Final Breath

I stared out into the darkness of the winter night. The cool air breeze brushed past my face as I gazed upwards at the translucent globe that hung limply in the sky; cloaked by the dull clouds and shrouded by the silence of the night.

I continued to stare at the bright sphere as it floated away from the clouds and into the star filled sky. Its radiance shone down upon the sandy beach and illuminated the pulsing waves of the dark blue sea. I dropped my gaze from the brightness of the unremitting sky and stared out into the infinite sea of pungent waves and soothing spirals. I felt as free as a bird circling the blazing sun during summer; gazing out towards the beauty of nature.

My moment of tranquillity was abruptly obliterated, however, as I saw him; the man in the shadows. My bowels seemed to swivel and swirl as I gazed out towards him. Although he was masked by the dark veil of night I could still make out the faint silhouette of his burly physique.

The tall muscular man stood on the beach; his still composure cloaking his anxiety and fear. I got up from the ground and slowly walked towards him; every step filling me with dread. He knew I was coming yet he remained motionless.

I slowly walked up behind him and unsheathed a dagger from my belt. Hearing me, the man slowly turned around and revealed his hideousness. His face was dark, shady and vague; his eyes blank and dead.

As I looked into the man’s cold dark eyes I felt a surge of anger erupt inside me like a volcano. My guilt and remorse were burned away as the fire inside me pulsed through my veins. The man noticed my anger and remained still as though he was unperturbed by my ferocity.

He slowly walked towards me and said in his dark malevolent voice, “Hello son.”

His voice sent a shiver down my spine as I recalled the day that had begun all this; the day when my father had murdered my mother. I could never forget that moment; the moment when he stabbed the knife into her heart.

My father stared at me as he grabbed my arms. His unrelenting gaze shone black like his soul; black like the endless pool of evil that engulfed him. As I stared into his eyes all I could think of was my mother; the memory of her contorted face filled me with a surge of anger.

The uncontrollable fury enveloped me as I tightly gripped the dagger. My blinding rage exploded inside me as I plunged the cold hard steel deep into his heart. He immediately began to splutter blood as I wrenched the dagger from his body. He stared up at me; his eyes filled with pain, anguish and remorse.

My father slowly crumbled to the ground; the sounds of his final torment released into the wind and with it, his final breath.