If
there had been any curious onlookers around, they might have wondered why a man
and a woman were walking through a seemingly endless field. Whatever they may have thought, it is
doubtful that the word spies would occur to them. It didn’t matter anyway, they were so far
from the road, there was virtually no chance that they might run into another
person, and if they did, well, that would be unfortunate for them. His nostrils flared as he caught a whiff of
something in the air. He smelled rain. “It’s
going to rain soon y’know. Are you sure
you don’t want to hold off on this for awhile?”
She responded, “Stop here”.
He obeyed, hoping that this pause was the
prelude to a reprieve. She was still
lovely, bur a cold and commanding voice had usurped the sweet sighs lightly
sung just a few hours before. He looked
up at the gray sky and slightly shrugged his shoulders to try to shake off the
morning chill. He remembered the warmth
of her body and the brief moment of contentment he had felt right before he had
blacked out, only to awaken in the back seat of some non-descript car. He shook himself back to the present. He needed to test the waters here and take
advantage of the apparent lull. “You say
stop now, but last night you were begging me not to stop.”
She responded to his quip with three
powerful blows to the back of his head, which dropped him to his knees. The high grass was thick, sparsely populated
with a few white and red wildflowers that had managed not to be chocked
out. “I was kidding, “ he achingly
groaned. His hands kept trying to move
to comfort his bereaved head, bur they were kept from doing so by a tightly
wrapped cord. “Ah the infamous American
sense of humor. The ease with which I
captured you is quite amusing, no?” She
was right. Instead of remembering the
basic rules of the game, he had let things get personal. Overhead he heard geese honking, migrating to
their southern home and he found himself yearning to break his bonds, sprout
wings, and join them in their journey to some safe cozy abode. “You know my bosses would pay you well for my
safe return. A woman with your talents
could find the West very profitable. Plus we could work together. If last night was any indicator, I think we
would make a pretty good team.” He heard
something drop to the ground. It wasn’t
a gun, bur familiar. “I am afraid money
will do you no good here. As for our
brief partnership, well all good things they say.”
He felt the cold dew covered earth seep
through his pants as his knees grew numb.
“At least allow me to face death on my own two feet!” His adrenaline was kicking in and he knew she
could hear the panic in his voice. If he
didn’t do something fast it was all over.
“Go ahead and stand”, she said, “here let me help you.” She quickly used one hand to help steady him
as he stood, bur then quickly stepped back.
He turned and immediately was struck by her eyes. Her eyes somehow had remained the same. She was so lovely. Lovely with a gun aimed directly at his heart
and three feet to far for him to realistically offer a defense. In a resigned voice he asked, “What about
last night? Isn’t there a part of you,
the real you that feels anything? I’ve
been in the business long enough to know last night wasn’t just work. I know you felt it to. We could walk away, just you and me. Fuck the money and fuck this life, I honestly
think you and I could have something special.”
She smiled and to his surprise even laughed in that sweet voice that he
had known so well just a few hours ago.
He had reached her. He knew
it. His heart felt a hundred times
lighter as he took in a deep relaxing breath.
He wasn’t afraid of dying, but afraid of living without love, without
her love. He thought he saw the sun
emerge from the clouds when suddenly he was forcefully knocked down by something
powerful. His lungs felt heavy and hot, quickly filled with blood and
bile. He looked up and watched her
staring down at him. Damn she was lovely. As the world grew dark, he stared into her
eyes and smiled.
She bent over to pick up the shovel and as
she rose back up, she found herself considering his last words. “To answer your question, the real me did
feel something for you, just as the real me has just killed you and is
preparing to bury you. Love and duty,
passion and apathy, life and death are two sides of the same coin. It is the duality of nature.” She felt a few drops of cold rain on her
face, bur those were the only tears that would be shed this morning. She had smelled rain earlier; bur realized
that there would be no rain today as she started to dig.
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