#flashcomp Winner: White Lies
by Rebecca Emin
“Thirty years ago,” the woman to my left muses quietly.
“Seems like yesterday,” I whisper, adjusting my hat to block the sun’s glare.
As the shadow crosses my eyes, the graffiti disappears, and I spot the armed guards on patrol, the impenetrable fence and the razor wire on the top of every surface. I smell wood smoke and something else. Fear.
Perhaps this trip would not rid me of the nightmares after all.
My daughter squeezes my arm and whispers, “Do you want to talk about it?”
Three years spent at university filling her head with psychobabble, and now she wants me to burden her with everything; the capture, the binds that dug into my naked flesh, the torture.
“I need some sunscreen,” I say as I rub my wrist, remembering how I bled as the ropes wore my skin away. A flashback to Roy’s eyes rolling back, his body thudding to the floor as they slit his throat.
She exhales. “Come on then,” she says, defeated.
“I don’t remember anything, you know,” I say as we return to the car.
She gives me a sharp look.
“Honestly.”
Uncrossing my fingers, I have one final backward glance.
(Author: Rebecca Emin. Story: All Rights Reserved. Photographer: nickolouse13. Image: Some Rights Reserved.)
Wow. So concise, but such vivid, dark images. That was intense. Well done, Rebecca!
Thank you so much, Yasmin!
Beautifully written Rebecca.
Thanks, Francesca!
I’ve always loved what you can do with so few words. The hint of the dark past, the sense of fear- all comes through. Well done.
Thanks so much, Ruchira.
I was right there with them in that third sentence. Breathtaking!
Thanks, Jean
)
Well done!
Love the relationship between mother and daughter and all the many reasons hinted at that prevent mom from telling all. Well done!
Thanks, Mary. I found your comment really interesting because in my head the main character was a man. That just shows it’s open to reader interpretation! Thank you.
Well done, Rebecca! I’ve already commented elsewhere how much I enjoyed this story. Interesting to read the above comment – I thought it was mother and daughter, too. Perhaps coloured by the fact I knew you had written it?
That’s probably the case, Shirley. It’s happened in previous stories of mine too but works both ways so I guess it doesn’t detract at all. It’s funny though when you have a vivid mental picture of the character and then people “see” someone else altogether.
I love the tension between the truth kept and the lies shared. Great story.
Superb imagery in this Rebecca. As others have said you do such a terrific job of telling a Big Story in so few words.
I too thought it was mother and daughter, but, when the sex of characters isn’t revealed, I have a bad habit of “assigning” the sex based on the author, so that could be why I thought the MC was female.
Poignant.
Many people who have survived torture and horror, or combat, have no desire to talk about their experiences, possibly to avoid opening the wounds even wider.
A short but very powerful piece Rebecca.
[...] White Lies by Rebecca Emin [...]
[...] Emin has a flash, “White Lies”, up over at 1000Words which she submitted for a photo prompt competition [...]
By far one of my favourite stories on 1000words……
Elegant, taut and terrifying .. Superb!!