PHOTO PROMPT © Ronda Del Boccio
If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi.
“I’m not going to lose her again. I can’t. She’s not even four years old.”
Every time Ron remembered losing her in the parking lot because she ran away, every time he found one solitary shoe behind his car, he died inside.
“Not this time.” He hadn’t used his gift to manipulate reality since he was a teenager. It was too dangerous. But for her, he would.
“Ha, ha. Fooled you, Grandpa.” She peeked around the corner of his car. Thirty minutes ago, a panel van with the four human traffickers had a fatal collision with a semi on I-84.
It’s Wednesday, and once again it’s time to participate in Rochelle Wisoff-Fields’ 12 July 2024 edition of Friday Fictioneers. The idea is to use the image above as the prompt for crafting a poem or short story no more than 100 words long. My word count is exactly 100.
The photo immediately made me think of the worst; losing a child, having them disappear without a trace, taken by terribly evil people.
I don’t like writing stories about menacing children. I do on occasion, but it bothers me. It’s the ultimate nightmare of every parent, grandparent, or other caretaker of children.
But since this is my story, I don’t have to. The power of imagination can change anything, at least in fiction. I also delivered justice to those who would prey on the innocent.
To read other stories based on the prompt, visit inlinkz.
In the latest episode of Our Legacy, The Stars: A Tom Corbett Adventure called “Eagle’s Station,” the kidnapped Captain Strong and Dr. Joan Dale have been taken to a mysterious space station orbiting a star light-years from Earth. An evil Fascist empire thought long extinct is discovered to be at the heart of their mystery. However, rescuing their fellow crewmates becomes impossible when they are confronted by a traitor.
This is episode 13 in my 16-part space opera adventure. I see that to keep reading, you need to buy “tokens” from Amazon, but they’re 99 cents for a hundred, so that’s not too bad. Remember, there are only a few left. Don’t miss the climax of Tom Corbett’s adventure in space so don’t miss out.
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Nice!
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Thanks, Dawn.
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I like your oblique way of taking the traffickers out of the equation.
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Me, too. Not getting as many “likes” for the story. I suspect because the topic is very grim.
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I think maybe because it’s not that easy to work out. It took me a few reads to get the gist.
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Probably true, Patrick. I can only do so much with 100 words. Thanks.
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He has a useful talent and superpower and used wisely he may control the fate of many.
I enjoyed this.
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He doesn’t use it often. Thanks.
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You are right – it is the ultimate nightmare, and one I sometimes wake up from, sweating. The way he used his power was a true judgement.
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Thanks, Liz.
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I’m a sucker for anything time travel related – great story
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Thanks, Kevin. In that case, you’ll be interested in this: https://poweredbyrobots.com/2024/06/25/the-joker-and-the-thief-to-be-published-in-ruths-and-anns-guide-to-time-travel-vol-2/
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I had to read it twice to get the whole impact–no pun intended. I love the way you took out the bad guys, and I hope Grandpa’s heart rate goes back to normal very quickly 🙂
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Me too, Linda. Thanks.
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So suspenseful. What a handy gift to use for such a purpose. Good for him.
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Thanks, Brenda.
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This is very skilfully layered and I’m not sorry for the traffickers.
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Hopefully no one is. Thanks.
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Oh my goodness, my heart was in my throat. Now that’s a power for good. Hero grandpa for sure
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Thanks, Laurie.
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