Thank you, Rochelle, for posting the picture prompt. Click on her name for more details about Friday Fictioneers.
Read more stories by other contributing writers, HERE.
That some female spiders devour their mate seems counterproductive, and I do not know why. This week’s picture of a dark spider’s web made me think of the widow-family of spiders and how they must trap the poor male. My story expands on the idea of a female predator and how the unwitting male becomes ensnared in her trap.
Caught in a Stalker’s Web
Norman turned away from Laticia’s fixation and grey magnetic eyes. He fumbled with his iPhone and knocked over the cola that spilled down his jeans.
He picked up his backpack and dashed out of the café.
Why was the bus always late?
She came striding towards him. Should he run?
‘Hello, Norman.’ The hairy wisps around her lips quivered.
‘Laticia I can’t—’
‘I’ve bought sheen stockings.’
He blushed at his irresistible urge to wear silk.
Laticia kissed his ear. ‘I’ll shave your legs.’
‘No. Go away, Laticia.’
‘Norman! Look.’
In stockings and otherwise naked; his picture on her iPhone.
James McEwan 
The deadlier sex!
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It’s a trap!
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Manipulation at its worse. Thankyou.
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He’s a lost soul. Doomed, I tell you. Nice one.
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Snared by his own foolishness, like all men. Thank you.
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Hm. Maybe facing the fallout would be better than endlessly remaining hostage to more and more blackmail. Poor sod.
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We all know she’s just going to eat him. Why prolong the agony? Poor Norman; he has no backbone.
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How far can he run? Thank you
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Control and manipulation. Deadly combination!
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She’s got him. Thank you.
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It was interesting to see a male’s POV about a ‘predatory’ female. 🙂 Black widows are not the only species where the female eats the male after mating or where the male dies after copulation. Apparently, death by sex is a successful evolutionary strategy.
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Thank you. Just imagine if the male human died after sex! They would think twice about many things, including war. The world would be ruled by strong women, men would go into hiding.
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Not a bad evolutionary strategem, eh?
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Oh my!! There are people like that…
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I just heard an article on NPR about this sort of thing happening to teenagers. Altered pictures made, money demanded to keep them off the internet. You’d think people would have better things to do. Very provocative piece.
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Thank you Alicia. Have you seen or heard of the film, “Baby Reindeer”?
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Wow! I just watched the trailer. We don’t have Netflix or I’d watch it, creepy as it is.
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I like where the picture took you, I’m not sure he did though!
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Norman will work it out, there are other uses for nylons! Thank you Keith.
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That’s a convoluted little tale. I do feel sorry for the guy – trapped by the weaker sex – oh his love of nylon I suppose. – Diane
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Hi Diane, thanks for reading. It is a case of intimate friendships gone wrong. Norman should have know better.
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Ooooo blackmail
Nicely done
She is a creeper that’s for sure. Run!
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I’m sorry to say, James, that anything that cuts down on the population of spiders, I am all for (haha). I have a feeling Norman is going to be trapped. I felt his anxiety and fear. Very well done!
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Sorry Norman, your secret is out. Who can he trust? Thank you.
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A story that made me smile, poor Norman
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Thanks Michael, pleased you are smiling.
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She’s creepier than a spider!
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Two very intriguing characters here. Both have some issues I’d dare to suggest. I can just see Norman squirming here, and no wonder. Laticia is scary.
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She knows how to trap her man in her web. Let’s hope she doesn’t eat him like spiders do.
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Dear James,
Oh my! She has Norman’s number. I’d say he is caught in this spider’s web. This sent shivers.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Thanks, Rochelle.
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Yikes! Well, I guess he’ll learn to be more careful where he wears–um–next to nothing 🙂
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Wasn’t one of the tag lines for “The X-Files,” “They’re out there.” For every vulnerable person there’s an opportunist waiting to exploit them. I hope he’s able to she’d the exploiter before he takes desperate measures.
I saw you asked someone if they’d seen Baby Reindeer. I watched it even as it chilled my blood. I do appreciate the guy acknowledging how his earlier victimization played into the dynamic between he and his stalker.
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Thank you. I have not watched the film, but I am following the drama around the film. A woman is claiming to be defamed by the film and intends to sue.
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You’re welcome. It’s actually a mini-series on Netflix. Afaik he never used real names of anyone in the series. If she wants to air her dirty laundry to the world it doesn’t surprise me. If even half of the stuff she did in the series is true, she will probably thrive on the negative attention. She needs treatment (and so does the main character!)
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typo: she’d is supposed to be shed but maybe a Freudian slip?
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Yikes!! She’s a devious piece of work. A shivery tale, well done!
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Thank you. Intimate secrets are always a weak link between relationships.
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For sure, awkward!
She’s in for the kill, I think they both need counselling.
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