Freedom

Grace patted her husband’s hand for the last time, drove the car into the ditch, and sat for a moment, almost giddy. She lifted the box from James lap, carefully closed it, and then placed it in her purse.

She took a deep breath, left James, and began walking down the deserted road. It is a good thing she’d worn sensible shoes, she thought--the nearest town was five miles away.

Still, it was a splendid day for a walk. The weather was cool, and there was little wind. Everything was going her way. Hours later she spotted some buildings in the distance, after what seemed like the longest five miles of her life. All the exercise made her thirsty and hungry, but she had to get to a phone and call the police. Priority.

She stopped outside the small town, opened her purse, and then removed the silver box. She observed a stately old tree shading the area. Grace bent down and carefully opened the lid.

“You’ve earned your freedom, my friend. Your work is done here. James was terrified of the fact that I had you as a pet.” Gently coaxing the tarantula out of the box, she smiled, watching the spider as he crawled slowly away toward the higher grass.

Forcing herself to cry and look the part of a grieving wife, she walked over to a quaint little grocery store.
"Please, I need help!” Grace shouted entering the market.
The clerk turned, looked at her, and came running from behind the counter. “What’s wrong?” He slipped his arm under hers and walked her to a chair.
“It’s my husband! I had to leave him. I don’t know if…” Grace broke into tears again.
"Hold on, let me get you a bottle of water."
Grace grabbed the water with trembling hands and kept drinking till it was half gone.
“Thank you. I was so thirsty," she said. "My husband and I simply wanted to go for a leisurely drive this morning. Hurry I need someone to go see about him. I ran off the side of the road when he collapsed, and...”

Impressum

Tag der Veröffentlichung: 23.10.2012

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