Author’s Note

This is my final draft! I have developed my story a lot since my first draft – I added a couple pages and changed parts of the plot. My inspiration for this story was detasseling, as this will most likely become apparent after reading my piece. My goal is that you, as a reader, will find parts of my story sinister and can empathize with the mood of the story. I hope that the foreshadowing I use is successful and that overall, it’s an intriguing, suspenseful piece.

 

Gloria Ovwigho

“The Man in the Cornfield”

English 2, Block 8

 

The car sputtered, and with one final sickening lurch, stopped in the middle of the road. Are you kidding me? Eric thought, as he hopped out. He performed a quick visual check on the car, but nothing atypical caught his eye. Flipping through the vehicle manual was no aid. Unlike some other men, the gears and gadgets had no place in Eric’s brain. Although it was sunset, the heat beat down on him nonetheless. He fidgeted with some of the car parts for a long time, but to no avail.

He checked his nearly-dead phone, and there was no service. He looked out to the prairie surrounding him. There wasn’t anyone for miles. Cars aren’t driven on this rural road very often. It was utterly barren.  A mild sense of panic began to set in. The heat and trepidation further burdened Eric’s addled brain. He was traveling to his parent’s house for spring break. He had been so relieved to have a break from medical school, but this was an awful start to spring break. He was already exceedingly worried about his medical boards coming up.

He meandered on the deserted road, trying to think. He decided to start walking in the hopes of finding someone. He continuously planted his feet one in front of the other on the compact, searing pavement. Momentarily, Eric thought he was the last person on earth. He suspected the sun would disappear soon, and sweating profusely, turned back and headed to his car, where his supplies were. It is not wise to be alone on the road at night. His plan was to wait until dawn, then head out when it was cooler and safer. If that didn’t work, his parents would surely notice he hadn’t arrived. He sipped water as the last of the sun’s rays peeked out of the sky, then nearly vanished.

Briefly, he went through the manual again. Before he knew it, a blanket of darkness encompassed his vision as dusk commenced. This gave the atmosphere a more ominous feel, but Eric was at least thankful for the break from the sun.

Suddenly an alarming scream pierced the air. Eric ceased all movement, like a Pointer dog that senses something, and focused on his surroundings. He didn’t hear any other sounds. From the shriek he heard, he couldn’t deduce whether it originated from a human or animal, male or female, but he could most certainly tell it was full of consternation. Filled with worry about the screamer, he tried to recall which direction the scream came from, and concluded it came from the cornfield.

He felt dubious on whether he should go searching for the screamer. Recalling his recent psych class, he had learned about bystander apathy. Eric refused to be “that guy”, the one who doesn’t help. And anyway, this was good practice for when he works in medicine. Besides, the screamer might be able to help him out of his situation as well. Hesitating again, Eric proceeded into the cornfield.

The glow of the moon was barely visible in between the towering stalks. He crept through the rows, bringing his arms up every so often to rub at where the corn plants scratched him. The hair on his neck rose. Suddenly, he felt something jab him in the neck. Whisking around as fast as lightning, Eric yelped. After a brief moment of observation, he chuckled to himself, realizing the perpetrator was just a corn leaf poking him in the neck. I swear, this is just like a horror movie.

Eric thought he was going crazy. The songs of nature alleviated the apprehension from this situation, though – the whoosh of the gentle breeze rushing through the corn stalks, the occasional bird call, and nocturnal animals rustling in the leaves with crickets chirping along. He meditated on these natural melodies to calm his frazzled nerves.

This relaxation didn’t last for long, however. Something about the air had changed, and he could sense something else was there, putting him on edge. Every rustle that sounded produced a startled jump from Eric.

Eric was about to turn back and return to his car when he heard a distinct sound, almost like that of someone clearing their throat. He stopped in his tracks, then whipped around quickly, and saw the silhouette of a man. A sharp, instinctive gasp escaped him.

“Have you seen the person that screamed?” the raspy voice croaked out.

“No. Have you?” his heart was pounding in his chest.

“Obviously not or I wouldn’t have asked you that question.”

This man seemed pretty derisive, but Eric needed help immediately. Eric told him about his situation, and asked if he could give directions or help with his car. The man paused for a moment, thinking. Then barely audibly uttered, “Follow me. My truck is near here. I might have car supplies that could help you.”

