A short teaser from a larger story, "The Forest" was written as an assignment for my Creative Writing class, where we had to pick an image, and create a story using concrete imagery to paint a vivid picture in the reader's mind. Here you will read, word-for-word, what was turned in for my assignment, and what will eventually be translated into a much larger, mystery/horror/drama novel that will leave you gasping for air and begging for more. For more information about this work, please visit http://www.thejessicafelts.com/blog or follow me on twitter at http://www.twitter.com/thejessicafelts for updates.
When Jane Madarang's neighbor Natalie kills herself and leaves behind cryptic instructions, it's up to Jane and her classmates to unearth deadly secrets.
*****
Natalie Driscoll is dead.
She threw herself out a window and left her neighbor Jane to unravel their town's darkest secrets. Following Natalie's instructions leads Jane to three other high school students who all have something to hide. The four of them must carry out Natalie's final errand while solving the mysteries written in her diary. But the secrets they unearth may be far more dangerous than what they ever imagined.
Content and/or trigger warning: This story contains scenes of suicide, violence and murder that may be triggering for some readers.
[[word count: 100,000-150,000 words]]