Photo prompt @ Trish Nankivell
“They were never seen again,” drawled our loquacious guide, pulling up to the homestead of the abandoned cattle station. The hottest spot for paranormal activity in the southern hemisphere, so said the brochure.
“GONE fishing, GONE troppo, GONE to God. Take yer pick,” he continued. “Never seen again. The locals put it up. The sign. In memoriam, like.”
Twenty-five ghost hunting fanatics stagger from the steaming minibus, dodgy aircon still cranking, every one covered in red dust.
“Inside, cold beers and iced water. In yer go.”
The last to enter the house, I watched him drive away.
Friday fictioneers is a weekly challenge set by Rochelle Wisoff Fields to write a story in response to a photo prompt – in 100 words or less. You can find other stories here.
RANDOM THOUGHTS by Trish 
Love your take on the photo prompt, which is your own I believe. Well done. A little chilling, a little humour, very entertaining.
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Thanks! Happy New Year 😊
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I wonder if leaving them there was part of the tour or….? well guess they’re going to find out!
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I fear they’re not going to be happy😁
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Humour and horror mixed! Excellent take on the prompt, Trish.
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That’s scary! Well done.
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All about the cold beer! There is something haunting about being in the outback. A different world. Dumping body territory.
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Oh dear! I hate to think what happens next. Great job by your husband, taking that photo 🙂
Happy holidays!
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Creepy. Have a Merry Christmas, Trish 🙂
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Mystery solved! Twenty-five more souls added to those gone missing. Very well done, Trish. Hope you have a wonderful holiday!
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Thanks Brenda! You too 🙂
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Ah, poor souls soon gone be gone, too …
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… methinks 🙂 Thanks.
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🙂
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Great story! Sounds like the perfect setup to a horror movie. Thanks for the picture too. 🙂
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You’re welcome! My husband went on a 10 day outback drive in November. Needed to get out of the office after being stuck so much this year. He visited several pastoral stations and slept in his swag.
He said that he drove past this sign and kept thinking about it. About 2km down the road he thought “that’s a great writing prompt for Trish”. So he turned around and took the photo.
Great husband, hey?
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You’ve got him properly trained to look for prompts, I like that. 🙂
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😀 I think maybe it proves that he listens to me? A revelation!
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Nice. They may never know what really happened
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The next tour bus turns up … “They were never seen again!” 😜
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Classic horror Trish, I can see them all huddled together trying to figure out their next move as they’re picked off one by one.
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Sounds like someone is feeding the beast…
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Dear Trish,
Gone like a dog’s dinner. Nicely done.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Another twenty-five gone. A tale as chilling as cold beer.
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Ha ha. Thanks.
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Yikes!
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Now that is one killer ending, Trish!
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Thank you sir 😀
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Loved the way you built this story – I could see them. And that last line… chilling!
Susan A Eames at
Travel, Fiction and Photos
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Thanks so much.
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They can’t say they weren’t warned
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Very true
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If no one’s there, where does the cold beer and iced water come from? 🤔
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It’s a trap
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