Eric thought this whole ordeal was sinister. He didn’t know anything about this man and yet, he was following him like an obedient puppy. He could hardly see the man, although the twilight moon gleamed brightly. Then again, Eric didn’t have a choice. The stressful events of this whole day were so unexpected. Lucky me, Eric thought.

The man continued leading Eric to his truck. Or at least, that’s what Eric thought.

~

They emerged from the cornfield. Eric saw a dilapidated truck nearby. The man told him to wait there, then advanced towards the vehicle. He searched his truck quickly, then returned empty-handed.

“I’m sorry. I don’t have anything to help.” The man seemed distracted, as if deep in thought. Eric was puzzled by the slight look of distress in his eyes. His mind seemed elsewhere. Suddenly he looked at Eric and said,“You didn’t see why that man screamed, did you?”

“No, I – ”

The man quickly stepped towards him, his eyes shooting daggers. “You didn’t see anything, did you?” Eric protested again, but the man was incredulous. Eric was utterly baffled.

“Look, could you maybe drive me to the nearest gas station?” Eric desperately asked. The man grunted, barely acknowledging his presence. “Or do you have a phone I could borrow?”

After a moment of silence, the man said, like he had before, “Follow me.” He started walking off. Eric was incredibly uncertain, but this man was probably his best option.

“Come on, now.” The man ushered him on.

The man was leading him to someplace nearby the cornfield, which Eric found peculiar

Eric asked “Where are we going?”. The man just grunts.

Finally, they came to a tattered tent, that looked well-lived in. Part of the front entrance was open, and he could make out empty food containers. What really caught his eye was the row of knives, gleaming in the moonlight. The tent could be a home. Maybe this man is homeless. Eric was skeptical – but especially of the knives. His mind momentarily went to a dark place, and he wondered what the man could do to him with those silvery sharp weapons. He shivered slightly. Forcing himself to take deep breaths, he pushed those traumatizing thoughts out of his mind.

“Wait here a second.” The man said, reaching into the tent.

“I really didn’t see anything happen to that other man.” Eric’s words escaped him before he could think about it. The man stopped reaching and just stared solemnly at the ground. He seemed to be deciding whether to believe Eric or not.

Suddenly the man’s eyes met his, nearly startling Eric. He started to ask “What would you do…”

Eric was fretful about what the question would be. The man rarely addressed him, but when he did, it was usually full of aggravation. “..if someone found out one of your darkest secrets?”

“I don’t know…” Eric nervously shifted his eyes away from the man’s intense stare.

“Well, let me tell you what I would do.,” He rubbed his chin. “Bad things would happen to that person.”

Eric’s mind was reeling. Why was this stranger asking him these random questions?  Why did he have all of those knives in this tent? And why was there a horrible scream before?

He was done following this deranged man around. Eric was about to take off, when the same panicked shriek pierced the air. Their heads snapped to see down the road, where the sound had come from. A figure was hobbling and wheezing. Eric was shocked, and shifted his glance to the man next to him to see his reaction. The man’s eyes widened in recognition at the screamer, then narrowed into enraged slits.

The screamer trembled in agony. Eric was so petrified at the sight, he was paralyzed. His eyes bulged, and he shook with horror when he saw the screamer’s face. It was the most gruesome thing he’d ever seen. The screamer had deep welts around his left eye. The dark bruises near his eye were just barely visible due to the blood covering every inch of the left side of his face and gushing down to the pavement below. The most horrific part was the knife-mark in his bloody, veiny eye.

“Help me.” He hoarsely hollered, gurgling blood. Eric was petrified. He had spent months in medical school and yet, was still scarred at this gory sight.

The man that was next to him rushed to his truck, and hopped into the driver’s seat. The ignition roared to life and the truck jolted to a start. The vehicle zoomed down the road and a dull thud was heard as the wheels rammed over the screamer’s body.

Eric’s head instinctively snapped away at this sound. Before he could think, he turned around and took off. He had had enough baleful experiences to last him a lifetime. The man was hostile before but now that Eric had seen what he did to the screamer, he was going to be out for murder. He sprinted so fast, his lungs could barely take in oxygen quick enough. This was too much – too, too much. His lungs were heaving, and his mind was racing. He didn’t even know where he was going – just somewhere away from here.