The
Peeper
“I think someone is coming”, the man says to himself. The sound of human voices echoes across the yard from the main house. This shadow man conceals himself stealthily behind the slat-boards in the barn.
On other days the
stranger watches the innocence portrayed by the seven-year-old granddaughter
imagining tea times with stuffed animals and kings and queens of made-up lands.
He enjoys these times and imagines himself playing
along with her as she pretends to cook for royalty, hand out refreshments, and
provide grandiose entertainment, such as drama and amateur ballet.
He wishes to be her king.
She would be his beautiful princess to slay dragons for and shelter from the evil
world. His head throbs and he starts to rub it but stops suddenly as he catches
sight of the live-in housekeeper walking towards the barn with the baby. He
looks with loathing at the plain-faced woman with the large, bulbous nose and
child. Particularly the child. He discreetly massages his temples. A chill wind
blows through the slats.
No comments:
Post a Comment