blood orange sky (bwwm horror)

sunken treasure

Calliope awoke to the faint light of dawn filtering through the thin curtains of her trailer. She stretched, feeling the stiffness in her muscles from yesterday's fishing trip, and swung her legs over the edge of the bed, feet brushing the cold floor. Everything seemed calm, but something felt... off.

Yawning, she glanced through the window and froze. Her car, sitting just outside, was noticeably lower on one side. She squinted, rubbing her eyes, and then the realization hit her—*the tires were flat.*

"Are you kidding me?" she muttered, quickly pulling on a hoodie and sliding her boots on. The morning air was crisp as she stepped outside, and her stomach dropped when she got closer to the car. Both front tires were completely deflated, looking as though they'd been slashed or punctured.

"Damn it," she cursed under her breath, kneeling beside the car to inspect the damage. The rubber looked like it had been torn apart. Panic started to bubble up as she ran her hands through her hair, standing up and pacing. She had no idea how this had happened—had she run over something on her way here?

With a sigh, she pulled out her phone, hoping to call for roadside assistance. But when she swiped up, her screen flashed a red alert: 

No service.

"Of course," she groaned, shaking the phone as if that would somehow make the signal return. After a few futile minutes of trying to reload the network, her phone buzzed again—a notification reminding her that her data was completely used up for the month. She cursed again, more loudly this time, feeling the weight of isolation pressing in on her.

Her mind raced as she tried to think of her next move. Without service, there was no way to call anyone, and there was no way her car was leaving this spot. The thought of being stranded here with no way to fix it sent a shiver down her spine. She wasn't familiar enough with the area to know how far help might be, but she couldn't stay put.

She sighed, scanning the dense woods surrounding the clearing. She'd have to find someone—anyone—who could help. Maybe there was a cabin nearby. She'd noticed the remoteness of the area, but surely someone had to live close enough to offer assistance.

After grabbing a jacket and stuffing her useless phone in her pocket, Calliope set out into the woods, her boots crunching against the fallen leaves as she made her way down a rough path that led away from the trailer. The morning air was crisp, the kind that woke you up fast, but her nerves were still humming from the discovery of the flat tires. She tried to shake it off, telling herself it was just an accident.

As she walked, the trees closed in around her, their tall forms blotting out the rising sun. She had been walking for what felt like half an hour, her breath coming in quiet puffs as she pushed through the underbrush. The idea of being lost out here without her car or a working phone gnawed at the back of her mind, but she pressed on.

And then she saw it—a structure, barely visible through the trees. Her heart skipped as she caught sight of the rough wooden cabin, tucked between the thick trunks, smoke curling lazily from a chimney.

Hope surged in her chest as she quickened her pace. She wasn't alone out here after all. There was someone nearby—someone who could help.

She approached the cabin cautiously, trying not to appear too frantic, though her nerves were on edge. As she got closer, she noticed how worn-down the place was. The windows were fogged, and the front porch sagged slightly with age, but it looked lived in.

She stopped at the edge of the small clearing in front of the cabin, unsure whether to knock or call out. For a moment, she hesitated, her eyes scanning the cabin's rough wooden walls. Then she took a deep breath and stepped forward, raising her hand to knock on the door.