The fox turns its head and looks at me as I’m running close behind. A flash of lightning dances upon its bared teeth and then comes a roar of thunder followed by the sound of cracking wood and the smell of burning. Kicking off my shoes, the branches of the trees reach out and strip me of the rest of my clothes. As naked as a newborn, I skip over the fallen logs and roots that jut from the ground like teeth. Barking at the grey sky, the fox quickens his pace as do I. The branches continue to reach for me. They snap at my skin, cutting me. My feet are torn to ribbons and a stream of blood dribbles down my chin onto my chest from where I’ve bitten my tongue. Barking again but louder this time, the fox shakes its head and growls at something unseen. Getting closer to him, I can hear the grumbling in the back of his throat, and as another deafening roar crashes like a giant cymbal rush, I see movement off to my right but daren’t look in case I tumble. Then a rouge branch reaches out and whips me across the cock. Screaming out a lungful of agony, my legs turn to jelly and I feel myself falling. Arms outstretched, I begin my prolonged descent. Taking longer and longer strides, my center of balance crumbles and I’m left bracing for the impact of earth and stone and gnarled tree roots, but the impact doesn’t arrive as all around comes a sea of growls followed by a chorus of barking that pierces the stillness between each blast of thunder as one by one a wave of foxes appear darting beneath me just as I’m about to go face-first into the ground. Like a magic carpet, they take me on their backs and I’m left grabbing hold of their fur to stop myself from being sucked away. Licking me with their jagged tongues, with each flash of lightning their eyes beam in the darkness as the sun makes way for the moon, and as my fox leads, each flick of his tail lets the others know which direction to take, and deeper into the woods we go as the taste of electricity fills my mouth like a kiss.

A Journal for Damned Lovers UK

A Journal for Damned Lovers US

Anthology UK / Anthology US