Written for The Unicorn Challenge
(with a timely lead-in from yesterday’s
Friday Fictioneers). Here we are challenged
to be creative in 250 words or less
using the photo below. This is my story.
âDomestic animals, even on leads, are banned from the beach from 6am â 9pm’
He walked on the beach with his dog just as he always did. He saw the sign but ignored it, happy to see someone had vandalized it. Damn rules!
He threw the ball but when the dog returned, he had a purse hanging from his mouth. He dropped the purse and ran back to where he found it.
Looking in the purse, the man saw a cell phone. Hers. Last call was to him. Chasing the dog, he saw a body sprawled on the rocks near the water.
And before he got any closer, he knew it was his wife.
A flood of questions hit him like a tsunami. What happened? Why didnât he get her call? What was she doing here âŠ. not just here on the beach .⊠here in Cannes?
She was supposed to be in Lyon finalizing the sale of her late motherâs apartment. Her mother died five years ago and for reasons only she could explain but never did, she refused to get rid of the place.
He quickened his pace to the body. The dog kept nudging her head and running around wildly on the deserted beach. The man looked at her phone again; there were numerous calls to someone named Roman. An unfamiliar name.
He heard a voice. âMonsieur! You are not supposed to be here with that dog! There are rules.â The local gendarmerie. Then louder, more urgently â âWhat have you done, monsieur? Do not move! Ici! DĂ©pĂȘchez-vous!â
And the whistles blew.
NAR©2024
250 Words
This is âWho Let The Dogs Outâ by Baha Men. Hey, hippie-ye-yo!
All text, graphics and videos are copyright for The Sicilian Storyteller, The Elephantâs Trunk and The Rhythm Section and are not for use by anyone without permission. NAR©2017-present.
The Elephant's Trunk 