Night descended quickly on the backside of the mountain. The one functional headlight on Brad's rusty SUV barely lit up the dark road. But inside the vehicle, spirits were much brighter. Almost everyone was still buzzing from the basketball team's victory over their biggest rival— a feat their high school hadn't accomplished in years. Darlene wasn't as excited as her friends. She was scared. In fact, her knuckles were white from gripping the armrest as they sped along the narrow two-lane switchback.

A year ago, her family had moved to Macon, a remote Kentucky town, for her dad's military job. Maybe if she'd grown up here like the other kids in the car, it wouldn't bother her that outside her door was a fifty-foot drop. She tried to not act nervous when Brad casually rested a hand on her knee. Darlene didn't mind his flirting— he was her boyfriend, but right now she preferred he kept his full attention on the road.

Turning around in her seat, Darlene brushed Brad's hand from her leg. "Anyone care if I change the radio station?"

Brad's best friend, Marty, and his girlfriend, Kiley were in the back seat. Neither one wore a seatbelt. They sat hip to hip, with Marty's arm slung over Kiley's shoulder. They slid from one side of the vehicle to the other with each tight curve. Last semester, Kiley had been Darlene's lab partner, and the two had become fast friends. Darlene was grateful. Despite being an army brat who relocated often, she was not good at making new friends, and most of the kids in this little town stuck to themselves.

Kiley nodded. "Please. I hate this song."

There were few options up in the mountains, but eventually, Darlene found a station playing music from the last ten years. Marty said, "That's good. Leave it there."

Darlene sat back in her seat and chanced a look out the window. Thankfully, it was too dark for her to see exactly how far she'd plummet to her death if Brad drifted over the line. He placed his hand on her knee again and said, "I still can't believe we won that game."

"Yeah. It kind of makes up for them beating us in football," Marty replied.

"Not quite, but what do you expect when the refs hand Pineville the game?"

Kiley rolled her eyes. "You're not going to whine about that again, are you?"

"It's not whining when it's the truth," Marty exclaimed. "Their whole offensive line was holding on that last touchdown."

"And the rest of the game when they were kicking your butts?"

"I wouldn't call it a butt-kicking when the refs gave them good spots all night. Home-cooking is what I'd call it," Marty said with a loud snort.

"Whatever."

Brad turned around to sneer at Kiley. "No. He's right. I wouldn't be surprised if Pineville's coach had paid them off."

Darlene had been at the game, but she had no idea what they were talking about. Holds? Good spots? It was all Greek to her. She'd only gone because Kiley had dragged her there to watch the guys. Brad hadn't been her boyfriend then, but they'd started dating soon after, which had been a no-brainer after seeing the way he'd looked in his uniform. And since Brad was sweet and never pressured her to do anything, the relationship stuck. He was nearly perfect, but she did wish he'd keep his eyes on the road.

"Is that a rockslide ahead?" she said as calmly as she could.

"What?" Brad turned back around from correcting Kiley. "Shit!"

Several sharp rocks had slid down the mountainside to cover their side of the road. Brad jerked the wheel to the side, steering the vehicle into the oncoming lane. Thankfully, no one was traveling in the other direction, but it was a small blessing. Brad hadn't turned fast enough to avoid the rockslide, and the rear tire hit a jagged stone. The SUV bounced into the air. Darlene screamed and grabbed the edge of her seat with one hand and the SUV's ceiling with the other. Kiley squealed so loudly that Marty had to cover his ears. The girls' response was justified. The noise from the back end sounded like an out-of-balance washing machine.

"Bro, you got a flat," Marty said. "Pull over."

"I can't. Not here, but there is a pull-out up ahead."

"Could you slow down at least?" Darlene pleaded.

Winking at her, Brad eased off the accelerator. "Sure thing, babe."

"Great!" Kiley said after checking her phone. "Now we're going to be late. I knew we shouldn't have stopped for Taco Bell."

"You could call your mom and tell her what happened," Darlene suggested.

Kiley frowned. "Maybe she fell asleep and won't notice."

Creeping along, the SUV made it safely to the extended piece of pavement used for passing or emergencies. Brad put the SUV into park and activated the hazards as they exited the running vehicle. The one headlight pointed off the side of the mountain into nothingness. Darlene's legs went weak at the sight, but she refused to let anyone know how bad it bothered her as they studied the ruined tire. No patch would fix it. Strips of rubber jutted from the rim like a windmill.

