Honorable Mention in WOW - Women On Writing Fall Flash Fiction 2014 Contest

I'll be darned! My entry won an honorable mention (11th-20th out of over 200 entries) in the Fall Flash Fiction contest on the site WOW- Women On Writing. My name and story title will be posted on their website http://wow-womenonwriting.com plus I'll receive an Amazon $25 gift certificate. Since the story won't be posted there, I'm posting it here:

Hank’s Reveal

Hank rolled his broad shoulders and leaned forward against the kitchen island, stretching out the hamstring on each leg. He loved running along the trails in Forest Park. Today’s rainstorm hadn’t bothered him. The grey overcast rainy days of Portland were his favorite—they suited his mood. He'd made time for a quick run before dinner, and since it was cooler than usual, he’d had the trails all to himself. The heavy mat of fir needles covering the path gave a spring to his step and the air smelled clean and freshly scrubbed of all the big-city odors.

He kicked off his beat up running shoes and picked up the set of rolled drawings, spreading them out on the counter top scrutinizing the design. The house was coming along on schedule, although slightly over budget. The buyers had picked a challenging lot in the West Hills to build their new home. As a general contractor specializing in that area, he was in high demand, not only because of the unique contemporary-designed homes he built, but because of his degree in geology.

Hank was an expert in dealing with any potential problems that the fault line running the length of the West Hills presented. He’d engineered the complicated building site, calling for the foundation to be reinforced with rebar and concrete pilings driven deep into the ground. He situated the home perfectly to maximize its stability and to take advantage of the views of the Willamette River. Although he was one of the younger general contractors in the city at thirty-two, he had a stellar reputation and clients had faith in him. It didn’t hurt that he lived in a unique chrome and glass house he’d designed and built in the hills along the fault line also.

He ran a hand through his dark wavy hair and glanced at his watch. He had two hours to get ready. Tonight his usual well-worn jeans and tee shirt attire would give way to something more suited for his destination. Hank reached for his cell phone when the “Y-M-C-A” ringtone played. He got kidded about that a lot, but he liked the Village People.

 “Hey, how about meeting me and Jeannine for a drink downtown around six-ish at Kell’s Irish Pub,” said Stephanie, his assistant. “We’ll probably stop at a few other places after that.”

“No, I’ve got other plans,” he said. “But thanks for asking.”

“You sure? Jeannine would really like to get to know you.”

“Yep, I’ll see you Monday.” Stephanie was always trying to set him up with someone even though he did his best to discourage her. He stared off into the distance. It would take someone exceptionally understanding to put up with him and his hectic work schedule, not to mention his hobbies. 

Hank came back to the present and headed for the shower. He practiced a dance move as he sauntered down the hallway and in the shower he sang a few show tunes.

Two hours later, he parked in the lot behind the well-known downtown building and carefully exited the car. He straightened his clothes before entering a room full of noise, music and lights. 

“Henrietta,” called another patron. “Over here.”

He carefully smoothed his red sequined gown and pushed a curl from the long brunette wig behind his ear, careful to not disturb the dangling earring clipped there. He sashayed over to the table. “Hi, Darcelle,” he said to Portland’s oldest drag queen. “Looks like business is booming tonight.”

“All the advertising paid off. They’re coming to see the performance—it’s sold out.”

In the dressing room, the jitters rumbled in his stomach and his hands shook as he fixed his makeup and wig. Hank took his place on stage and the curtain opened to a round of cheers and applause, and Stephanie and Jeannine in the front row.  He panicked and missed the first dance step, but quickly recovered, blending with the others in their rendition of “New York, New York.”

As he passed by the front of the stage, he saw Stephanie stare at him, her eyes narrowing, intently scrutinizing his face. Her mouth dropped open as she realized it was him. He winked at her and she closed her mouth. She turned to Jeannine, then shook her head and stared back at him.

He worked “zipping his lips and throwing away the key” into his dance routine. She hesitated, but repeated the gesture with a grin, picking up her glass and toasting him.

Gullible Grandma

Ann's writing challenge:

It is 10:30 at night on a warm May evening.  A woman has found a place to sit in a small architectural alcove on the outside of a church a block away from her residence.  She chose this spot not for any religious significance but because it faces a grassy area and the backs of other buildings.  In the darkness, it is unlikely anyone will see her there.  She weeps.

Why is she weeping?


