Have you ever seen the devil? I mean, actually stared into his eyes; stood face-to-face with him?
I have.
He’s a scowling, snarling, slobbering creature. His brow furrows deep and his eyes glaze over with frigid abhorrence as he claws at you–grabs you. Although you think his touch would be like ice, it isn’t. It’s hot…hot like the sun burning your bare skin on a 115 degree desert summer day.
You will try to turn and run. I did. But, you won’t get away. He’ll pounce on you faster than a cat on acid. His arms are abnormally strong, at least I thought they were as one wrapped around my neck.
At first, his voice growls low in your ear. “Is this what you want?”
Then he roars. “IS THIS WHAT YOU WANT?”
You will be compelled to answer, but you can’t. He’s already cutting off your air with his massive arm. You will slump to the floor, all the while you will be wondering, “Why?”
“What have I done to deserve this?”
And, you know, the truth is, there is no answer. You probably didn’t do anything. I am certain I didn’t. It simply happens. You may think you garnered too much attention from the wrong person.
Nope.
You may think you said or did the wrong thing that brought about this evilness.
Nope.
In fact, if you ask the devil what you did, he will most likely shake his head and say, “I don’t know.” Maybe, just maybe, he will have an answer for you. Perhaps one of the reasons I stated or something that astonishes you because you didn’t think a thing about it at the time, something senseless. Nonetheless, in one fell swoop, he will strip away your life and make you puke out your soul. Honestly, you will never be the same once the devil touches you. I swear this is true. The devil has assaulted me on more than one occasion.
Oddly, he always shows up when I’m happy, never when I’m sad or depressed. Personally, I think he likes shock and awe tactics. It leaves his victims more vulnerable; more open to defeat.
“Happy, huh? Well, not for long!”
He typically appears at night as a shadowy form down your dark hallway. The glint of his eyes will capture you. His sagging mouth will hold you prisoner as it arcs into a sneer that broadens to almost cut his face in half. Like I said before, you will try to run, but you can’t. Your legs will root to your floor. You won’t believe what is coming after you. You won’t believe that arm can do that to you.
After all, you know the devil. You know those eyes and the curve of those lips. His face manifests from the face of someone else…someone filled with hatred that you never knew they possessed.
It’s the person you love the most. Your significant other. Your spouse.
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©2011 T.A. Branom
T. A. Branom is a freelance writer living and working in the breathtaking Columbia River Gorge in Washington State and has been published in print and online venues including Flashes in the Dark, The Molotov Cocktail, Fictitious Magazine, and various Static Movement anthologies. She’s also a columnist for Unexplained Mysteries.
Visit her website http://www.home.earthlink.net/~branom201/.
Tags: T.A. Branom
November 29th, 2011 at 12:14 pm
You already know this makes me angry. But you made a good story of it.