House Wrecking
Page 23
Hours later, the grumbling in his stomach drew Thomas to the inside lever. He’d go get something to eat, then come back to finish his game. He lowered the lever, as his father had done, but nothing happened. Again he jammed it down, more forcefully this time, but nothing. Frustrated, Thomas backed away from the lever and stalked toward the rear of the space. At full speed, he lunged toward the door, hitting it head first. That the door opened inward was lost to him as he repeated his charge again and again.
The final knock of his head against the door made Thomas dizzy. He gave up his knocking and looked for a place to lie down. There was no sofa in the space, only some wooden chairs and assorted other pieces of furniture. He wandered to the chess set and picked up the knight. Massaging it absently in his left hand, he eyed a rolled up oriental carpet underneath the hope chest daintily supported by carved mahogany legs. Without releasing the knight, Thomas pulled on the fringe that lay on the top of the roll, exposing red and blue silk to fall back onto the floor under the chest. Thomas settled himself on the rug and pulled the fringe to wrap the rug over him, snuggling close to the remaining roll. In the hours that Thomas slept, the blood leaked out of the small fracture in his skull slowly, compressing his brain into a small space from which it would never return.
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About the Author
House Wrecking is Meredith Kazer’s first novel, but not her first book. Meredith is the Dean of the Fairfield University Marion Peckham Egan School of Nursing & Health Studies. Her professional nursing career has focused on the care of older adults. She lives in Woodbridge, Connecticut with her husband Dan.
http://www.meredithkazer.com/