Heartless Butcher
Bills piled over our heads, and kids must eat. I sold out.
After Aaron left for work and the kids for school, I arranged the deed. A brick wall hid us from the neighbors. Still calculating at that point, I tried to forget he had a name.
I cornered him on the back porch. My hands shook. Amateur I was, I bungled the knife across his throat. He struggled but was weak. Desperate, I struck again. Blood sprayed my face and shirt.
Wearing a garden hat disguise, I dug a shallow hole, buried the remains, then rushed inside to clean before the kids got home. Blood dripped from the knife, spotting the kitchen tile.
Out, damn’d spot! out, I say!
****
Dinner was served. Mopped, the tile floor gleamed. My blouse was freshly dried.
Beaming, Aaron took his seat. “I don’t know how you do it on your budget, Clare. Dinner looks and smells amazing.”
Jeff ran from his room. “Chicken!”
Ally poked at a thigh with her fork and made a face. “Is this a feather?”
My son—instant sleuth. “Check the chickens in the back yard!”
“Let’s not,” I said. “Sit and eat your supper.”
Sunday Photo Fiction: 200-word stories
photo prompt: John Brand
April 23, 2017 at 9:38 am
Really clever. You caught me with the twist.
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April 23, 2017 at 9:46 am
😀 Thanks for letting me know.
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April 23, 2017 at 10:16 am
“Soylent Green is people.”
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April 23, 2017 at 11:46 am
??? 🙂 I’ll have to research the reference.
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April 23, 2017 at 10:24 am
Wow. A nice story.
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April 23, 2017 at 11:41 am
Thank you, kitty. 🙂
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April 23, 2017 at 12:40 pm
Welcome. 🙂
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April 23, 2017 at 10:25 am
This was so beautifully plotted. Wonderful writing.
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April 23, 2017 at 11:42 am
Thank you so much. 🙂
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April 23, 2017 at 11:19 am
An expertly paced piece of misdirection. Well done. 🙂
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April 23, 2017 at 11:43 am
Thank you, Sandra! ❤
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April 24, 2017 at 8:39 am
You had me there for a second!
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April 24, 2017 at 9:15 am
😀
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April 24, 2017 at 10:48 am
When times are hard the deed must be done, be it human or chicken
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April 24, 2017 at 12:35 pm
😀
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April 24, 2017 at 3:18 pm
Seems the sky fell on this Chicken Little.
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April 24, 2017 at 3:24 pm
I reckon, CE. Thank you for reading.
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April 29, 2017 at 7:40 pm
You do want you have to do. Mamma Bear isn’t going to let her kids go hungry.
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April 29, 2017 at 8:17 pm
Nope, she won’t. Thanks for reading. 🙂
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April 30, 2017 at 6:15 am
That was a great twist. We used to keep chickens, and this was nearly on the menu as well. But the age of ours, I think they would have been a bit tough. Good story Kecia.
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April 30, 2017 at 7:36 am
Thanks!
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