Winner of the Winter, 2020, “After Dinner Conversation” Writing Competition!

Our executioner combined the qualities of a wag and libertine, parading his sociopathy as an out-sized clown.

The bayonet attached to his rifle was exceptionally long, a sawback with a broad, flat blade. The press catch was at the nine o'clock position. This particular bayonet would be a poor weapon in close combat, but, in the field, as an instrument of summary murder, no one would question its utility.

According to the executioner, the four of us would stand front to back and in close formation. The one of us at the end of the line and inviting the initial impact and de-acceleration of the weapon would surely die. The second was, too, a strong candidate for a death certificate. The third in line would be conflicted, good odds for survival undermined by exceptions to good odds for survival. At the top of the line was Pinocchio, someone who would likely live to be human.

Each of us was instructed to draw a lot consisting of straw from a corn broom, the shortest sealing the fate of the first, and so on. Three of us, including myself, were spare of build. The fourth man had a great fleshy paunch and the teats of a large, lactating animal. There wasn’t one of us, political correctness aside, who did not pray to be seeded behind his reserves of sloth and appetite.

The large man won the lottery part of the game and sure salvation. Fate saw humanity where the rest of us only saw pockets of insulation. Nonetheless, I was only marginally less fortunate and, as a result, pressed my chest between the large man’s shoulder blades. The two men aligned behind me were, as I saw it, earmarked for the hereafter.

I had heard about human beings surviving rods and bars thrust through their skulls as a result of industrial accidents or rough play. I wondered if such a miracle were empirically possible with a violent intrusion into the torso. The one who had lost the lottery outright, obviously not a gambler nor a student of medical oddities, suddenly broke rank and was shot through the head.

Sorry. Stories are free on our website for a period of time and are moved to Amazon.com. The Amazon kindle app is available for smart phones, computers, tablets, and e-readers.