Phantasmagoria: HazMat

“I’m sorry, Ma’am. You might have it too, now.”

Lily was shoved belly-first into her steering wheel. Her breath exploded, a whoosh she heard before the sound of bumpers colliding reached her ears. Her forehead bumped the wheel hard enough to raise a bump. Her seat belt held but the airbag hadn’t deployed. Looking into her mirror, she realized that she’d been rear-ended.

Lily had already stopped at the red light several seconds ago, so she hadn’t even thought about the black car that had been following her for several blocks. Looking back, she confirmed that, yes, that was the one that rammed her.

She watched a mature man in an overcoat get out of his car then wobble to the front fender, which he leaned across for support, looking as if he was about to be sick.

As she reached for her purse, Lily pulled on the door release. The door caught then made a metallic click as she pushed it open. She wondered how much more damage had been done to her vehicle. Her baby. She’d owned the late-model Nissan for less than a year, but it had performed well. Lily hoped it was repairable. She also said a quick prayer that the old man in front of her possessed decent insurance. It had been all his fault.

As she walked toward him, the man coughed into his hand. Had he been injured? Or maybe…