Source...
Nathan didn't need much. What he did need lay hidden in the cellar. A year's supply. Enough to survive until he could devise an alternate plan. Or rather, an escape. Each night, he retired to one of the two less-cluttered rooms. He'd pray, always including Matilda.
For twenty years, Nathan held his wife in contempt, ridiculing her after each trip to the wholesale warehouses. She ignored his sneers and rejected his taunts. He continued to resist her warnings. Dinnertime discussions he avoided. He had neither theories nor answers to her ridiculous questions.
That is, until late last Winter after the first thaw.
A few yards from the farmhouse beyond the pond lay evidence that Matilda's involvement with a mysterious group he cared not to discuss had borne fruit.
The unidentifiable footprints lodged in the frozen ice rattled his resolve.
Gripping the steering wheel, thousands of questions prowled through his mind the duration of his trips down the dirt road toward town. Getting to the bottom of the footprints rose to the level of urgency in his otherwise docile existence since Matilda passed.
At first, the unknown, a nice illusion, exhilarated him.
Before long, blood drained from his face as he sat in the small room the librarian reserved. Hours passed before he realized he'd poured over hundreds of pages with markings nearly identical to those near his pond.
Spring arrived with no definite directions on where to investigate next.
Abandoning his quest wasn't an option. Instead, he visited the pond regularly. This time he spread out his search for additional prints into the nearby woods leading to the path alongside the eastern edge of his farm's property line.
What he discovered caused a long, slow deep breath to suppress his asthma. But his chest tightened as cold, spiderlike fingers crawled up his spine. He heaved a sigh and pressed his knuckles against his temples, rolling them in a circular motion.
A sensible man his entire life, running off half-cocked without hard evidence was insane. His thoughts turned to Matilda and the looks he bestowed upon her from head to toe. No! He'd keep this to himself.
Besides, alerting the neighboring farms would only cause widespread panic, he knew. But what if they had other information that might solve the mysterious prints? In the end, he decided against activating an alarm. It would be his dilemma to solve.
So he straddled the fence of his dilemma for another three months.
[to be continued]
6 february 2025, @mariannewest's Freewrite Writing Prompt Day 2639: a nice illusion.For my theme, I was inspired by and utilized the @daily.prompt's publishing of
His Adopted Daughter
Source...
Nathan no necesitaba mucho. Lo que necesitaba estaba escondido en el sótano. Provisiones para un año. Suficiente para sobrevivir hasta que pudiera idear un plan alternativo. O mejor dicho, un escape. Cada noche, se retiraba a una de las dos habitaciones menos desordenadas. Rezaba, siempre incluyendo a Matilda. Su previsión como ávida preparadora de desastres era ahora un regalo de Dios.
Durante veinte años, Nathan despreció a su mujer, ridiculizándola después de cada viaje a los almacenes mayoristas. Ella ignoraba sus burlas y rechazaba sus mofas. Él siguió resistiéndose a sus advertencias. Evitaba las discusiones a la hora de cenar. No tenía ni teorías ni respuestas a sus ridículas preguntas.
Hasta finales del invierno pasado, después del primer deshielo.
A pocos metros de la granja, más allá del estanque, había pruebas de que la relación de Matilda con un misterioso grupo del que no quería hablar había dado sus frutos.
Las huellas inidentificables alojadas en el hielo helado sacudieron su determinación.
Agarrando el volante, miles de preguntas rondaron por su mente mientras recorría el camino de tierra hacia la ciudad. Llegar al fondo de las huellas se elevó al nivel de urgencia en su existencia, por lo demás dócil, desde la muerte de Matilda.
Al principio, lo desconocido, una bonita ilusión, le entusiasmaba.
Al poco tiempo, la sangre se le escurrió de la cara mientras permanecía sentado en la pequeña habitación que le había reservado el bibliotecario. Pasaron horas hasta que se dio cuenta de que había leído cientos de páginas con marcas casi idénticas a las que había cerca de su estanque.
Llegó la primavera sin ninguna dirección definida sobre dónde investigar a continuación.
Abandonar su búsqueda no era una opción. En su lugar, visitó el estanque con regularidad. Esta vez extendió su búsqueda de huellas adicionales a los bosques cercanos que conducen al camino que bordea el límite oriental de la propiedad de su granja.
Lo que descubrió le hizo respirar lenta y profundamente para contener el asma. Pero el pecho se le oprimió cuando unos dedos fríos, como los de una araña, le subieron por la columna vertebral. Lanzó un suspiro y se presionó las sienes con los nudillos, haciéndolos rodar en círculos.
Un hombre sensato toda su vida, salir corriendo sin pruebas contundentes era una locura. Sus pensamientos se volvieron hacia Matilda y las miradas que le dirigía de pies a cabeza. ¡No! Se lo guardaría para sí.
Además, alertar a las granjas vecinas sólo causaría pánico generalizado, lo sabía. Pero, ¿y si tenían otra información que pudiera resolver las misteriosas huellas? Al final, decidió no activar la alarma. Sería su dilema a resolver.
Así que se mantuvo a horcajadas sobre la valla de su dilema durante otros tres meses.
[continuará]
6 february 2025, @mariannewest's Freewrite Writing Prompt Day 2639: a nice illusion.Para mi tema, me inspiré y utilicé la publicación de @daily.prompt de:
SOURCES:
a) JustClickindiva's Footer created in Canva utilizing its free background and images used with permission from discord admins.
b) Unless otherwise noted, all photos taken by me with my (i) Samsung Galaxy 10" Tablet, (ii) Samsung Phone, & (iii) FUJI FinePix S3380 - 14 Mega Pixels Digital Camera
c) Purple Butterfly part of purchased set of Spiritual Clip Art for my Personal Use
d) All Community logos, banners, page dividers used with permission of Discord Channel admins.
e) Ladies of Hive banner used with permission of and in accordance with the admin's guidelines
f) Thumbnail Image created by me in Canva.
g) "Flames." What is Apophysis 2.09. https://flam3.com/
If translation included, I use DeepL to assist my readers.
Thanks for your patience an understanding.
Si se incluye traducción, utilizo DeepL para ayudar a mis lectores.
Gracias por su paciencia y comprensión.
Wow nice story.It is very interesting.i will read on a regular basis.You are very good in writing.Stay blessed 👍
Hello @arshadkhan4421. Thanks so much for stopping by. I appareciate it and am pleased you liked my freewrite story. Thanks for the kind compliment. I write frequently in the Freewriters Community and elsewhere. I would be honored if you returned to view my other works as well. I appreciate your support and engagement.
Take care an have a good rest of your weekend.
!LADY
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As I used to see other beings come through these stars, through the planets, just like you have pictured.
Have you actually seen them? Wow...that is awesome. Thanks for your visit. Take care.
!BEER
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