Brad shook his head. "Damn it. My dad's going to make me buy a new one."

"First things first. Where is your spare?" Marty asked him.

"In the trunk, I think."

"You don't know?"

"Sorry, bro. I've never had to change one before. Have you?"

"No."

Brad pulled out his phone and threw back his head. "Great. No reception, so we can't call a tow truck either."

Darlene meekly stepped forward. "I know how to change a tire. My dad made me learn before I got my license. The tools should be in your trunk along with the spare."

The group went around the back of the SUV, and Brad released the hatch. "Where?"

"In here." Darlene lifted the thin floorboard.

Underneath, she found a spare tire held in place by a big plastic wingnut. Stepping aside so Brad could retain some of his manhood, he removed the small tire and a leather pouch with the jack and tire iron. Explaining the process that her dad had made her perform three times before he'd hand over the car keys, she made sure to emphasize that the jack had to be placed at a reinforced part of the frame, and the nuts would need to be loosened before they raised the SUV off the ground, or they'd have no leverage. She'd learned that fact the hard way and had to lower the vehicle after she'd already raised it— a tough lesson for a girl her size, but she'd never be stranded, waiting on a tow truck.

Acting like they knew what they were doing, the boys went to work. Fortunately, the flat tire was on the inside part of the lane and not near the mountain edge. Using her instructions, they were able to remove the bad tire and put on the spare. With her friends intent on the repair, Darlene concentrated on the road ahead, looking for oncoming cars, but there was no traffic. However, something did fly over them. Darlene was surprised when no one reacted because it was big. Really big.

She took a step towards the group. "Did anyone see that?"

"See what?" Marty asked, wiping his hands on his pants after putting the bad tire in the trunk.

"I'm not sure, but whatever it was, it just flew over our heads."

"Was it a bat?" Brad suggested.

"No. It was bigger than a bat, and its eyes were shining bright red."

Kiley offered, "An owl? Their eyes shine."

She shook her head. "It was bigger than an owl."

"Owls can be pretty big," Brad replied.

Darlene glared at him. "It wasn't an owl."

Her boyfriend held up his hands. "Ok. Ok. Maybe it was an eagle. I've seen bald eagles up here before. Wait! What if someone lost their drone? They can have running lights that are red."

"It wasn't a drone either, Brad. Can't we just go? Please!" Darlene begged. This stupid mountain was getting the better of her.

"Yep. I just have to make sure the lug nuts are tight once it's down, right?"

"Right," she agreed.

Brad quickly lowered the SUV back to the ground and gave each nut one more pull with the tire iron until they groaned from the tension. While he finished, Darlene kept a watch on the dark sky overhead. A light breeze rustled Darlene's hair. She brushed the stray strands from her brow, but her attention remained on the dim heavens. What light the moon did offer was hidden behind the clouds. Kiley came to stand next to her, wrapping an arm around her waist. The friendly gesture put Darlene temporarily at ease.

Brad tossed the jack and tire iron into the trunk next to the shredded tire. As he slammed the lid shut, the thing flew over them again. It was so close she could see it was bigger than a man but roughly the same shape with wings at least ten feet across.

Kiley screamed. Letting go of Darlene, she backed up, tripped over a rock, and almost tumbled down the side of the mountain.

Marty ran to his girlfriend. "Are you Ok?"

"I don't know." She clutched her ankle.

"Is it broken?"

"Maybe sprained."

"Let me help you." Marty draped her arm over his shoulder and lifted Kiley up as her face twisted in pain.

Seeing that Marty didn't need help with Kiley, Darlene hissed, "We have to go!"

"Yeah, that thing was freaking huge." Brad scanned the night sky. "But what was it?"

"I don't know, but whatever it was, it's not normal." Darlene made her way back to her seat by sticking close to the vehicle.

However, before she could climb inside, the creature made a final pass and landed on a thin ledge across from the SUV. It folded its wings behind its back with the sound of velvet rubbing on velvet. Clawed feet at the end of long hairy legs gripped the rocks tightly. A single stone tumbled down to the road, hitting Brad's boot.

"Holy fuck!" he screamed. "It's a God damn monster!"

The thing held out a hand against the dark night, stretching out five long fingers.

