They called it a victory.

It didn’t feel like a victory to him. He had seen to much to call it a victory.

The bombed-out buildings; the fighting; the gunshots; the gas; the bombs; the dead bodies; the dead soldiers, theirs and his own comrades; the bloodshed; the injured; the children crying in the streets; the fires burning everything in their path.

The nightmare went on inside his head. It would never stop. His only hope was that it wouldn’t happen again, but they said that the last time.

And now he was going home, back across the water. He pictured the house waiting for him. His mother and father at the door. The causeway leading to their small island that was only passable at low tide.

He liked the idea of being cut off from the world forever. After what he had seen, he wasn’t sure he ever wanted to go beyond the small, safe borders of the place he called home.

That would be his victory, to isolate himself and try to forget.

He would never be able to forgive.

And they called it a victory.

This is a response to the #writephoto Prompt: Causeway curated over at Sue Vincent’s Daily Echo. Click on the link to read other stories inspired by the image.

The 75th Anniversary of V.E. Day is upon us. Some will celebrate, some will reflect, some will find glory in it, some will mourn.

My new novel, ‘State Of War’, the final part of The State Trilogy, is out now, in paperback and available to pre-order in eBook.

You can find it to buy or pre-order by following the links below:

AMAZON:      US/AMAZON.COM     AMAZON.CO.UK      GERMANY      FRANCE       SPAIN  INDIA       CANADA       ITALY      NETHERLANDS   AUSTRALIA     MEXICO    BRAZIL      JAPAN

SMASHWORDS        BARNES & NOBLE       KOBO         Also available from APPLE BOOKS

A JUSTIFIED STATE and STATE OF DENIAL, books one and two of the trilogy are also available. Follow the links on this page: AVAILABLE NOW

If any bloggers would like to host a guest blog about the book, please get in touch, and all reviews and shout-outs are greatly appreciated.