Echoes Of The Unseen

PROLOGUE

The sky was darkening as rain began to fall, tiny droplets tapping softly on the windshield. Inside a small sedan, a young woman in her early twenties drove with a distant look in her eyes. Her 5 year old daughter sat in the back, quietly clutching her stuffed toy, her feet swinging back and forth in the air.

"Mommy, when will we be home?" the little girl asked, her voice soft and innocent.

The woman didn't answer right away, her hands gripping the steering wheel tightly as if anchoring herself to reality. Her mind was somewhere else, weighed down by heavy thoughts. She glanced at the rearview mirror, catching a glimpse of her daughter's curious face.

"We'll be there soon, sweetheart," she murmured, her voice distant.

Rain started to pour more heavily, blurring the view ahead. The wipers swished back and forth, struggling to keep up. The woman's mind drifted again, her focus slipping from the road as her thoughts spiraled deeper.

Without realizing it, the car began to veer slightly into the opposite lane. From a distance, the sound of a horn blared, loud and threatening.

She looked up, startled, just in time to see a massive lorry barreling towards them, headlights glaring like two angry eyes.

Her heart dropped. Panic surged through her, and she yanked the steering wheel to the right, trying desperately to swerve back into her lane. But the road was slick with rain, and the car spun out of control.

In that split second, everything seemed to move in slow motion.

The lorry tried to brake, its tires screeching against the wet road, but it was too late. The massive vehicle collided with the side of the car in a deafening crash.

The sound of metal crumpling, glass shattering, and the brutal force of impact filled the air.

The car had swerved wildly, tires screeching as it veered off the road and onto the gravel shoulder. The young woman slammed on the brakes, but the car was moving too fast.

Inside the mangled car, silence followed.

The impact was brutal. The windshield shattered, glass flying like deadly shards. The force of the crash threw the woman forward, her head slamming against the steering wheel. Blood poured from a deep cut on her forehead, staining the dashboard.

Her body was motionless, trapped by the seatbelt. The little girl in the backseat screamed, her tiny voice cutting through the wreckage. Her seatbelt had saved her from the worst, but her mother wasn't moving.

In the backseat, the little girl screamed, her small body trembling as the car came to a jarring stop. She looked up through tear-filled eyes and saw her mother slumped over the steering wheel, blood dripping down her face.

"Mommy!" she cried, unbuckling herself and crawling toward the front seat, her small hands shaking her mother's arm. "Mommy, wake up! Please, wake up!"

The rain poured harder outside, masking the girl's sobs. The road had turned into a chaotic scene, with cars slowing down and people rushing out to help. A driver from a nearby car called for an ambulance, his voice trembling as he gave directions.

The little girl's tears streamed down her cheeks as she continued to shake her mother's arm, her voice growing desperate.

"Somebody help! Please! My mommy's not waking up!" she cried, her voice cracking with fear.

A woman ran up to the wreck, her face pale as she peered inside the crushed car. She knelt by the open window and reached out to the little girl, her voice gentle but urgent.

"It's okay, sweetie. Help is coming. Stay with me, okay?" she said, trying to soothe the child while glancing at the unconscious mother in the front seat.

The little girl clung to her mother's arm, her tiny fingers gripping tightly as if refusing to let go. "Please... please wake up," she whispered.

In the distance, the sound of sirens grew louder, but to the terrified little girl, it felt like they were still too far away.