The Ladies of Horror
Picture-Prompt Writing Challenge!

The Golden Afternoon 
by Kendra Hale 

The air is so fragrant here, my love. 

For anyone else, the warmth of the sun high in the noon sky would have caused a degree of
stress. To what degree, well that depended on the person, but on some level they were
affected.

It could be as simple as a mild case of being parched, or as dire as a case of heat stroke. 
But her Henry would never again know those stresses. 

The flowers are truly in their prime Henry, they are still shaking off the morning dew. The
droplets are catching the prismatic light, the sunlight is kissing the petals brazenly releasing
their best colors. 

With that touch of sun the fragrances are captivating, my love. What a gift this is.

When we first bought this house and the land it sets on, we had so many dreams before us.
What I loved most was that both of our dreams included each other. 

Our bodies carried so much less life then, we were fresher and the maps that traversed our
faces had plot lines that were far less defined. We have lived this life beautifully, my Henry. 

Her work had been mocked throughout the years but she had never paid her critics any mind,
nor did it matter anymore. Through all of her many trials and errors over the years she had
finally perfected the right mixture. The one that would allow her what everyone wanted. More
time. 

“You carefully chose every flower here, my love. Mirrored your beauty with my mind, with this
maze. At the center of it, us.” 

A smile graced her lips as she looked over at her husband, her Henry. His face upturned to the
sun as though he were one of his flowers.

A giggle escaped her lips as she took in his visage. How much I love you Henry, I could not live
this life without you. It had been such a hard truth to take in when she realized it. Without him,
life lost meaning, this man who had become her everything just as she had been his. They had
swam in this loving circle until time came into play. 

She grabbed his hand, not minding the coldness that met her warmth. I was always yours and
you were always mine. Let us stay this way til the end, my Henry. 

She felt her breath catching, and knew it was time. 

“Let us enjoy the golden afternoon one last time, Henry.” 

One last time…

Fiction © Copyright Kendra Hale
Image courtesy of Rie Sheridan Rose.

More from author Kendra Hale:

Just Emotions:
A Gothic Bite Magazine Anthology

A collection of poetry.

‘Just Emotions‘ is exactly as it states, a group of writers who had feelings they wanted to express in poem form. Inside, there are a range of emotions to explore. Each writer has given a bit of themselves to you, each in their own way.

We hope that you enjoy these writings and that among the poems you may find some thing you can identify with or relate to. Thank you for giving us this chance to open the catacombs and share with you.

Available on Amazon!