing his eyes and mouth. He hid in the house until he watched her, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Noting that she was hallway cornered, he jumped out from the hidden shadows of old furniture.

"Tell me where you keep your money, old lady, now," Albert violently protested in a deeper disguised voice.

With the belt in his hand that he had previously worn on his pants, he watched as the older lady backed up slowly until her back reached the back wall, scared but trying to hold her guard.

"Not a chance, sonny; my husband will be back from his errands. We'll call the police."

He chuckled, "Not going to happen; I saw him leave not too long ago."

Stunned, the older lady didn't say a word as he got closer to closer to her, fear creeping on her face, knowing she was cornered.

"I'm giving you one last chance, Grandma; hand over the money in your safe," he stated as he whipped the belt and saw her flinch.

"Never," she protested.

Grunting, he ran behind her, strangling her as she tried everything she could to break free. Her eyes were getting bloody, and he tightened the belt, but it wouldn't kill her. In an instant, he grabbed the gun from the back of his pants and let go of the belt as she gasped for air. He flashed in front of her and shot her two times in the chest, killing her instantly. He cleaned up and wrapped her body up in lots of trash bags. After searching the house, he found the safe, found a way to open it, and took the money and the keys to her car. After piling all the evidence and her body in the trunk, he drove away to find a place far away to bury her and the evidence. But little did Albert know that his plain getaway would come to a pause.

He threw me down to the ground as he climbed on top of me, and I watched him slide my pants down to my feet. I started to scream and panic, hitting him as much as possible, not wanting anything but what was about to come.

How did I get here?

It all started with me being in my apartment late autumn afternoon.

Feeling content and happy, I couldn't decide what to do for dinner after spending all afternoon cleaning up. It's about to be dinner time soon. I heard my stomach rumbling as my white kitten Snowball started to meow at my feet. I giggled as I leaned down to pet her. I thought about dinner for a moment, deciding to go for some fast food.

I spoke to her as if she could understand me, "I'm going to go grab dinner at Burger King, girl. I'll be back soon, okay?"

I need to remember to go food shopping soon since I don't have much around to eat. Snowball purred against my hand as I giggled and petted her before I got off the couch. I ensured I had everything I needed, including shoes; I walked and locked my apartment door. I'd ensured Snowball had food and water in the kitchen, however. On the way to Burger King in my red PT Cruiser, I blasted "She Will Be Loved" by Maroon 5 through my cell phone via Bluetooth. I liked listening to music while singing along, especially while driving, as it makes doing things more fun. After a while of driving on the highway, I immediately pulled out of my singing zone at the Burger King drive-thru. I had ordered a Whopper combo with medium onion rings and a large Dr. Pepper. When my order was ready, I took my food and sat in the parking lot as I ate and listened to music on the radio.

After finishing my dinner, I got on the highway to go back to my apartment. I was singing "You Belong With Me" by Taylor Swift when someone behind me started honking their horn rudely. The person's car slammed into my back car bumper, which pushed me to go forward. This caused my car to violently bump into another vehicle in front of me. I quickly pulled over to the side of the road as the person in front did. I grabbed my phone and got out as I glanced to see a man in his late twenties beside his light fender bender on the grass. I sighed, peeking in the front of my car to see my front bumper dented and the front of the vehicle damaged. I focused on his car damage, which was the same as mine.

It seemed like a dead person was wrapped in trash bags in his trunk! I've watched enough crime shows to know stuff like this. It was outlined in the shape of a body, and I could practically smell the blood in his trunk, which was strong. I couldn't tell whether the body was male or female because the trash bag covered the head, and there was nothing I could tell to distinguish the gender. There was a belt with blood and a forty-five caliber gun, probably filled with bullets, towards the back of the trunk, along with a black mask and lots of money. I shrugged my shoulders as I tried to remain calm, not wanting to make it a scene for him to notice what I saw. On the inside, I was scared---I felt my heartbeat increase inside my chest. What if he was a murderer? Should I even say anything to him? Would he kill me, too, if he finds out I know?

Within a minute, I got the courage and approached the man, "I'm sorry about the damage and crash. Some person behind me acted like an idiot, pushing me forward and making me hit your car."

The man seemed fidgety and nervous because he wouldn't stop moving his hands, also shuffling his feet around when I explained what had happened.

The man stuttered, responding, "It's all right, trust me. I know how r-rude people these days can be. If-if you w-want, I can p-pay for your damage also. You look like a young l-lady without m-much money."

