Saviors

I give to you a story in eleventy-one words...

Gina heard her mother’s scream. ‘It worked; he’s gone. Good riddance.’ The autopsy revealed cyanide. When they questioned her, she didn’t deny it. She made but one request, a comparison of her blood to her parents’.

The test revealed that she was not their daughter. The authorities questioned the mother, who told them Gina had been adopted. When asked about the paperwork, the mother admitted there hadn’t been any. ‘But we love her,’ the grief-stricken mother exclaimed.

Detective Barnes investigated, found a destitute mother of eight who had reported a missing child eighteen years prior. When questioned again, the adoptive mother explained, ‘I know it was wrong, but we saved her.’

Splinters

I give to you a story in eleventy-one words...

John climbed the crumbling steps, watched red ants marching downhill in lockstep, ate an apple that shone yellow in the dawn. Are you finished with your chores, barked his guardian. Yes, most. Most or all. Most, not all. And when will you finish them? After I eat the apple; his incisors pierced the fruit. How about now? Later works better. I’ll teach you some manners you little freak; he swung his rake at the boy’s backside but dropped it before making contact. The broken handle fell to the ground in pieces. Splinters laced the man’s hands. You should be more careful, John said as he turned and shuffled down the hill.