Final Stroke
Page 47
When an especially strong gust of wind drove rain against the sliding door, Maria stirred in his arms. “I understand why you are angry, Tanya.”
“Why do you tell her that?” asked Valdez.
“Because of what her name has come to symbolize.”
“Yes,” said Valdez. “Many names have taken on symbolic meanings throughout the ages. Are you familiar with the name Barabbas?”
“Barabbas,” repeated Maria. “Isn’t that the name of the thief who was released instead of Jesus Christ?”
“Yes,” said Valdez. “I once knew of a man whose family had been given the name Babe. It was after the turn of the century when U.S.
immigrants came from Europe. The reason the man’s family had been given this name was because of the fear of being stuck with the name of the thief from the Crucifixion. It happened on Ellis Island where an official confused the name Barabbas with the family’s original Hun garian name, Baberos. Trying to be helpful, the official suggested the name Babe, and for the last century, the man’s family has had to live with it.”
“I’m glad I do not have a name like that,” said Maria as the wind flattened a palm branch against the sliding doors. She lifted her head. “We’d better close up, I think.”
While waves swamped the fishing pier and winds whipped the palm trees that lined the concrete walls surrounding the fortified home, Valdez and Maria stood to attend to the last storm shutter. As the wind tore at him, Valdez braced himself just inside the door open ing so he could reach up and release the weighted shutter. Maria held onto his belt with one hand while maintaining a firm grip on the slid ing door handle with her other hand. After they got the last shutter closed and locked firmly to the eyebolts embedded in the patio floor, they closed the sliding door and retired into the dark house.
Outside, the storm named Tanya roared.
THE END
MICHAEL
BERES
photo by KB
Michael’s experiences during the Cold War and his interest in the environment have shaped his novels. With degrees in computer sci ence, math, and literature, he worked for the government, holding a top-secret security clearance, and in the private sector, documenting analytical software. His fi ction reflects our age of environmental un certainty and political treachery.
A Canadian publisher published Michael’s first novel SUNSTRIKE in the eighties when environmental and political conspiracies were considered tall tales. Today we know differently. Medallion Press published Michael’s environmental novel GRAND TRAVERSE in 2005. It presents a realistic portrait of our frightening near future. His 2006 release, political thriller THE PRESIDENT’S NEMESIS, was compared to THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE by Library Journal and dubbed “a nail-biting thriller” by Midwest Review.
A Chicago native now living in West Michigan, Michael is a mem ber of the Mystery Writers of America, International Th riller Writers, and the Sierra Club. He has driven a low-emissions hybrid vehicle since the beginning of the technology. His short stories have appeared in: Amazing Stories, Amazon Shorts, the American Fiction Collection, Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine, Ascent, Cosmopolitan, Ellery Queen, Michigan Quarterly Review, The Missouri Review, New York Stories, Papyrus, Playboy, Pulpsmith, Skylark, and Twilight Zone.
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