The Ladies of Horror
Picture-Prompt Writing Challenge!

A Part of You
by Sonora Taylor

Travis and Tristan looked at their mother, who lay dead on the floor. They smiled at each other, each looking into a reflection of the other as they grinned at their twin.

“That was easy,” Travis said.

“Dad’ll be thrilled,” Tristan added. “He was right – the tea got her in just one sip.”

“Let’s go tell him. He’ll be proud of us for –”

Travis stopped and stared at Tristan. Tristan stood frozen except for the blood trickling from his eyes. They looked like single threads spooling from each iris. Tristan’s mouth fell open, and a waterfall of blood joined the streams from his eyes.

Travis began to scream, then felt a burst in his stomach. He gripped his sides, but instead of flesh, he grabbed bone. He looked down and saw two skeleton arms shoot from his stomach, casting aside his hands like flies.

Before he could scream again, another burst came from his throat. He felt a large, smooth orb move from his neck. A skull cast a glance in his direction, then turned and dove towards the blood that pooled from Tristan’s body. The hands cupped the blood and the skull began to sip. Skin and hair began to grow around the bones. Before Travis lost consciousness, he saw his mother’s chestnut hair curl over her reborn shoulders.

“You can’t kill me,” she said to the lifeless forms of her children. “You came from me, and I’m a part of you – one you’ll never be able to destroy.” She grabbed her mug of tea and walked out of the kitchen. “Now, let’s see where your father is.”

Fiction © Copyright Sonora Taylor
Image courtesy of Pixabay.com 

More from Sonora Taylor:

WITHER and Other Stories

Should we or shouldn’t we? It’s a question many ask themselves each day. Should we or shouldn’t we wither in a wooded paradise instead of a broken city? Leave our home when the news warns us of what’s outside? Join in a circle of nighttime delights? Be with someone who awakens our sins?

“Wither and Other Stories” tells four tales of the choice to partake. In the end, the choice may not need to be made. For when we ask ourselves, “Should we or shouldn’t we,” the answer is always yes.

Available on Amazon!