Lucy’s fingers worried at the piece of folded paper in her pocket. Her fingertips were worn from their nervous pace over the corners. She had to get it out; set it free. It was the only way.
She hurried to the cemetery. With practiced steps along a worn path, she hastened to his stone and knelt before it. Shawn Sanders, beloved son.
With a sigh, she laid her head against the cool marble and fingered the engraved dates, only three months apart. At the foot of the stone were a handful of sun-faded toys: a truck, a teddy bear, a teething ring. The night was approaching, and the time for shadowy truth was slipping away. She pulled the paper from her pocket and clutched it tightly, the corners piercing her palm. Finally, she unfolded it and read her scrawled script: He didn’t really fall. I’m so sorry.
She dug at the ground by the stone, feeling the dirt packing her fingernails to the point of pain. Still, she jabbed at the earth until there was a small hole. She folded the paper back into a square and set it in the crevice before covering it over. The job done, she lay down and rested her head above his head. Her sweet boy.
She awoke to tendrils of light, edging over the horizon. With effort, she pushed herself to a sitting position and stretched her aching neck, her stiff shoulders. Her eyes cast down to the spot where she had buried the note, and she gasped. The hole was open and empty, and the note lay under the toy truck. Confused, she snatched it up and unfolded it.
Under her note, in ornate calligraphy, she read: He forgives you.
At the very bottom, in stark, angry letters, she read: But I don’t.
© 2009 Sherri Collins
Sherri Collins lives the quiet life in East Tennessee with her husband and pets. She has stories published or forthcoming in The Oddville Press, Blink/Ink, and The Writer’s Bloc, among others.
![[del.icio.us]](http://images.del.icio.us/static/img/delicious.small.gif){kind=small}
October 8th, 2009 at 5:14 am
I really enjoyed that creepy little story, Sherri.
October 8th, 2009 at 5:19 am
Great story, Sherri, and love the surprise ending.
October 8th, 2009 at 6:06 am
Nicely done! Chilling.
October 8th, 2009 at 8:56 am
Wow, creepy stuff. You do have an edge to your stories that really shines through. Keep it up.
October 8th, 2009 at 9:42 am
Very creepy. Excellent tone. I thoroughly enjoyed this.
October 8th, 2009 at 5:10 pm
Love it! Very unsettling.
October 8th, 2009 at 5:39 pm
So brief but so chilling. Great stuff Sherri
October 10th, 2009 at 6:44 pm
Story very sad but written brilliantly!
October 12th, 2009 at 6:22 am
Damn…this freaked me out. A great, knock-out ending.
October 13th, 2009 at 10:41 am
I loved it. It grabbed my heart and tickled my spine. My favorite combination!