It was a cold, dark night...Past Simple/Past Continous

It was a cold, dark night.....

It was a cold, dark evening in November. It was six o'clock and people were going home from work. Vanessa was driving out of the town. She was in a hurry, but she wasn't driving home. She stopped to buy a bottle of wine, and then she got back into the car and she continued driving.

Where do you think she was driving?

She was driving to her friend's house to have dinner. Her friend's name was Martin. He was a farmer and he lived in the country. Vanessa was listening to the radio. She began to relax after a hard day at work. She was driving past some trees when suddenly she hit something. She stopped and got out the car.

What do you think she saw?

There was a dog lying on the road. It was dead. Vanessa moved the dog to the side of the road and then continued her journey. Suddenly she saw in the mirror a black car behind her. When she turned right, the car turned right and when she turned left the car turned left too. It was following her!

Why was the car following her?

Vanessa was sure the driver of the car was following her because the dead dog was his. Now he was flashing his lights.

What do you think Vanessa did?

Vanessa drove faster but the car drove faster too. Suddenly the seven o'clock news started on the radio. It said: 'The police are looking for a murderer who escaped from prison last night. Be careful! He is very dangerous.'

How do you think Vanessa felt?

Vanessa felt very afraid. Now she was sure that the man in the black car was the murderer! She drove faster. Martin's farm was near now but the black car was right behind her! At last she arrived at Martin's farm. She got out of the car and ran to the door. She rang the doorbell. "Martin! Help! Help!" she shouted.

Where do you think Martin was?

Martin was in the kitchen making the dinner when the doorbell rang. He heard Vanessa shouting, so he ran to get his shotgun. He opened the door. At that moment the black car stopped next to Vanessa's car. A tall man got out.

Who do you think the man was?

'That man is the murderer who escaped from prison last night,'Vanessa shouted. 'He is going to kill us' 'No, no! said the tall man. 'I am not the murderer. The murderer is in there, at the back of your car!'

When did the murderer get into Vanessa's car?

'I was driving behind you,' the tall man said, 'and I saw you stop when you hit the dog. There was a man behind a tree. I saw him get into your car. I recognised him from the newspaper. He's the murderer who escaped from prison last night. That's why I was following you.' Martin ran to the car with his shotgun. He opened the door. There was a man on the floor. 'OK,' said Martin, 'come out with your hands up.'

Answer the questions

1. Where was Vanessa driving and why? 2. Why did she stop when she was passing some trees? 3. What did she do when she saw the dog? 4. What did she do when she saw a black car behind her? 5. What was the black car doing? 6. What did she hear on the radio? vanessa

Answer the questions

7. What did Vanessa do when she arrived at Martin's farm? 8. What was Martin doing when Vanessa arrived? 9. What did Martin do when he heard Vanessa shouting ? 10. Who was the tall man ? 11. Where was the murderer? 12. How did the murderer get into Vanessa's car? vanessa

VOCABULARY

a doorbell

journey

be in a hurry

continue driving

shout

escape

get into a car

a shotgun

turn right

recognise

follow

get out of a car