The dust swirled round the field. The earth had given them nothing in return for all their hard work again.

Aggie stood on the porch. No sign of Al returning, the urge took him every few weeks. She knew he would be home eventually.

They were all that was left, the last remaining links of a broken family chain.

Now there was just them and the baby that was coming. A new chain about to begin. Maybe this time it would be able to withstand what this country threw at it.

The dust continued to blow as she stepped back inside and closed the door.

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).

I recently finished reading John Steinbeck’s ‘The Grapes of Wrath’, so the idea of a family as a chain of support was in my mind when I saw the prompt. An extraordinary book, this is a snapshot of what may have become of Aggie and Al after the end of the novel.

To read stories of 100 words based on this week’s prompt, visit HERE.

From this Friday, 30th August, for one week only, my first novel, A JUSTIFIED STATE is available now for just 99p or 99¢ on Amazon Kindle. Just follow the links below:

AMAZON UK   AMAZON US

With only one month to go until my new novel STATE OF DENIAL is released, the first book in the trilogy is available at this special price for one week, so if you haven’t read it yet, now is the perfect time to get a copy.

Also available in Paperback from Amazon and Book Depository.

STATE OF DENIAL will be published on Kindle and in Paperback on 27th September.