The Widow Weaver

word count: 1993

The Widow Weaver

           

         Standing waist deep in the river, Ethan observed with admiration as Dylan jumped off the side of the bank and did a back flip, producing a flawless entry into Ole Blue. Glancing back up on the bank, he noticed that Josh had plopped down with his back up against a tree, surreptitiously eating snacks that were supposed to be for all of them.

                   “Hey Josh,” Ethan said. “Why don’t you give it a try?”

                   “Nah, I’m good,” he replied.

         Josh, who suffered from indolence, didn’t have much use for outdoor activities unless it involved pizza. He reluctantly went on this hike so he could be with his best friends.

         Dylan, on the other hand, was in outstanding shape. He was an extraordinary athlete and quite popular with the girls. He was hoping to make an impression this football season with the college scouts that were maintaining his progress.

         Dylan scrambled up the bank, getting ready for another jump. The sky behind him looked threatening, as dark rolling clouds were altering the sky.

                   “Maybe we should get going and look for a place to camp,” Ethan said. “It looks like we are going to get a storm and it’s starting to get dark.”

                   “Christ Ethan, you take the joy out of living,” Dylan said as he winked at Josh. However, Ethan could see Dylan agreed with him.

                   “Don’t worry, I know of a cave up a ways that we can camp in tonight,” Dylan said. “I remember seeing it last fall when me and the old man were up here deer hunting.”

         Ethan, who secretly endured arachnophobia, didn’t like the idea of camping in a cave. He absolutely hated spiders and thought there must be creepy spiders crawling all over that cave. He liked his chances better camping in open ground, but he also knew they probably weren’t going to be able to setup camp without getting drenched.

         He looked at Josh who was wiping Oreo crumbs off his face.

                   “Well Josh, what do you think? Does Dylan’s cave sound good to you?”

                   “If it’s gonna rain, I want a roof over my head. I don’t want my food to get wet,” Josh said.

                   “Some of that is ours, you know.” Dylan said laughing. “C’mon Ethan, it will be fun, I promise.”

         Dylan had no idea how mistaken he was.

         Two hours later and no sight of Dylan’s cave that supposedly was no more than a half hour hike from Ole Blue. It was raining steadily and they were soaked. Dylan had the only flashlight and navigating through the woods was difficult, even with the assistance of a full moon. Josh was lagging further and further behind. He was trying to be a good sport, but Ethan could tell he was miserable and cold. Dylan, more embarrassed than miserable, was trudging on, determined to find that elusive cave.

                   “Dylan, seriously we can’t do this all night,” Ethan said. “Let’s just find a spot, get our tents up, and get out of these wet clothes.”

                   “I know it is taking longer than I thought,” Dylan replied, “but I know we have to be close.”

                   “Forget it. I don’t give a shit about the damn cave.”

         Ethan was determined to put an end to this fantasy about a cave.

                   “Ethan, you’re such a drag! So it is taking longer than I thought. Why don’t you ---”

                   “Guys, guys, hold on a sec”, Josh said holding his hands up while squinting over his shoulder.

                   “I see a light.”

         Josh moved between them and pointed his finger in the direction where he detected the light.

                   “Right there.”

         Sure enough, there was dim light that was just scarcely perceptible through the woods and pouring rain.

                   “You’re right Josh,” Ethan said.

                   “Let’s go check it out,” Josh said. “Maybe they will let us in until the rain stops. Chances are they have something to eat too. I’m starving.”

         Dylan didn’t want to admit finding the cave was probably futile. He realized the light would give him a chance to save face.

                   “I say let’s do it,” he said.

                   “Ok,” Ethan muttered. Thank god he thought to himself, as a wave of relief swept over him, thinking he no longer had to torture himself over the imaginary spiders in the cave.

         The boys crept closer to the light and noticed it was a porch light attached to a humble, unremarkable cabin with a modest patio. They took their packs off and proceeded to the door. Dylan was about to knock when the door opened suddenly.

         Standing in the doorway, was an exquisite woman wearing tight black shorts with a matching half t-shirt that was even tighter. Her black hair ran down to the middle of her back. She had dark brown eyes and had a pierced navel where a large ruby was adorned.

                   “Well, what do we have here?” she asked.

         The boys just stared at her, momentarily speechless, before Ethan finally managed to speak.

                   “Sorry to bother you ma’am, but me and my friends were out here hiking and sort of got caught up in the storm. We saw your porch light and were kind of hoping you would let us in and wait out the storm.”

                   “Of course you can come in. My place is tiny but it’ll get you out of the rain.”

         Dylan walked in first smiling at the host. She returned the smile as she took her hand and played with her hair.

         Ethan thought her behavior was strange since she was apparently by herself and three young men just knocked on her cabin door at night in the middle of nowhere.

                   “Boys, my name is Bella....Bella Weaver. And who might you be?”

         “My name is Ethan. This here is Josh and the guy standing next to you is Dylan.”

         She shook Ethan and Josh’s hands firmly, but with Dylan, she offered her hand to him daintily. The move was not lost on Dylan.

