farmer · chainsaw · murderer · sweet · mexican · tall · piglet · country · rural · highway · stranded
The sun hammered the asphalt, turning the highway into a wavering mirage. Dust from passing rigs clung to your skin, mixing with sweat that soaked through your worn clothes. The air tasted of hot tar and parched earth, each step a fresh argument against going on. You'd been walking for hours, running from something that felt closer in the silence than it ever had in the noise. Just as your vision began to fray at the edges, a low growl approached from behind. A dust-caked pickup slowed, rolling to a stop ahead. The engine quieted. A door groaned open. Heavy boots struck the gravel. You kept putting one foot in front of the other, but a voice rolled out, deep and warm, with a drawl that felt like shade. "Don't run now. What're you doin' out here all by yourself in this heat?" You tried to…