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The Photograph (Part II)
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The Photograph (Part II) |
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hoot_owl_rn Member Patricius
since 1999-07-05
Posts 10750Glen Hope, PA USA 
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(For any of you that are wondering this is going to be 4 or 5 parts when finished...and yes, no guess left this time  )We lived on the outskirts of a small town called Walker, Maryland most noted for it once booming coal businesses, all no longer operating. The train yard was but a memory of the days when Walker had been "the place to live", "the place to work" and "the place to raise a family". Once a major rail yard, it now only housed a few useless pieces of trains, now forgotten, and left to rust their remaining days away. Several of the old boxcars remained. They became a temporary stop over for vagrants passing through on their way to nowhere and also a dream world for young and adventurous kids. Teddy and I would come here and pretend we were traveling to great and distant lands we had only read about in our History books. Imaginations would run wild. City counsel had tried to get the railroad to clean up all the left over stuff years ago, but money in the right pockets at the right time, and six years later, it was still there. “Look at this kid,” Teddy called out from another box car he was exploring. “Ew!” I made my way to the boxcar he was standing outside of. Before I even got there, I was overcome by a wretched smell. The only thing that even came close was 3-day-old road kill along I-95. I peaked into the boxcar, my eyes following Teddy’s pointing finger. There in the corner lay a dead dog. The bloated stomach and flies covering it served to tell me it had been there for a few days, even if the smell wouldn’t have. “Oh gross,” I said, trying to keep from loosing my breakfast. “Why’d you have to show me that?” I turned my head, gagging slightly. “Wonder what happened to it? I’ll bet someone killed it.” “I’ll bet it just crawled up in there and died,” I replied. “Hey, I’m gonna check it out,” he said, crawling up into the opening of the red and white boxcar. “I’m not going in there! It smells bad enough out here.” “Chicken! Didn’t know the kid was a bird,” he mocked as he went inside. I stood outside, looking in. The smell erupting from the rusty boxcar, overwhelming. “What’d you find?” I asked. “It’s got maggots. You should see it. It’s gross.” His voice echoed out through the opening. “WOW!” “What?” Curiosity was definitely getting the best of me. I tried peering into the darkness to see exactly what he was seeing. The stench was relentless. I retched and had to pull my head back out to catch a breath of fresh air. Oh how I wished I had the courage Teddy did. “What is it?” “Someone killed it,” he answered, excitement in his voice. “It’s throat’s been sliced from ear to ear. And it ain’t a stray either. It’s got a collar and its Mrs. Perkin’s dog” “Why would someone do that?” The fact of the matter was a bit beyond my comprehension. I was raised in a town where crime was nearly nonexistent. ------------------ This is courage...to bear unflinchingly what heaven sends. ~Eurpides [This message has been edited by hoot_owl_rn (edited 10-20-1999).] |
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| © Copyright 1999 Ruth Kephart - All Rights Reserved | |||
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Watcher666 Senior Member
since 1999-10-13
Posts 1606 |
OK ....now I'm on the edge! Impatiently awaiting the next chapter! ------------------ Illusion...what we see and what we do...it's all up to you. |
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Marilyn Member Elite
since 1999-09-26
Posts 2621Ontario, Canada |
Ruth you definately have a flare for keeping one on the edge of her seat! I am looking forward to the rest of the story. |
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JennyLee Senior Member
since 1999-09-01
Posts 1461Northwestern, NJ. |
 I agree profoundly with the replies before me!!You write SO WELL!!!! Jenny |
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hoot_owl_rn Member Patricius
since 1999-07-05
Posts 10750Glen Hope, PA USA |
Thank Watcher, Marilyn and Jenny, I appreciate you reading my work and your nice comments. |
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Systematic Decay Senior Member
since 1999-09-15
Posts 1301That place with padded walls and funny people in white......... |
Well, now, if I had been REALLY smart i would have waited for the whole series before starting to read these....You have me waiting now too. ------------------ "Despite all my rage, I am still just a rat in a cage." -Billy Corgan- |
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hoot_owl_rn Member Patricius
since 1999-07-05
Posts 10750Glen Hope, PA USA |
Smiles, nothing wrong with waiting Systematic |
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DreamEvil Member Elite
since 1999-06-22
Posts 2396 |
Your prose work is quite engaging Ruth. ------------------ Now and forever, my heart hears ~one voice~. DreamEvil© |
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