                   “Let me get some extra chairs from the bedroom so we can all sit.”

                   “I’ll help you,” said Dylan.

         As Bella and Dylan were retrieving chairs, Ethan surveyed the cabin. It was sparsely furnished with two rooms and a bathroom. One was a bedroom and the other was a larger room that functioned as the kitchen, dining, and living area.

         Josh was in the kitchen and was opening the door to the refrigerator when Bella and Dylan came out with the chairs.

                   “What the hell are you doing Josh,” Dylan asked.

                   “I’m starving,” he replied. “This fridge is completely empty. What do you do for food Bella?”

                   “I don’t eat very much. It’s necessary to keep my figure.”

         This is getting even stranger, thought Ethan. They were miles from the nearest store and she has nothing for food. He also realized there wasn’t a vehicle parked outside. How the hell did she get here anyway, and why is she by herself?

         They settled around the dining room table, Dylan took to one side of Bella, and Josh, munching on more Oreos, on the other. Ethan, feeling a little uneasy, elected to sit opposite of Bella.

                   “Bella, is there a Mr. Weaver?” Dylan asked as ran his fingers along her forearm.

                   “I’m a widow. Mr. Weaver passed away some time ago. Why, are you interested?”

         She smiled and started playing with his hair.

         Dylan, sensing opportunity, kissed her gently on her lips. She responded eagerly which made Dylan embrace her fully.

         What the hell is going on, thought Ethan as he awkwardly glanced away.

         Josh, who was having his own love affair with his precious Oreos, was oblivious to what was going on a couple feet away.

         This was too much for Ethan. He got up and headed for the door. Before he opened the door, he turned around one final time and the image he saw almost dropped him to the floor.

         Dylan’s eyes were wide open with a look of horror on his face. The blood was bubbling from his mouth as Bella ravaged his neck.

         Bella’s appearance was changing rapidly. She was expanding and growing new appendages. Her eyes were becoming a fiery deep orange.  Her skin was turning a sleek black. The ruby she had at her midsection grew and was shaped like a red hourglass. Within seconds, her metamorphosis was complete. Bella had turned into a black widow.

         Leaping on the table, she turned her attention on Josh. He was sitting an arm’s length away staring at the enormous spider helplessly terrified.

                   “Oreo?” he asked her hopefully, as he raised one towards her in a last effort to save his life.

         Her stare at Josh deepened as she lifted one of her longish legs and pointed it within inches of Josh’s face. Stricken with panic, Josh was immobilized. Then, in a flash, the black widow fired her leg through Josh’s mouth like an arrow. He was killed instantaneously. His face was a frozen picture of fear.

         Ethan, who was standing by the door, sat there incredulously, unable to move, utterly terrified. Then instinctively, recognizing his life was in peril, he fumbled with the doorknob to get out.

         Hearing Ethan’s clumsy efforts, the black widow slowly turned from Josh’s corpse and was now fully focused on Ethan.

         Ethan managed to open the door and swung around and saw she was coming straight for him. He slammed the door behind him and started to run, only to trip on one of packs they left outside. The pack tipped over and the flashlight tumbled out. Rising up, Ethan snatched the flashlight and started running. After a few moments, he took a quick look behind him. The door was still shut. The black widow was nowhere to be seen.

         After what seemed an eternity, Ethan stopped running. He was bent over with his hands on his knees trying to catch his breath. Maybe, just maybe, he lost her, Ethan thought. He switched the flashlight off so he would not attract the black widow. He sat motionless and strained to listen for any sounds to indicate she was still pursuing him.

         Sitting there, he sensed something dripping on his head. It’s beginning to rain again, he thought to himself as he felt his head. The wetness on his skull was sticky. Instantly, his pulse raced furiously. He turned the flashlight on and looked up. There, hovering above him was the black widow, staring at him with her hellfire eyes, saliva dribbling from her mouth.

         He once again was running for his life. The black widow pursued him in the trees above. She’s playing with me, Ethan thought, I can’t run much further.

         Then, abruptly, it emerged. Dylan’s cave. Ethan hastily went inside and made a hurried inspection. It was the size of a small house with debris from past campers and hikers strewn about.

         He frantically looked for something among the litter he could use as a weapon. The black widow interceded and threw him, knocking him hard on the cave floor. Ethan rolled over on to his back, as he did he felt a prodding pain. He reached behind him and discovered it was a tent pole. Lingering above him, the black widow was hanging from the ceiling, menacingly staring at him. Then in an instant, she viciously descended on him with intent to murder him. Ethan, simultaneously, took the tent pole and thrust it deep into her abdomen. She shrieked with excruciating pain as the deathblow hit home. She gazed at Ethan with disbelief as her body weakened. She stumbled to the floor. Her body slackened and went limp. It was over.

         Lying there for a moment, Ethan could not comprehend what had just happened. He sat up and buried his head in his knees, crying uncontrollably for a long while. He eventually stood up and noticed a small spider at the mouth of the cave. Ethan smiled as he carefully walked by and headed for home.