Saturday, March 16, 2013

Mother

The sound came from my mother's mouth, as she lay dying.  A terrible lonely sound.  A foreign sound, like a deep low clicking and gurgling.  They told me it was the death rattle. And that I could expect her death within the next twelve hours. 
And they were right.

That was the first time I had ever heard such an ugly sound.

The second time was five nights after her funeral, as I sat alone in her small empty house.

9 comments:

Marrow said...

This is stomach-churning stuff, Rot.
It's power comes from the implication of horror, rather than shock tactics.

Truly scary.

Rot said...

Thanks, marrow.

A friend of mine many years ago heard this sound from a dying relative.

I never forgot the story he told me.

James Colton said...

I love stories like this. Their telling is so simple, but it is deceptively hard to get right.

Joel said...

Yeesh. I got gross chills. Well done.

girl6 said...

Ouch!.. :(:(:(
in a really really good way...

Rot said...

Was just thinking what it'd be like to be haunted by something so unrepresentative of the person who passed.

It wouldn't be fair.

It'd be awful.

Sara said...

chills.

Old Hag said...

You're right.
It isn't fair.
It is awful.

Wren said...

LOVE