 THE HIGHWAY TRAP

Season 1 – Episode 5: “Shades of Blood”
By Antoinette L. Johnson | RealityDundidItAgain™ | Queenflix | RCCOIN

—

[INT. GAS STATION – NIGHT]

The camera pans across a dimly lit gas station off Route 380. The fluorescent lights flicker, casting eerie shadows across the cracked pavement. A radio hums quietly with static and old rock tunes.

Antoinette (32, alert and fierce) leans against the car, watching the people around her closely.
Beside her, Tasha (the other woman, late 20s, nervous but brave) checks her phone — no signal.
Maya (11, wide-eyed and silent) sits in the backseat, humming to herself, staring out the window.

—

[CUT TO: THREE MEN WALKING IN]

The 21-year-old mechanic, Christian, enters the gas station with two older men — Bill (60s) and Ray (50s).
They wear sunglasses inside, even though it’s night.

Cashier (suspicious):
“You boys don’t ever take them shades off?”

Christian (smirks, fangs glint slightly):
“Sun never sets where we from.”

The camera zooms in on the cashier’s uneasy face. He laughs nervously, but his hand shakes as he bags their drinks.

—

[EXT. GAS STATION – PARKING LOT]

Antoinette and Tasha spot the men exiting.
Bill gives Maya a strange look, his eyes briefly flashing reptilian green.

Antoinette (whispers):
“They found us again.”

Tasha:
“Bestie, they everywhere. We can’t even pump gas without something lurking.”

Antoinette looks around — her intuition kicking in. The ground hums softly beneath her shoes.
She senses the underground tunnels again.

—

[CUT TO: CAMERA SHAKE – POV STYLE]

A dark SUV pulls up.
Two plainclothes officers step out — but their reflection in the car mirror shows pale faces and black veins.

Officer 1:
“Ladies, everything okay here tonight?”

Antoinette:
“Y’all cops, or y’all the cleanup crew?”

The officer smirks. His teeth gleam unnaturally sharp.

Suddenly — a gunshot rings out.
Tasha fires first, hitting the officer in the shoulder.
Instead of blood, black smoke pours out.

—

[INTENSE ACTION SEQUENCE]

The women grab Maya and run.
Camera follows handheld — shaky, chaotic, real.
They jump into the car — tires screech, headlights slice through fog.

A reptilian hisses in the rear window — its tongue flicking like a serpent.

Antoinette (yelling):
“You picked the wrong black queens to play with tonight!”

Tasha laughs through adrenaline.
Tasha:
“Girl, I told you to stop dating mechanics from small towns!”

Antoinette (rolling eyes):
“And I told you, if he wears shades at night, RUN!”

—

[CUT TO: UNDERGROUND SCENE – POV THROUGH THE EARTH]

Camera pans down below the surface.
We see the underground city glowing red — full of vampires and reptilians mingling like humans.
Shops, nightclubs, black markets.
Above it all, an invisible light pulses from the ceiling — it’s energy from the hidden species watching above.

A shadowed figure whispers:
“She’s close to discovering the balance. If she lives through this night, everything changes.”

—

[BACK ABOVE GROUND – HIGHWAY EXIT]

Antoinette’s car crashes into a guardrail.
The sound fades — silence.
Fog rolls in.
Antoinette wakes up — blood dripping from her forehead — sees Christian standing over her with a crooked grin.

Christian (smiling softly):
“I told you, I fix cars. Not souls.”

He pulls her up — but his hand burns her skin.
She realizes he’s half-vampire, half-human.

—

[FINAL SCENE]

Antoinette, bruised but unbroken, points a gun at him.

Antoinette:
“You gonna help me stop them… or join ‘em?”

Christian:
“Depends who’s paying.”

She smirks.
Antoinette:
“I don’t pay in money. I pay in truth.”

The camera pans up — headlights fade — police sirens echo in the distance — the hidden watchers whisper again.

VOICE (V.O.):
“She’s awakening. And they’re terrified.”

[TO BE CONTINUED…]