Jessica's Intrusion

    Jessica walked through the dark, lonesome woods; she was lost. Jessica wandered away from the camp to go exploring. As she walked on the twisted dirt path, the moon’s luminous light led her way.
    A small movement near the path's edge caught her eye. Jessica paused, trying to see what moved in the shadows. As she slowly walked closer, a black cat sauntered out of the bushes and crossed the path directly in front of her. Jessica jumped in fright and her heart skipped a few beats. Once the shock of the cat's sudden appearance wore off and Jessica's heartbeat returned to normal, she spoke at the cat, "you are lucky I'm not superstious." Jessica smiled at how an innocent kitty had scared her so much. She began to walk along the path again, trying hard to find the way back to the campsite. 
    Jessica saw a glow in front of her, deep in the woods. It was off the path that she was walking on. The decision to stay with the path or go off on her own weighed heavily on her mind. Jessica wanted to know what caused the mysterious spark but she also was afraid to leave the path.
    Jessica finally chose her desired course and walked into the thick trees off the path. As she moved closer, Jessica saw that the glow was a campfire. New hope filled her soul; she was not lost anymore. Jessica walked closer and then paused to glance around her; she hoped to catch a glimpse of someone, anyone at all, but no one was around. Her heart sank; she was still lost.
    Jessica decided to sit down and rest next to the fire. She needed to think about what she was going to do next. At first, the sound was faint, barely heard. Jessica thought she had imagined it. A tree moved, someone or something was out there. She at first thought it was the black cat again, but the movement the tree made was by something much larger. Jessica was scared, so frightened that she could not move.
    The noise grew louder. It was moving in on her. Closer, closer, closer and closer it came; soon whatever it was, would be in the open area by the fire and by Jessica. The frightened girl stared in silence as it emerged from the trees. Her face showed pure terror. One large scaly hand reached for her. Jessica’s scream grew into a startling silence.
    He turned toward the fire, his large frame formed an eerie shadow from the flames. He put his razor sharp fingers towards his mouth and tasted the blood that still clung to the long nails. He smacked his lips, savoring the blood sliding down his throat. He slowly crept away from the clearing, back into the shadows and silently began to wait.
    The quiet, peaceful night continued. The stars brilliance shined down from the black dome of the sky. The moon continued to shine down on the silent woods as the black cat sat down and began to clean his paws in the glow of a lonely fire.