The Camping Trip

His mind keeping him from drifting away, Liam crawled out of the tent, careful not to make too much noise. He didn't want to wake Alison, who was sleeping peacefully in the sleeping bag beside his. Her back was turned to him, having opted to go to bed as soon as they came back from their afternoon hike. With the trek having ended with Alison sliding feet-first into a bush of poison oak, it wasn't surprising that she wanted to turn in early after smothering her thighs in ointment. But Liam's thoughts kept him from following her into a deep slumber, so he thought he'd get some fresh air and a look at the stars.

Congrats, Liam. First day in the forest and Ali's got scraped knees and itchy legs. This trip was supposed to be our chance to start over...

It had been a rough couple of months for the young couple, starting when Liam lost his job to the pandemic lockdown. Not long after that, Alison's mother died after a lengthy battle with the virus. Between the fresh grief, financial troubles, and fruitless attempts to find new employment, the atmosphere in Liam and Alison's apartment was akin to a taut wire ready to snap. So when Alison got the chance to finally use her vacation days from work, Liam proposed the idea of them going away together to decompress. Letting her choose their destination, Liam wasn't too surprised when Alison settled on camping in the wilderness. He remembered his wife regaling her with tales of when she and her father would spend their summers hiking into the woods and living off the land for weeks.

I'll bet her camping trips with Pops were better than this one, Liam thought before a gurgling in his stomach snapped him out of his self-pity. The hot dogs he'd cooked for dinner weren't settling right, so after fishing a roll of toilet paper out of his duffel bag, Liam hurried over to the bushes to take care of business. After he finished and tossed the used paper into the designated garbage bag, Liam turned back to the log he was sitting on--and was surprised to find a piece of paper and a flashlight had taken his place. As soon as he picked the paper up, Liam could tell Alison had written the message on it:

Follow my trail to a special surprise. XOXO

Confused, Liam picked up the flashlight and shined it around the area. It was then that he found the "trail" Alison's note referred to. Their hue a stark contrast to the coarse brown dirt, a line of rose petals led into the forest. Giddy at the prospect of the night ending on a good note after all, Liam took the flashlight and began following the red floral leaves into the woods. Even as he ventured deeper into the dark and foreboding forest, Liam's carnal desire prevented him from recognizing the potential danger he was walking into. The only time Liam's head was jolted back to reality was when something flying past his face sent him stumbling backwards. Looking up, Liam caught sight of a barn owl coming to rest on a high tree branch. The owl gazed down at Liam and gave off two harsh shrieks, almost as if it were teasing the man for being so easily frightened by a bird.

In a burst of anger, Liam grabbed a nearby rock and hurled it up at the tree. It narrowly missed hitting his nocturnal foe, but the near hit was enough to send the owl flying away with another shrill screech. After collecting the dropped flashlight, Liam directed his attention back to the petals. His journey didn't take him much further before he could see the trail end at a gnarled tree. As he got closer, Liam gagged as a sudden putrid smell overtook his nostrils. Fighting back the urge to vomit, Liam noticed another piece of paper sticking out of one of the tree's knotholes. Pulled it out and unfolding it, a shorter message greeted Liam:

Look behind me.

Liam giggled as he discarded the paper and made his way behind the tree. "Damn, Ali, did you have some of those hot dogs t-"

Liam couldn't finish his joke as he went around the tree. What he saw sent him back into a fit of gagging. Behind the tree was a freshly dug-up hole--and beside it laid a corpse. The skin was a rotted shade of green and the skull was bashed in, revealing what was left of the deceased's brains. After vainly fighting to hold it back, Liam regurgitated what was left of his dinner onto the forest floor, doubling over as he tried to catch his breath.

Then a sharp whack to the temple sent Liam falling to the forest ground. He screamed as he landed inches away from the foul remains. Scrambling up to his knees, Liam came face-to-face with his assailant.

"Ali?" Liam's wife stood before him, a scowl on her face and a pistol gripped tightly in her hand. Before Liam could question her further, Alison fired a bullet into her husband's shoulder. Falling backward as he howled in pain, Liam toppled over next to the hole as Alison stepped closer to stand over the wounded man.

"Ali, why!?" Liam's plaintive cry only deepened the scowl on Alison's face. Instinctively, Liam pointed his flashlight at Alison, illuminating her stony countenance. In the additional light, a halfway-healed bruise on Alison's cheek could be seen. Liam's chest heaved up and down as he stared into his wife's merciless eyes.

"You really thought this trip would make me forgive you? You're just like my father." As Alison said that, she cast her icy gaze down into the hole. When Liam turned to look down into the pit, he saw another dead body lying at the bottom. This one, however, had clearly been in the makeshift cemetery for much longer, as evidenced by its lack of skin.

That was the last thing Liam saw before another shot rang out, with the resulting bullet piercing through the man's head. Without a moment's hesitation, Alison kicked Liam into the hole, sending his fresh body falling down next to the skeleton. She then did the same to the fresher cadaver she'd used for her "surprise," creating a pyramid of dead men waiting to be covered with dirt. As she dropped the gun down into the hole to join her victims in burial, Alison looked at the lifeless face of her dearly departed husband.

"But don't be too hard on yourself, Liam. My ex-boyfriend thought a camping trip could make up for beating me too."