The Unicorn Challenge.
A magical new weekly writing opportunity from her – Jenne Gray – and me.
Visit her blog every Friday to see the photo prompt, and post your amazing story in her comments section.
Or on your own blog, and stick the link down in her comments.
The rules are:
Maximum of 250 words.
Based on photo prompt.
That’s it.
To hear me read my story, just click here:
On The Beach
Susie is still giggling from the effect of the lunch-time wine as we tumble down the steps onto the sand.
Laughing at our inadequate clothing, we turn our faces to the light wind and drizzle, and stumble forward.
She shrieks with joy, kicks off her shoes, and twirls ahead of me.
I make a feeble grab, but she dances away and starts to run.
I shove my useless glasses into my pocket, wipe the rain from my eyes, and chase after her.
She stops abruptly, pointing ahead.
‘Is that Ron?’
My baby brother, almost twenty, handsome, charming, funny, quick-tempered, is, after Susie, my favourite person in the world.
I peer futilely into the gloaming, shake my head.
‘Ron!’ she shrieks, waving, then drops her hand. ‘He’s running away!’
‘You sure it was him?’
‘Yes, and he’s left something on the beach.’
Which we soon discover is the body of a lovely young woman.
‘We need to phone the police,’ she says, as I check the bruising on the throat.
I nod, looking at the clear footprints between the corpse and the pebble bank a dozen paces away.
I grasp the girl under her arms and drag her away from the water, carefully obliterating all traces of the distinctive soles as I do so.
‘What are you doing?’ Susie gasps, phone in hand.
‘Making sure the tide doesn’t destroy evidence.’
‘It’s going out.’
I speak calmly, but with a hint of menace.
‘We saw nothing. Nothing at all. Nobody. Understand?’
Another wonderfully contrasting story. Love the descriptive light hearted start. Then the madness of love.
Thanks, Lindsey, glad you enjoyed!
What an intriguing and chilling story, excellently told. I’ve missed listening to your stories, C.E. Hopefully, Susie takes his meaning. It is his baby brother after-all.
Great to see you here, Brenda, and thanks for all your lovely comments.
Don’t be a stranger, okay?
PS New gravatar, new hair look?
I won’t, thanks! Yes, I’m not a fan of photos of me, but recently my daughter took one that I found acceptable so I thought I’d change it. 🙂
And just like that …. stone cold sober and barking out threats.
A chilling story!
Thanks, Nancy, I like ‘chilling’!
Ooh… what? And what?? Excellent!
Laughing here, Chris!
No more words, and you know that Jenne’s a stickler for the rules!
Your secret’s safe with me. With her? Probably, given the threatening tone of his (your) voice.
On verra, mon ami, meanwhile he does what he can for his bro.
Oh boy, what a choice he leaves her with. I am sure she knows what he did and he also knew who it was he was covering up for. What a realization.
A wee brother is always a wee brother, Tessa
excellent opener, a teaser of a tale promising loyalty held dearly and sin paid in the most dear of currencies.
(I would offer that prompt bloghops are the most tempting of formats (genre?) for serial story telling. I find them very difficult to resist.)
I have no objection to serial stories so long as each one also stands on its own.
I don’t have the wherewithal to remember what I wrote last week far less anyone else.
And so the week was rescued…by a powerful story, deftly written.
Light and dancing images at the start, love-filled.
Then hints of the encroaching darkness, until it lands, full force.
The unasked question: what we will do for love, can we also expect another to do?
And if not?
You leave us with a threat that shakes another love.
Not sure this week is rescue-able, Jenne, but a wee bit nefariousness does lighten the mood!
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