Wednesday has come around again and I’m happy to present this week’s flash fiction.
Timothy slouched, his elbows pressing into his legs were the only things keeping him falling off the bench. He’d never been so exhausted.
Not after escaping the Red Garden Institution. Not after scaling the Bronze Slopes. Not after riding weeks with Ollie as the the Dreadmen dodging them. And not even after renouncing his family and fighting past his father and brothers.
Every time he’d known he was choosing right. Every time. Even while his mother wept as he slugged his pa. But this. This! Nothing had ever been this hard.
His nemesis emerged as the shop door squeaked. Josephine Maria Ziegler dumped a package on top teetering pile next to him. Her eyes swept over the myriad of boxes. “Don’t let them tip and spill.” Her eyes traveled to the dirt road. “I’d hate for them to be spoiled.”
Timothy opened his mouth to tell her enough, but Ollie’s words echoed in his mind. “You take care of Miss Ziegler,” She’d near snicker when she’d said it. “We need her to defeat the Dreadmen.”
Timothy force a smile. “Of course not, ma’am.” The smile returned to a scowl as she swept into another shop. Wasn’t she done yet? The sun was setting!
Kicking at the dirt, his boot caught a box sending it a kilter. The rest of the pile followed spilling. Timothy groaned. How would he explain this? A scream sounded from the store and he bolted up. With luck he wouldn’t have to.
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