The Other Side of Town
by
Russell Thayer
The stranger held his hat in his hands.
“There’s been a wreck out on Highway 87.”
I didn’t think to invite him in, but I stood there wondering why they’d sent a stranger to tell me.
“Did Lorna survive?” I could feel my dreams dying. There was nothing in my hands but the edge of the screened door. Porchlight moths fluttered into the house. I knew she was gone.
“They tried to beat a freight train.” The stranger shook his head.
Midge always launched Lorna to bowling night like a bazooka in that Studebaker of hers.
“Midge had two kids,” I said. Lorna was finally pregnant.
“Midge?” The man frowned.
“My wife’s best friend. They were on their way to Plainview Lanes. League night.”
“She was with a man,” the stranger said, his eyes on the broken concrete steps.
I let the door close. I found it hard to breathe with my back against the wall.
“What was he driving?”
“A Corvette.”
My best friend.
Bio:
Russell Thayer’s work has appeared in
Brushfire,Tough, Roi Fainéant Press, Guilty Crime Magazine, Mystery Tribune, Close to the Bone, Bristol Noir, Apocalypse Confidential, Hawaii Pacific Review, Shotgun Honey, Rock and a Hard Place Press, Revolution John, Punk Noir, Pulp Modern, and Outcast Press.
He received his BA in English from the University of Washington, worked for decades at large printing companies, and currently lives in Missoula, Montana. You can find him lurking on Twitter @RussellThayer10