The last thing Darlene was going to do was wait until it scooped them up and carried them back to its nest. Or lair. Or wherever it planned to eat them alive. No way. She was getting the fuck out of here if she had to drive the car herself. She jumped into the SUV. Thankfully, a second later, Brad climbed into the driver's seat as Darlene nervously rocked in her chair. Following right after them, Marty helped Kiley into the backseat and shut the door. Brad stomped on the accelerator and sped away, but the beast unfurled its giant wings and chased after them.

More terrified of the creature than she was of the narrow mountain pass, Darlene pressed her head to the window and scanned their surroundings for the monster. She thought she saw it gliding silently above the SUV, but it was hard to tell— everything was black. Her worst fears were confirmed when it let out an ear-piercing screech. The sound was almost inaudible; the frequency was so high. From the backseat, Kiley squealed at roughly the same decibel, "What is that thing?"

"Does it matter?" Brad took the next turn faster than he should have on the small spare tire. The back end of the vehicle kicked out before sending gravel down the steep slope. He quickly glanced at Darlene and asked, "Is it still chasing us?"

"Yes." Her eyes had never left the window.

Darlene prayed that it wouldn't kill them. She didn't want to die, not like this. She was only a stupid kid who went out with friends to watch a dumb basketball game. They'd done nothing wrong. They didn't deserve this.

If only they could get to the police station, they'd be safe. Kiley's dad was the sheriff. He had a gun. He could protect them.

Darlene asked, "Is your dad working tonight?"

"I think so."

"Can you call him?"

"Good idea." She pulled her phone from her pocket and unlocked it.

Before she could find his number in her contacts, something very heavy landed on top of the SUV. Everyone screamed, though Kiley's cries were the loudest. It had to be the monster. The sheet metal popped under its weight. Brad twisted the wheel from side to side on the next straightaway to dislodge the creature, but it didn't fall off the roof. Loud scraping sounds announced that it was using its long sharp nails to hang on. The noise was so hideous Darlene almost wet her pants.

"What do I do?" Brad shouted.

Marty yelled back, "Just keep driving; we only have a few more minutes until we're in town."

The dim glow of the streetlights shown below as Kiley continued to scream. Darlene didn't blame her, especially when the thing reached across the windshield and grabbed a wiper. Its muscular arm twisted the blade off and beat it against the glass, which didn't break, but it was only a matter of time before it did, so Darlene wasn't surprised when Brad braked hard before speeding up. His efforts were in vain. The monster still managed to hold on with only one hand.

"Bro, just drive!" Marty screamed.

Listening to his friend, Brad hunched over the wheel. He inched the speedometer up while doing his best to keep the SUV on the road. Darlene couldn't watch. Instead, she turned around and plucked the phone from Kiley's trembling hand. She scrolled through her contact list and found the sheriff's number. It rang once, twice, five more times, and then went to voice mail.

"Shit. Your dad isn't answering." She tossed the phone back to her friend.

Kiley didn't bother to pick it up as it slid off her lap and down to the floor. She'd stopped screaming, but her face was pale, and her whole body trembled. Marty held her tight, but he looked just as scared himself as he watched a crack form in the tempered glass.

The monster continued to rhythmically hit the glass until the wiper snapped in half. It tossed it aside and beat the windshield with its giant fist. Darlene broke into a sweat as the crack grew. She prayed the glass wouldn't break; otherwise, the monster could easily pluck one of them out of the vehicle to do God knows what. Darlene quickly fastened her seatbelt. She would've done the same for Brad, but she didn't want to make them crash.

When they reached flat ground a half a minute later, a bright pair of headlights lit up their SUV from the other direction. It flicked off its high beams, but only after the monster unlatched itself from their roof. With the weight removed, the metal groaned as it popped back into place. Probably unaware it had scared off the monster, a dark-colored van passed them. Darlene waited for it to return once the coast was clear, but the monster didn't. Could it really be gone? Darlene prayed it was true.

Even with the beast unlatched from their vehicle, Brad did not let off the gas. He ran the one traffic light in town. Fortunately, the street was empty. Two blocks later, they slid to a stop in front of the sheriff's station, leaving a patch of rubber twenty feet long. They all exited the vehicle like it was on fire. Not bothering to close their doors, Marty helped Kiley inside the building with Darlene and Brad trailing after them.

A deputy looked upquestioningly as they each tried to tell him their unbelievable tale first. Itwasn't a surprise when he didn't believe them, and if Kiley hadn't been thesheriff's daughter, he probably would've given them all a breathalyzer.