Plan A

Sam opened the passenger's side door of his pickup truck and helped Elizabeth into the cab. He shut the door and Elizabeth waited patiently for him to start the engine and take off.

She took a good look at Sam and noticed he was wearing blue jeans, a flannel shirt, and his favorite hat. He was such a country bumpkin, but Elizabeth loved him. He had shaved, which she was thankful for. The whiskers on his face always pricked her when they kissed.

Sam pulled off onto the interstate and drove a good ten miles before they reached a practically deserted exit.

"Can you tell me where we're going now?" she asked.

"Not yet. We're almost there."

Elizabeth slumped in her seat and stared out at the empty fields and tall grass that made up the "scenery" of this area.

After five minutes of driving down County Road 09, Sam turned down a no-name dirt road that was hidden under a canopy of trees.

"What?" Elizabeth asked, unsure of what exactly to ask. She thought for a moment and rephrased.

"What are we doing here?"

"You'll see. You are going to love it."

They drove down the dirt road at a little under five miles per hour. It seemed like forever, when Sam finally pulled over into a grassy null.

"Here we are," he smiled.

"What are we doing?" she asked, a little concerned that they were so far from town.

"We are going to have a picnic by that little stream over there," he said, pointing toward a dry creek. "Then I thought maybe we could dance under the stars and cuddle."

Sam was such a romantic and Elizabeth began to blush. She couldn't think of a sweeter date she had ever been on.

They exited the truck and Sam took a blanket he had used to cover all the food and set it on the ground. Inside a wooden basket, Sam had brought sandwiches and all kinds of different picnic food. She was surprised when he pulled out a bottle of whine and poured her a glass.

"Where did you get that?" she asked with a sly grin.

"The cellar when dad wasn't looking," he said. "I don't think he'll know it's missing."

"Is that so," she said, sipping the white whine. It had a unique taste. She had drank wine before, but expected it to taste more like beer. It was sweeter than beer and a lot easier to take down.

"Do you like?" he said, lighting a few candles as the sun began to set in the distance.

"I love it," she said, gently laying back into his arms. She turned her head to kiss him on the lips and he gently leaned forward.

"Thank you," she whispered. "I needed this."

A crunching sound disturbed the calm of the forest and jostled the two lovers.

"What was that?" Elizabeth asked, sitting up and staring blankly into the woods.

"Probably just an animal sweetie. I wouldn't worry about it."

"Does anyone live out this way?"

"In the middle of the woods? I doubt it."

Elizabeth decided to ignore the sound and fell back onto Sam's chest. She sipped her wine once again, but dropped the glass when she heard a much louder crunching sound from across the creek.

"That one seemed closer," she said in a hushed voice.

"It did. I'll go check it out. You stay right here. Could be a deer and I'll just scare if off."

Elizabeth watched as Sam moved toward the darkness. The candles illuminated their little area of the forest, but beyond the blanket Elizabeth could barely see a thing. She could see the shadowy outline of Sam getting closer to the edge of the creek.

"Ahhhh!" Sam yelled as he felt something slam into the back of his head. He fell to his knees, cowering before his unseen attacker. Sam tried to regain his footing, managing to get into a squatting position when he felt another blow crash against his neck. He was out cold.

Elizabeth remained on the blanket, afraid to move. She could hear Sam struggling in the distance, but wasn't sure what to do. A figure came out of the woods, dragging something in his wake.

"What do we have here?" the figure asked as it stepped closer to the candles. Two more shadowy figures crept forward. Elizabeth could make out Sam's body lying on the ground.

"Leave him alone," she screamed, inching away from the figures. They moved in closer and Elizabeth grew startled. They were men; big men. The one in front wore overalls and was covered in dirt. His greasy hair and beard looked unclean and filthy. The figure to the left...the one dragging Sam...had on a pair of jeans an a stained tank top. His head was shaved bald and tattoos covered the entire length of his arms. He was grinning behind a cigarette. The man on the left wore a brown jacket and no shirt. His jeans were covered in holes and a small chain dangled from his belt loops. He had a red bandanna wrapped around his head and a long mustache that curled down to his chin.

"Looks like we hit the jackpot," said the one on the left. The man on the right flicked his cigarette in Sam's direction and laughed.

"What's a pretty girl like you doing in the middle of the forest? You bringing some pies to granny?"

They all roared with laughter, grinning with yellowed teeth.