This is an excerpt from Tallena Thom's 4th short novel, One Horse
Town. It will be released January 14, but is now available for pre-order
here.
Also check out other short novels available from Tallena Thom on Amazon.
One Horse Town: Questions
When they got to the house, Jake started opening the door but noticed that Chris wasn’t moving.
“You coming?” Jake asked with his voice raspy from leftover liquor.
“Hell no. I’ve been in your shoes before. I’m not going in there,” Chris said, nervously eyeing the house that now seemed like a ten storied white fortress. “Also, you smell like day old fish.”
Jake grunted and, having no alternative, slowly stumbled across the yard, up the concrete steps and into the quiet farmhouse. His mom was standing at the kitchen counter, like she always was. Jake suddenly realized that she must have spent the majority of her life standing at that counter. Then he pictured Becky in that same position, standing there for the rest of her life. He couldn’t help but feel sad about this.
“Hey Ma,” he said quietly, even though she already knew it was him.
“Good morning Jake,” she said cheerfully. “What are you up to today?”
He stood for a moment. He had expected a flurry of questions. Where were you last night? How could you? What did you do to that poor girl? What are you going to do? The carelessness and ease of the question caught him off guard.
“Jake,” she said, turning around, a spatula in her hand. “You all right, honey?”
Maybe she didn’t know. Maybe Chris was pulling his leg just trying to get him out of that damn boat and come face reality.
“What do I do, Ma?” he asked, a tinge of fear in his voice. The question had escaped his lips before crossing his mind first.
“Well, I don’t know dear. What do you want to do?” her reply stoic. She turned and continued stirring the batter that was in a large ceramic bowl on the counter.
“I don’t know. I don’t know what to do,” he said, dropping down into one of the kitchen chairs that circled the small round table.
“Well, I think you have quite a few options. What do you want to do?” she asked again.
“I don’t know,” he repeated.
“Jake, have you ever made a decision on your own?”
The question caught him. He looked at her, not sure if she had actually asked.
“You joined baseball because your brother played. You went to college because of the scholarship, and you came back home after your father died because you felt you had to. Have you ever made your own decision, for yourself?” She poured the batter into a cake pan as she asked, her back to him, as if she was instructing him how to make a cake instead of how to live his life.
“It’s time to grow up, Jake. It’s time to start making decisions based on what you want out of life, not what others do or expect of you. You’re a very smart boy. I’m surprised you haven’t used this to your advantage,” she continued, calmly putting the cake pan into the oven. “I think you need to go upstairs take a shower. I don’t know if you’re aware, but you smell like fish.”
Also check out other short novels available from Tallena Thom on Amazon.
One Horse Town: Questions
When they got to the house, Jake started opening the door but noticed that Chris wasn’t moving.
“You coming?” Jake asked with his voice raspy from leftover liquor.
“Hell no. I’ve been in your shoes before. I’m not going in there,” Chris said, nervously eyeing the house that now seemed like a ten storied white fortress. “Also, you smell like day old fish.”
Jake grunted and, having no alternative, slowly stumbled across the yard, up the concrete steps and into the quiet farmhouse. His mom was standing at the kitchen counter, like she always was. Jake suddenly realized that she must have spent the majority of her life standing at that counter. Then he pictured Becky in that same position, standing there for the rest of her life. He couldn’t help but feel sad about this.
“Hey Ma,” he said quietly, even though she already knew it was him.
“Good morning Jake,” she said cheerfully. “What are you up to today?”
He stood for a moment. He had expected a flurry of questions. Where were you last night? How could you? What did you do to that poor girl? What are you going to do? The carelessness and ease of the question caught him off guard.
“Jake,” she said, turning around, a spatula in her hand. “You all right, honey?”
Maybe she didn’t know. Maybe Chris was pulling his leg just trying to get him out of that damn boat and come face reality.
“What do I do, Ma?” he asked, a tinge of fear in his voice. The question had escaped his lips before crossing his mind first.
“Well, I don’t know dear. What do you want to do?” her reply stoic. She turned and continued stirring the batter that was in a large ceramic bowl on the counter.
“I don’t know. I don’t know what to do,” he said, dropping down into one of the kitchen chairs that circled the small round table.
“Well, I think you have quite a few options. What do you want to do?” she asked again.
“I don’t know,” he repeated.
“Jake, have you ever made a decision on your own?”
The question caught him. He looked at her, not sure if she had actually asked.
“You joined baseball because your brother played. You went to college because of the scholarship, and you came back home after your father died because you felt you had to. Have you ever made your own decision, for yourself?” She poured the batter into a cake pan as she asked, her back to him, as if she was instructing him how to make a cake instead of how to live his life.
“It’s time to grow up, Jake. It’s time to start making decisions based on what you want out of life, not what others do or expect of you. You’re a very smart boy. I’m surprised you haven’t used this to your advantage,” she continued, calmly putting the cake pan into the oven. “I think you need to go upstairs take a shower. I don’t know if you’re aware, but you smell like fish.”
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