She was so stupid. How had she not seen it for what it was? She couldn’t go home to face her husband yet; he’d be furious. She would sit outside in the darkness of the church alcove for a while longer. She looked out to the buildings in the distance, their lights burning brightly, and wiped the shredded Kleenex she gripped in her hand over her swollen eyes. She hadn’t been able to stop crying since she figured it out. Maybe if the door to the church was open she’d go inside and pray. She needed all the help she could get.

“Grandma, I’m in Canada and I’ve been arrested. I need you to wire money to me for bail. But please don’t tell Dad.”

The telephone connection crackled. “Grandma, will you help me?” His voice was high and panicked.

“What have you been arrested for, Josh?” Her only grandson lived with his dad across the country in Oregon. She hadn’t seen him since he started college two years ago.

“They said they found drugs in the trunk of my car when they stopped me for going too fast. Grandma, I don’t do drugs and it was just 5 miles over the speed limit. I wasn’t paying attention.”

She’d gone to the bank and wired $30,000 to her grandson in Canada. It was almost all they had in savings, but she had to help him. He promised she’d get it all back because the lawyer who was representing him told him he’d be able to get the charges dropped.

After she had wired the money, she had second thoughts. Something just didn’t feel right. She called her son in Oregon and Josh answered the phone. “Canada? No Grandma. I’m home this weekend from college staying with dad.”

She called the police and then Western Union. They took her information, but told her what she had already figured out. She’d given her money to a scam artist.

Now she had to face her husband to tell him she had wired almost all of their savings to someone in Canada, and it was gone forever.

She stood and walked to the door of the church. She’d go inside first and pray for some of that divine intervention.

Natalie's story through Gabe's eyes

(This is a rewrite of To Lock or Not to Lock as seen through the eyes of Natalie's Guardian Angel, Gabe)

Things couldn’t get any busier tonight, Gabe thought rushing to steady Natalie as she slid on the ice and went careening towards the barberry bush outside her work place. He had almost missed her leaving.

They always gave him the young ones. They said it was because his reflexes were better than most of the other Guardian Angels. It was true, and he was proud of it.

In just the short time his mind had wandered, he saw that Natalie had gotten a glass of water and poured it on her frozen car door lock. When it released, he watched her open the door and get inside. He saw her wait for a few minutes for the heater to come on, then decide to go back inside the office. But when she pushed on the door to get out, it wouldn’t budge; it was frozen shut. “Good, she’s locked in and out of trouble for now,” he thought.

At that moment he heard Lucy yell, “Gabe, watch out for Jake!” He moved with lightening speed to steer the sled of the 10 year-old boy that was sliding out of control down the snowy unlit road behind his house. “Time to go inside for the night,” he suggested to the boy’s conscience. He left as he saw Jake pick up his sled and head for home.

When he got back to Natalie, she was leaving the parking lot with only a small circle of clear space to see out of on her windshield. “No, no, you were supposed to wait for the windshield to defrost before you started out,” he shouted. She cocked her head as if she heard something, but kept on going. “There’s no one left at the party; they’ve all gone home because of the icy weather.”  If she heard him, she didn’t react. The younger ones listen, he had learned, this one was 22.

Lucy shouted again, “It’s Sandra now.” He was glad Lucy had his back. The three people he was responsible for tonight were almost too much without his Assistant.

He got to twelve-year-old Sandra’s second story window just as she was climbing out to run away from home. Her backpack was bulging with all of her important possessions. She clutched her pillow pet monkey in her left arm and grabbed ahold of the gutter. Gabe caught Sandra as the gutter fell away from the house, and he slowly eased her to the ground.

“It’s not safe,” he whispered to her. “Go back inside and talk to her. She understands.” He watched as she wiped away her tears and walked through the front door into her mother’s arms.

He caught back up with Natalie and was impressed at how slowly and carefully she was driving. But as she made a left turn, her car door suddenly flew open and the car began sliding towards the embankment on the right. He knew there was a creek below.

Gabe took control of the wheel and steered the car back onto the road. Natalie was holding the door closed as best she could while gripping the steering wheel with the other hand. He could tell when she made the decision to head home instead of to the party.

Gabe wanted to make sure she got there without any further mishaps, so he followed her as she drove the rest of the way. When she turned the corner onto her street, he winked at the porch light causing it to gleam brighter. He noticed the silhouette of her mother standing at the front window watching for her.

He saw Natalie visibly relax, then try to stifle an uncontrollable giggle. Yes, she would have a good story to share. And he would add three more saves to his list of accomplishments tonight.