A fresh start – Friday Fictioneers

· by · in flashfiction, Friday Fictioneers. ·

Wednesday means it’s once more time for Friday Fictioneers. It feels like a relief to once more write a story without connection to previous entries.

Friday Fictioneers is a wonderful group of bloggers from around the world who every week gather to write a
story of 100 words (more or less). If you want to know more, go to Rochelle Wissoff-Fields page and check it out. If you only want to check out the great stories click the little blue guy at the bottom.
My story is exactly 100 words.

Copyright Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

Copyright Rochelle Wisoff-Fields

As dusk settled, Laura lit the oil-lamps they once received as wedding gifts. She wanted to savor a moment of silence before she left forever.

Without Robert her life was empty, and leaving it all behind was her only option. She had investigated carefully and she knew the necessary physical parameters.

She looked at the three suitcases and thought in amazement about the content. Everything she once valued was in those three bags.

She took a sip of the Amarone wine Robert had kept for himself, and opened the can of gasoline. Bleach and fire would take care of DNA.




—
March 27, 2013

108 responses to “A fresh start – Friday Fictioneers”

  3. Ah, Bjorn, please pour me a glass of Amarone before it goes up in flames. No need to waste such a wonderful wine!!

    It’s funny that you went this direction. I once wrote a similar (in some ways) story from another kitchen prompt (http://sustainabilitea.wordpress.com/wp-admin/post.php?post=3743&action=edit), and something like this came to mind immediately when i saw this prompt. I went a different way, though.

    If Robert is in the suitcase, she’s either taking him with her (which would be really bizarre), or burning the suitcases or am I missing something? I felt as though his body was in the house and was to be burned.

    Greetings from snowy Cleveland,

    janet

    • I think she’s going to let the suitcases burn….. but Robert was in three parts, so I guess the bleach was to clean the kitchen….

      And yes a glas of Amarone is waiting for you 🙂

      I will read your entry. I think I know the pic, as I read Jan’s entry before I joined FF myself.

  7. Oh dear…terrible tragedy. but also love, and something else, that thing in French we call ‘habitude’…and the inability to go on alone. Very nice to have a real story, seems these serials are catching..and confusing..

  8. Good stuff Bjorn. One small thing. Shouldn’t the 5th word be “lit” not “lighted”?

  11. Nice twist in the end. I was doing the math on Robert in three suitcases now I have some really twisted images in my head. It humbles me to know English is your second language.
    Tom

  15. “Without Robert her life was empty….” He must have done something REALLY bad–I hope it was more than pigging the Amarone.

  19. Ah! I didn’t realise Robert was the suitcases until you mentioned it in your comments. I was about to say ‘poor Laura’, but apparently not! A minor point – I think you need an ‘a’ in front of ‘wedding present’.
    Claire

  20. Dear Björn,
    I missed the fact that Robert was divided between three suitcases.
    Laura’s quite the methodical killer isn’t she? Makes me suspicious of the relationship to begin with. You left me with much to ponder. Well done.
    shalom,
    Rochelle

  21. this girl is travelling ominously light – unbearbly so. How macabre and yet the hurricane lamp scene looks so inviiting

  24. and here I was thinking she was a poor little widow who couldn’t bear to be in her home without her husband! Nice twist.

  25. I wasn’t thinking about Robert being in the suitcases either. I thought she was going to travel her stuff. Not sure how one would know he was in them. Reading the comments help, but I don’t always do that if I don’t have time. I try to write my connected stories so they can also be read without reading the other pieces. But they do connect and that’s just the way of it.

    I wonder if a really good detective could find her ‘out’ anyway. I watch too many mystery shows where the criminals do get caught no matter how carefully they plan. Nice write.

    • My thoughts was that he was in the suitcases, but in reality I think it could be the other way as well. My hint was Everything she once was in ….

      To me I guess that is a vague hint that she might be leaving them behind.

  32. Another strong woman at the end of her tether, seems a popular theme this week.
    I enjoyed reading your well crafted story Bjorn, but please save a glass of Amarone for me!
    Dee

  34. Great story – and lovely twist with the suitcases – just one issue – if she was going to burn the body why did she bother to put it in the suitcases?

  35. What an ending! I first thought the couple had divorced, or that she was simply leaving her husband. But the ending pushed all those to the side. She’s thorough by using bleach and fire — wow!

  36. As a husband I must protest the recurring theme of riddance that is being repeated in the last several prompts. I know divorce can be messy, but at least a life is saved! This is good Bjorn, we do not suspect what is coming at all!

  37. This will sound weird, but I hope it’s Robert spread among the three cases and not bodies of the rest of her family! One edit I would suggest is a comma between settled and Laura in the first line. Good story, Bjorn.
    Denmother

  43. I definitely thought this was headed in a different direction when I read the “her life was empty” line – thanks for keeping me on my toes!

  47. Now that was a nice twist in the tale wasn’t it?
    Aah Bjorn, you do know how to knock us off the quiet path we were travelling along 🙂

  48. Love, love, love the twist in the last line! This is so well-crafted, and you definitely get a tip of the proverbial hat here. Fabulous all around. 🙂

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