I smiled kindly, thinking it was nice of him to say something of that nature.

"S-sorry, my name's Al-Albert; what's y-your name?"

"I'm Alexandria, but you can just call me Alex."

We respectfully shook hands as his hands felt sweaty, too---something was up with this guy. My eyes kept wanting to return to the body within his trunk. What was he doing with it? Is he a murderer? And yet again, should I tell him? I started to freak out in my mind, unsure what to do. Instead, I decided to ask him honestly about it boldly.

"Why's there something that seems to be a dead person in your trunk?"

I instantly regretted asking him that.

"T-t-this isn't my car; it's my grandma's. She let me b-borrow it since my c-car's being repaired. W-what was the q-question?"

I sighed, thinking it was a lie; I could tell by the look in his eyes and how he was acting. He's trying to cover up his tracks from his crime and get away with it! Did I just crash my car into a murderer and interrupt his escape plan? I looked down at my phone to see that I had gotten a text from my best friend, Selena. I quickly texted her back, telling her what was happening, asked her to call the police for me, and gave her the address where I was. By the time I finished with that, I heard the trunk of his car close as he looked at me with an evil smirk. Uh-oh. He told me to walk straight, where no one could see us. I felt something against my back. Oh my gosh, is he holding the gun from his trunk? I walked into the woods nearby. I stopped and turned around.

Albert put the gun against my throat as I gulped with slight fear, "If you tell anyone what you saw that I killed that person, you'll be the next victim."

My breathing became quicker as I felt a pit growing in my stomach. He threatened to kill me, but it was too late now because I had already told my best friend and he didn't know. I know she'll call the police for me. I took notice that he stopped stuttering. His hand started going up my shirt, down to the hemline of my blue jeans. He threw me down to the ground as he climbed on top of me, and I watched him slide my pants down to my feet. I started to scream and panic, hitting him as much as possible, not wanting anything but what was about to come.

This is how I got to be where I am currently. I saw an ungodly look in his eyes as my whole body felt frozen seeing the gun in his hand. Oh, Jesus, I've seen this before on television a bunch of times. He's going to rape me, and nothing I'm doing so far stops him. He unbuttoned my shirt as he started to kiss my neck, going downward. I screamed, hitting his head, trying to break free from his firm hold.

"P-please d-don't...I-I don't want this," I exclaimed, terrified.

"Someone, please, help me," I shouted into the air.

My screaming became louder and louder as he put his hand to cover my mouth, and I heard, "Put the gun down and put your hands in the air now!"

I lifted my head to see that it was the police, finally.

"Let the woman go now!"

I said softly, looking at the officers, "Please help me."

Albert stood up and quickly tried to run, but the officers pinned him to the ground before he could escape far. They put his arms behind his back and handcuffed him as they stood him up. A good-looking young officer approached me and helped me up as I watched Albert being taken away to the back of the cop car.

"Are you all right, ma'am," the friendly officer asked.

I nodded my head as I put my clothes back on while he stood guard. I walked with the officer back to his cop car to be questioned. The friendly officer, named Nathan, interviewed me about everything that happened. I told him about what I saw in the trunk of Albert's car. Little did I know that it would be a long process after this.

~~~~~

On that same day, the friendly and handsome officer named Nathen explained to me that Albert was a cold-blooded murderer who escaped from jail years ago and was never found until that day. As time went by, the police and detectives found out that Albert had killed an old lady who wanted to rob her. When the old lady refused, he started to choke her with the belt, which didn't entirely kill her. So, he grabbed the gun and shot her two times in the chest. He took her money from the safe and the keys to her car in a safe, driving away with her body wrapped in trash bags. This explains the black mask and the money I also discovered. He was planning to bury her somewhere far away when I unfortunately bumped into him and crashed.

The car and money were also alarmed to be missing from the old lady's husband that same day when she was killed since he called the local authorities and reported it. It turned out from forensics that the gun had a fingerprint that returned to Albert, and the blood spotted on the belt was the old lady's. This ties him to the crime; there's no going back. Much later, I had to go to court with the police and detectives for Albert's trial since I was an after-witness. The judge had ruled Albert to be charged with second-degree murder, aggravated robbery, and attempted rape from my case. He got sentenced to jail for life with no possible parole, so I'll never see him again as long as I live. But the horror and experience I witnessed with him will always stay with me. The dead body I discovered in the trunk is a day I'll never forget.