We were driving through dimly lit roads in a rural patch of Vermont, heading back to Massachusetts after a fun weekend getaway. My wife Molly sat in the front passenger-side seat, and our two kids Kaley and Bobby were buckled in behind us. A woman in a white dress on the side of the road just ahead of us caught my eye. She extended her hand out in a hitchhiking motion. I slowed down.
“Honey, what are you doing?” Molly said, concern in her voice.
“This woman is out here all alone. We should see if she needs any help or maybe a ride to the next town,” I responded.
I pulled over and rolled down Molly’s window. The woman smiled and leaned in.
“Is everything okay? Do you need like a lift or anything?” I asked.
“Thank you, Lord Jesus, you have made your presence known with the appearance of this lovely family.”
The woman turned her attention to the kids and then back to me. A smile stretched across her face.
“If you don’t mind, I just need to go another mile or two,” she said. “My name is Sally Silver.”
“Sure, come on in,” I replied. “Kaley, can you scoot into the middle next to your brother, please.”
Before entering the car, Molly clenched my arm and gave me the are you sure about this stare. I nodded.
“So, what are you doing out here anyways?” I asked as we drove back onto the road.
“I’m here to save you and your family.”
I chuckled nervously. “What do you mean by that?”
“The devil is here on this earth, so it is time for us to ascend. God is ready to welcome us. We must enter his kingdom before the devil claims us.”
“Dad!” Kaley shouted.
I glanced at the rearview mirror. Sally had her arm wrapped around Kaley with a knife just below her neck. I slammed on the brakes, and Molly and I craned our necks towards Sally.
“Keep driving, we are almost there,” Sally said, pressing the tip of the knife gently against Kaley’s skin.
“Please don’t hurt her,” Molly murmured.
“We don’t have much time. Pay attention and listen to me carefully. I have specific instructions for you,” Sally said.
I put my foot on the gas and continued driving. Beads of sweat formed on my hands, making it hard to maintain a grip on the steering wheel.
“There’s a tree up ahead on your right. You will bring your car up to fifty miles per hour and crash into it. God will be waiting for us on the other side.” Sally turned her head and looked out the back of the car. “Hurry, he’s almost here. Do not let the evil take you.”
I contemplated my options, try to be the hero dad and risk Kaley being stabbed, or do as Sally said. I wimped out and accelerated. I was hoping Molly and I would take the brunt of the impact, and that the kids would suffer minor injuries, but to my foolishness, I was wrong. And Sally had the upper hand.
Seconds before I crashed into the tree, I heard clicking noises. I looked down to my right and noticed Sally had unbuckled Molly’s seatbelt. She had done the same to the kids. I slammed on the brakes, but it was too late. Everyone around me went tumbling like dolls in a dryer. Molly was impaled in the windshield. Bobby’s head crushed and flattened with the top half of his body limp over my shoulder. Kaley upside down in the back with pools of blood clouding her face.
When reality sunk in, I wailed and shook so loudly, I thought I might die of a heart attack. As the tears came pouring out, Sally sat upright in the back and stared at me. There wasn’t a scratch on her body. Her eyes turned black, and a red snake-like tongue slithered out of her mouth.
“Welcome to hell,” she said.
I was unable to speak. Fear took hold of every part of my body. Sally stepped out of the car and walked back onto the road. She vanished moments later, as I just stayed in the car and cried for the next hour. So my advice to you is, if you ever come across a woman hitchhiking named Sally Silver, don’t let her in.