Friday, October 19, 2012

Write On Edge: Misinterpretation Challenge

Red Writing Hood challenged this week to use a misinterpretation of a letter or conversation to heighten tension. Word limit is 300.

Back in April I wrote a piece for the Choice and Consequence challenge about a Puritan woman scorned, Lamenting the Tempest. My dad thought it was a story about witchcraft. Soooo I thought, what if the cousin thought the same thing?



I offer the following in response: Betrayal




Deliverance paced at the edge of the Amesbury marketplace while she awaited her cousin. Over the transient noises drifting in the heavy marine fog, the town crier announced the hour. The clamor of his bell summoned the image of her false-hearted lover’s ship. Sweat moistened the hair beneath her cap and trickled down her neck. Her anger amplified the heat of pregnancy so that she thought her woolen dress would burst into hellfire.

Hours passed, slow as maple sap, as she stewed in her own skin. The crier’s bell thrice knelled but Esther had yet to return. Deliverance set her jaw and walked the muddy path into town, ignoring the gaping mouths of those with whom she once sought fellowship. No longer a part of the community, she was forbidden to trade in the marketplace publicly. She passed the chapel and blanched as someone gripped her arm, dragging her bodily forward.

Esther stood before the magistrate’s office and pointed an accusatory finger her direction. Magistrate Whitson sneered at her approach. “And what happened then, Mrs. Lovejoy?”

Esther twisted a handkerchief into a noose about her fingers. “She called upon the fiends of Hell to sink her lover’s ship.”

Deliverance wanted nothing so badly than to reach across the empty space and throttle her cousin’s dainty neck. “I called for the Lord God Almighty to loose his hellhounds in righteous vengeance against a defiler of virtues. I have no truck with Satan or his demons!”

Whitson growled, “Deliverance Redd, you are hereby accused of witchery, and through filthy fornication with demons summoned the storm that downed the Goodship September, drowning all her hands. You are to be brought before the Court of Oyer and Terminer to be examined and tried. May God have mercy upon your soul.”


16 comments:

  1. Crap! That's not a good misinterpretation! It is interesting how we can take something that is fairly benign and make it into a big hot mess. Very nice.

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    1. Thanks! I know it's a dark outcome. Poor, angry Deliverance.First convicted of adultery, now accused of being a witch.

      I hope you enjoyed your stay. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts!

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  2. Poor Deliverance ... I hope she has a chance to live up to her name, but it doesn't look good for her! Here's to someone's clear testimony to help her out of her mess.

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    1. Thanks!If anyone can survive, I think it would be Deliverance. She's a pretty tough cookie.

      I hope you've enjoyed your visit. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts!

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  3. I too wanted to reach out an throttle Esther's delicate neck. You packed a lot in here, betrayal, pregnancy, heartache, and selfishness on the part of Esther. I loved the point that a curse is a curse regardless the ear it's whispered into.

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    1. Thanks! Esther is a product of her environment sure, but the finger would eventually point her way. A lonely widow that lives outside of town and takes in morally corrupt relations is bound to be accused in this time of superstition. Deliverance herself may even accuse her when put to the question.

      I hope you enjoyed your stay. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts!

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  4. Witchcraft-its the season-great storyline!

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    1. Thanks! I suppose it is rather the season, isn't it?

      I hope you enjoyed your stay. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts!

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  5. Anytime is a good time for witchery, at least when it comes to story time. Deliverance should have asked the Lord to smack Esther in the back of the head, since she seems to be in good with the guy upstairs.

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    1. Thanks! I like the way you think. Esther could use a good smiting.

      I hope you enjoyed your stay. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts!

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  6. As always you paint such rich scenery with your words. I was instantly in that harbor town watching these events unfold. The tension over the accusation of witchcraft was palatable. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. Thanks! I'm pleased beyond words that I'm constantly able to transport you to a vivid world.

      I'm glad you enjoyed your stay. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts!

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  7. Love it! How sad because so many died during this time.

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    1. Thanks! Even more tragic than death is the torture the victims of the trials went through. A "question" in Germany once elicited 99 accomplices in one session. So many dark shadows blot our histories.

      Anyway, thanks for the love. I'm happy you enjoyed your visit. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts!

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  8. Puritan times give so much room for conflict, mistinterpretation, and willful misinterpretation. :/ Your historical pieces are so deep. Nice job.

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    1. Thanks! History is a passion of mine. I try to portray the past with respect and dignity, so I'm glad when my attempts succeed.

      I hope you enjoyed your stay. Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts!

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