e rubbed his throbbing head. The light pouring in cursed his red eyes, and he rolled over and buried his face. Sleep took him finally, and he dreamed of earlier days.
It was that day, the day so many came to his gate, that haunted him. The bombs had ceased to fall, but sickness and starvation were just beginning.
"Please! Men are looting the city! Just let us sit inside your gate while they pass - we'll leave as soon as they stop!" Adam averted his eyes. The clothes on the woman smelled of urine, and the little girl tugging on her leg began to cry. "We don't want anything from you, please, you can kick us out when they go!"
A car rammed into a storefront down the block; a fire hydrant shot into the air. Adam loaded his shotgun and stepped back from the bars. "No! Please open the gate - they'll take us! Please!" Adam didn't hear her anymore. He moved into the shadows and watched as the girl cried and the woman screamed.
The men came. They laughed as they beat the woman. Her blue dress flapped in the wind as she was dragged away, the white polka dots blending and waving in an endless white-blue-white succession.
Adam breathed again. The rushing water from the hydrant pounded the pavement; smoke from the wrecked car rose and disappeared in a hazy sky. Adam felt safe once more.
Zoe was waiting at the table for him. He apologized. "Someone was trying to get in again. It seems that always happens around supper." Adam set his gun on the chair next to him. "Carrots with your roast?" He liked carrots, especially with tender pork. "Now that's delicious - don't you think?"
The silverware clinked and the brandy reflected the chandelier's soft light.
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Check out the rest of the A-Z crew here! And come by tomorrow for 2.3 of "Dystopolis."
Jump to 2.1, or start at the beginning!
Read the idea behind the story.
1 comment:
Nicely done! Love the last sentence best. :)
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