Bandits!
Flash Fiction #9
Wet elm tree leaves stuck to the rotting logs on the damp forest floor. Centipedes wriggled out of holes in the soft soil and climbed onto a pair of worn leather shoes. Hot, humid air settled around a man’s held breaths. Chirping filled the woods, echoing off the walls of the rocky cleft around him. He smelled honeysuckle flowers and the remnants of last night’s rain.
Sunlight drifted through the leaves and reflected off the rusty hilt of his sword. He gripped a quartz pendant around his neck and hoped that she would not blame him for his sin. No amount of thievery would ever win back her heart, but hope never dies.
A clatter approached through the cleft. Other armed men shifted in the cover of trees and dirt, eyes wide in anticipation. Unsuspecting wagoners ambled next to tired oxen pairs. A golden-haired princess relaxed farther down the caravan, laughing with her maid about court gossip and the possibility of romance.
In a blink, the bandits raced down the slope and unsheathed their weapons. Hapless guards noticed the onslaught too late, falling victim to the surprise. A soldier sliced the cord around the man’s neck as he jabbed with his sword. The man slayed him with a knife through the eye.
The quartz pendant fell and broke upon the rocks, colored red by innocent blood.