James stood against the railing, feeling refreshed in his tuxedo.
It had been an arduous fortnight.
Tomorrow, disembark at Alexandria, then a plane ride back home to London.
A woman approached, dressed in an elegant ballgown.
‘Join me?’ she asked, offering a flute of champagne.
A boy ran between them and vomited over the side of the boat.
‘Too much buffet, Dad.’
James looked at his son. Some of the sick had landed on James’ trousers.
‘Sorry,’ James shrugged at the woman.
On the deck above, Phillips stood in a tuxedo, checked a roll of film was safe in his pocket, and sipped champagne.
Written as part of the Friday Fictioneers challenge hosted by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields (more details HERE). The idea is to write a short story of 100 words based on the photo prompt (above).
To read stories of 100 words based on this week’s prompt, visit HERE.
You can read more short stories about the spy Phillips here: THE PHILLIPS SPY STORIES.
Revenge is sweet
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Thanks Neil
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Dear Iain,
Nothing like a little barf on the trousers to destroy the facade. Nice little spy drama.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Thanks Rochelle
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A bit confused about the woman’s role in this.
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An innocent looking for romance, a friendly spy checking everything’s okay or an enemy agent looking to intercept the film roll. You can decide, either way, she has the wrong man.
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I got that!
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Glad you did 🙂
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Eew. Glad I’m not a spy 🙂
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At least the travel is good 🙂
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Maybe–if it’s vomit-free 🙂
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Intriguing story. I suppose the woman lost interest in Mr. Spy after the vomiting incident.
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Thanks, Was he a spy or just a father on holiday with a troublesome son?!
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Hmm … not sure. You keep your readers guessing.
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That’s part of the fun 😉
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Intriguing! He was spying on him? One can interpret many possibilities and that is the beauty of it. Great one 🙂
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Thank you Meha for entering into the spirit of the spy story, where it is part of the mystery that you are unsure who anyone really is, or what their motives are! 🙂
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Poor James Bond. Marriage and parenthood has ruined his mystique.
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I figured calling him James would help set the genre in which the tale is set.
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True, poor fellow. For the rest of us, it would be just another day in the life, but for Bond it must be sheer torture.
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I love it! So full of intrigue, brought down to earth by the intervention of regurgitated food! Great stuff, Iain!
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Everyday life usually gets in the way – it’s not like in the movies! Thanks Edith.
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So much rich, and unanswered back-story…begging for a “What happened next?”, post-haste!
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One day I will take one of these short stories and write a novel from it… one day!
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There is no such thing as someday! You got to do it now. Your talent needs to be showcased for the world to read.
Go for it Iain!
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NanoWriMo is just around the bend…
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Thanks for the reminder 😕
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I tell people I’m exploring my “Pantser-self” & will be avoiding schedules and discipline…
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One deck out – how will they explain that to their bosses?
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Will they be given a chance to explain?
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She must be one crappy Spy. Good fun, Iain.
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Harsh, but her bosses might think the same! Thanks Varad.
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I’m fairly sure performance evaluations are very tough in the spy business.
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Ah! Nice. With a booming twist.
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Thanks Natasha
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That’s the problem with cruises – too many men drinking champers and wearing monket suits! Nicely done Iain. I wonder if she will ever find her man?
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I think he has slipped her by. Thanks Lynn.
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He’ll be in trouble when he returns to HQ … 🙂
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A nicely written spy story, from the days when espionage was glamorous!
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Thanks Penny, much easier to write spy stories before the internet, mobile phones and the like came along! 🙂
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A spy story with a bit of puke chucked in to make it more exciting! Nice one Iain.
Click to read my FriFic!
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Thanks Keith
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That was fun indeed, Iain. So many directions this story could go. Nothing like a little puke to put a damper on what could have been…
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There’s never a good time for a vomiting child to arrive on the scene.
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My son Iain was known as the “Duke of Puke” – so yeah… never a good sign…
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Nothing is better than when glamour collides with grit… but being barfed upon is perhaps on page 14 in the double O manuals.
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Always have a spare tuxedo standing by.
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at least nobody died. saved for another day. 🙂
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True, an upside 🙂
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Versatility at its best !
Great story.
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Thank you
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I had to read this twice- so I would interpret it as the spy clicks his photo with her and uses it to blackmail him?
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That’s an interesting theory, and a good one. Thanks Akshata 🙂
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Poor James. Worst nightmare – someone barfing when you are trying to chat up a significant other. Nicely written
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The story of James’ holiday I fear. Thanks for reading.
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Kids can be little saviours sometimes, can’t they? Nicely played out drama 🙂
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Even if they don’t mean to be! Thank you.
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James, the lady and Philips are playing the game of cat and mouse with each other. The little boy seems to be out of place on the cruise.
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James would certainly prefer him not to be there at that moment for sure 🙂
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Was he spying on him… on her… or maybe just the moon 😉
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It’s a mystery to me too, I should probably try and figure it out… 🙂
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I’m up to speed now. What is Phillips up to ?
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I’m not even sure. He’s a tricky guy to pin down, but a survivor for sure 🙂
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Lot’s of intrigue here, Iain, with a splash of humor thrown in. Good one.
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Thank you.
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At least Phillips was too far away to get vomit on the film. That would have been embarrassing.
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You can always trust a child to ruin the moment! Nice story Iain
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Too true! Thanks Madison.
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I think I’m missing too much of the story. I don’t see how the film comes in.
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I leave that up to you to decide what could be on the film, why he might be stealing it, why she might be after it – or maybe it’s none of those things at all.
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Poor James, thinking he had a shot for a moment there. But if she’s in the same business as Phillips, his son’s vomit might have just saved his life…
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Exactly that. Thanks Joy.
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Good one. Whether your appetite for more!💐
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Sorry, auto correction messed it up!
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Whets your appetite for more
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Thanks, glad you liked it 🙂
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Enjoyed the story!
Mine: https://kindredspirit23.wordpress.com/2017/10/05/friday-fictioneers-by-the-light-of-the-silvery-moon/
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Thank you
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Fun story.
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Thanks Dawn
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Very clever. I liked it!
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Thank you 🙂
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What a wonderfully balanced story about spies and parenthood. Well done.
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Thanks Alicia, much appreciated compliment.
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was confused about Phillips at the end – but read comment to J hardy and got it all…
but love the on the deck scene – felt right there
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Thank you
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🙂
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So much for feeling refeshed in the tuxedo. Very compact writing. Well done.
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Thanks Sascha
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An intriguing write, so many questions so many possibilities.
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Thanks Dahlia, certainly a lot of different theories from the comments that I’m enjoying reading.
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Wow.Awesome read
Click Here to see what Mrs. Dash Says
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Thank you
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Lovely intrigue and a classy build up, before the son came along and brought us back to back to reality.
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Ah so he had two very different roles. Poor kid, needs one of this patches to put behind his ear so he won’t be sick!
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