MARKSMANSHIP

~ Iain Kelly

The first one was for the mother-in-law. Ten years of interference and nagging. I felt the anger start to build. I was never good enough for her daughter. Well, now she had what she wanted. Harley was gone. I took a deep breath. I squeezed the trigger. 200 yards away the china tea cup exploded into pieces.

I moved onto the next cup. The best friend. Every time there was an argument Harley would run to her. Then I would get Samantha screaming down the phone at me, or hammering at the door, threatening to show me what a weak man I was. The cup disappeared in a puff of small particles.

The last cup was for Harley herself. She was coming over now to collect the last of her things. She wouldn’t get her precious tea set. Ten years worth of shared existence. Now, nothing. Dammit, I could feel the tears welling up again. I squeezed the trigger. The bullet flew wide. The cup remained untouched. I heard the windscreen shatter, the screech of tyres and then the crunch of metal hitting the wooden fence.

13-dawn-miller-27-august-2017
Copyright Dawn Miller

Written as part of Sunday Photo Fiction. Write a story of around 200 words based on the photo prompt given (above). Hosted by Al Forbes. For more details visit HERE.

To read more stories based on this week’s prompt, visit HERE.

Published by Iain Kelly

39 year old writer, avid film viewer and book reader, employed in the media industry as a television editor.

47 thoughts on “MARKSMANSHIP”

  20. Proving once again: timing is everything!
    I loved this. The narrator’s emotions are palpable and realistic. The little revenge of her not getting her tea set on the mark. And the the unexpected, but clever ending. I presume the former owner of the tea set was driving.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  22. Poor guy, but then we are only ‘seeing’ his side. I thought he might be the bad guy until the tears, showing the depth of his pain. Well done. Let’s hope he didn’t shoot her by mistake!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

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