personage

If. Henry thougt about the little one syllable world with all the powed in the word.
If Hitler hadn' fought a gtwo front war, or if Stalin had died of crib death. If the Roman Empire had never fallen. If he had not met his fmaily at the restaurant and they had all drivedn together. If the drunk Alexi Dosteyich a Russina immigarasnt with an addiciton to American vodka had only stayed and had one for the road. If. the possibilities were endless and could easily drive one to the nearest crazy bin, doped to the gills on thorazine and halcion, drolling onto the facric of their straight jacket and beating their head rythmically against padded walls, which in time could cause the blood to flow.
Henry new all about institution life, after his family burned he had not been suited for anything else than heavy sedation and constant care.
Now all of that had changed, the biggest change, perhaps was the Russian immigrant, blond and tall, tied to a chair in the home he had shared with his girls and reeeking of the kersosene that had been poured over his writhing form.
After they had burned, Henry had watned to feel the lick of the hungrey flame. He hads started by holding matches unti lthey extinguished between his pinched fingers and had progressed to cigarretees lit and placed on his soft inner arm, burning the flesh into bursting blisters that exploded and ran amber fluid down the length of his limb.
He had progresseed to cigars levaing large puckered circles all over his body, the only place he had left alone his face. He wanted to share that with Viktor, he wanted to lokk in his eyes without scars when he dropped the match in the poil of fuel he stood in, a prism colored puddle covering his shoes and the legs of Viktor's wicker chair.
"My family burned because of you",said Henry in a matter of fact voice. there was no sense in the Russion denying it, he was guilty and knew it. he thought his debt paid in an American prison, it seemed now with his eyes punched swollen and halkf closed, the stink of the kerosene deep in his nose did he see anything different.
Henry showed him his scars, he told him about his family and how the flams had burned so high and hot, that DNA testing was all that could be done to prove it was his girls.
Viktor writthed uselessy in his bonds, he tried to speal through the gas soaked rag stuck deep into his mouth.
Henry calmed him.
"shhh', he said, we are going to see what it felt like together.
A strange grin passed over Henry'd thin stretched lips.
Viktor heard the strikr of the flame and watched it fall, seized by gravity into the puddle at his duct taped feet.
Seconds later, the gag had been pulled from his mouth and they had both started to scream.

butchiesmom

Good story, I'm looking forward to reading more of your work.

Gail

Anonymous Encounter

i really like this. spellcheck could be generously used though. try puting it on a word document and then copy and pasting here. thats what i do, i am a horrible speller
but i really enjoyed this, have you suffered a loss? when i did i would write poetry similar to this, or short stories to release the anger i had felt. its a great way to let loose the emotion or at least recognize it for what it is. i would love to see more.