Thursday, January 20, 2011

Hell Hath No Fury

“Cheating bastard!” I fumed and waited for Donald to come home.

I found out about the affair six months ago and spent the last two preparing my goodbye. I waited calmly, just beyond the perimeter of my hastily scrawled handiwork. I heard the key turning in the lock.

Donald stepped inside and smiled at me. “Hi, honey! I’m home.”

His last words echoed shock and pain as he was suddenly consumed by the bright, hot flames which erupted and descended back into the pentagram scratched upon the floor where Donald had once stood.

“No,” I laughed madly. “Now you’re home.”

38 comments:

  1. Wow. Hath no fury indeed. Nicely done!

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  2. Did you say drabble?
    Mwwwwaaaaeeeeeeee (wringing my bony fingers)
    Did I do that right! Well either way, that was short, but great.

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  3. HA! No wonder it took her two months. You want your spell to be perfect, after all.

    Now THAT'S the way you get rid of a cheater. Love, love, love!

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  4. Maria, this would be perfect for FlashShot.
    http://www.gwthomas.org/flashshotindex.htm
    Write a bio that draws them back here...

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  5. Oh boy. There's a lady you don't want to cross.

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  6. Some men are the devil...

    I second Donald's recommendation of Flashshot.

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  7. Short and focused. Well done.
    Adam B @revhappiness

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  8. I love stories like these, they're the definition of a flash!

    Best place for him ;-)

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  9. Hmm, would her handiwork really be "hastily scrawled" if she'd been preparing it for two months? Poor guy, I bet there's a billion just like him already in Hell.

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  10. Excellent! Great example of short short and powerful.

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  11. Cindy,
    Thank you, my friend! Your support this past year has meant a lot to me!

    Donald;
    Thanks! I've got Flashshot saved in my Submissions bookmarks. Looks like a neat site. I'll submit this there, for sure.

    Janet;
    No, she's got an evil spell book and she 'aint afraid to use it!

    John;
    Thanks. I am going to send this over to Flashshot. A big thanks to my tweeps who recommend me places to get published. Can't always find what I'm looking for on Duotrope's, as good as it is.

    Adam;
    Thanks! I'm glad you liked it. :)

    Icy;
    Thank you, Icy. I dabble in drabbles occasionally, though 100 word stories are a helluva lot harder to write. I agree. Several gents in my past I would have liked to sent straight there, myself. Of course, if I keep writing stuff like this, a nice one might be afraid of me. Thanks for stopping by!

    Valerie;
    Maybe it had to be scrawled hastily if it was a big pentagram, and I imagine she had to research what she wanted to do. Being a woman she would have thought it through clearly. Leave no body, all that. Do feel a bit sorry for Donald, but after hearing from friends what divorce is like, maybe he got the better end of the deal after all. Thanks for stopping by and for the comment. :)

    Anneke;
    Thanks for the comment! I'm glad you like it!

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  12. Gracie;

    Sorry I left you out of the above! I'm afraid I left these comments for too long, what with reading assignments and a sick pussycat. I

    I'm thrilled you like this little story and yes, cheaters deserve their own special place in hell. In fact, I believe, in Dante's Inferno, they do have a level of hell for cheaters, traitors and such scum. I imagine that level is quite full by now.

    Thanks for stopping by!

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  13. I agree with Icy, this is perfect flash. Short, neat and packs a punch. Fun too.

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  14. Justin;

    Thanks! I'm glad you think so and I'm happy you like it! :D

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  15. I think once he gets there, he is going to find out that hell is full of fury, amoungst many other things.

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  16. Thanks, Lara.

    I think probably the worst level of hell is the one with all the mimes. And that gives me another story idea. I love Friday Flash!

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  17. Perfect! Glad she took her time to set it up - you wouldn't want to bungle something like that. I do love your drabbles. :)

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  18. Thank you, Kath. Glad you like my little drabbles. They serve as exercises in writing (and editing) for me to help me get better at writing the longer stuff. Have to say that NaNoWriMo has kind of ruined me on writing really short stuff, but I'm trying to get back into it. Thanks for stopping by! :D

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  19. Wow, short and hot, well, I guess that has put an end to his extracurricular activities, good thing too.

    Nice Micro Maria. :)

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  20. Love this :) Sometimes revenge is a dish best served flaming hot (no matter what the old saying is).

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  21. Steve;

    Thanks! I'm glad you like this hellish little drabble!

    Seleste;

    I agree. Cold revenge is kind of bland, sometimes. Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for stopping by.

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  22. Great, concise story. I've been ready a few flash stories this week that have been inspiring to try the really short form.

    Great job conveying the character's plan and its terrible effects.

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  23. Oh I like that! She fired his behind right on up lol Quick, fast and to the point LOL

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  24. They say flash stories should be tight & hot. This certainly fits the bill!

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  25. That's one way to end things. Good one!

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  26. Michael;
    Thank you. Micro-fiction (and drabbles, particularly) are not easy forms to write in. They are terribly hard for me, which is what makes them a challenge! I'm glad you liked it! Thanks for stopping by,

    Ren;
    LOL! Yes, she's a woman who 'aint being played. I'm glad you enjoyed it!

    Tony;
    Thanks! These are not easy stories to write, but they help me in editing my longer stuff. Thanks for stopping in and I'm happy you liked it.

    Eric;
    Thanks! I'm glad you liked this little drabble. :)

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  27. Brilliant - LOL funny. The amount of women who'd buy that spell. Great work

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  28. Blazing fun. Hot and smoky flash writing. I need to do one of these shorter pieces. Sizzling work!

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  29. Love it Maria! This was perfect. I love these kinds of micro stories where everything is just so perfectly told. Great job. Now to figure out how to do this myself.

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  30. I'm always envious of people who can tell a full story in just a few short paragraphs. This gives us everything we need - and it's nasty too. Excellent.

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  31. brainhaze;
    I know, right? Thanks for the comment! I'm glad you liked it.

    Julio;
    Thanks, Julio. These drabbles are not easy to write. Hard to convey a whole scene in just 100 words. But it makes a great writing exercise.

    Rachel;
    Thank you, hon. If you want to read some other really great drabbles, check out Luna Station Quarterly's current issue. It's spec fic all written by women, and last month was their drabble issue. I have 3 drabbles in it: www.lunastationquarterly. com

    Rol;
    Thanks! I'm glad you like it!

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  32. It's said, that revenge is a dish best served cold. This excellent Flash proves the saying wrong. Well done . . .wished I'd written it.

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  33. Maria, I finally got here! So sorry it took me all dang week. I like your outcome of the cheating husband a lot better than mine. :)

    Truly, this is fabulously told, so few words yet a boatload of story ~ brilliant!

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  34. "Hell Hath No Fury" like a witch's scorn. Short hot, and to the point. I felt her anger and the satisfaction after the burning; scary.

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  35. Magaly;

    Thanks for stopping by and reading my little hellish drabble. I'm glad you like it!

    LOVE your name, by the way. Unusual and pretty. :)

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  36. There is something about insane people laughing after committing a murderous act; it makes my skin crawl. This made me shake too.

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  37. GK;

    Yes! And deep down we love that skin-crawl! Thanks for stopping by. I'm glad you liked this story and followed my little blog. My main site is:

    http://mariakellyauthor.com

    If you're interested in reading more of my work!

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