Inveiglement, Tangela Williams-Spann
Updated: Aug 17, 2021
CW: violence/bodily harm
The elders warn about the whispers.
There are voices that beckon from the wood during full moon nights. Sweet, syrupy tones tempt you away from your senses and into the forest’s bosom. There are stories of children being lured away, of spouses that never return.
They never describe the cloying smell of berries that grabs your attention first. You inhale greedily just as the angelic whispers reach your ears. They promise fame, wealth, love, lust. All your hearts’ desires; there in the trees. All can be yours. It’s waiting there.
Mist oozes from the surrounding forest, it obscures your vision, but you don’t mind. Temptation and seduction are your primary thoughts now. They all but have you.
Drunk from the heady aroma and sweet sounds, you don’t notice the red eyes when they appear. Bright and sharp against the surrounding darkness, the eyes follow your ill-fated steps. They monitor your progress into their realm. The elders never mention this.
Several pairs of small, clawed hands shoot out to greet you at the tree line. The stories don’t mention the rapture of the creatures as they rend your limbs from your torso. Their pleasured shrieks carrying well into the night.
Tangela Williams-Spann is a mental health and wellness blogger as well as the mother of an autistic person. She has worked in special education for over fifteen years and is currently completing coursework towards a masters’ degree in Special Education at Grand Canyon University. She began writing poems and short stories in elementary school and continued to let words move her into action throughout her life. Her first book, Sad, Black, and Fat: Musings from the Intersections, will be released in August 2021. When not writing, Tangela enjoys reading, crochet, and playing video games.