riverrun Vol. 47

the grave existed in his dreams. A light from the bedroom of the house flickered
on, and soon enough the father’s home was glowing from its interior. The front
door light came alive last.
“Honey!” his wife shouted as she stepped out the door. “What’re you doin’?” She
began to make her way down the stairs and towards her husband.
The sonless father dug with the ferocity of a rabid dog. His wife, worried, called
out to him again, but her call fell upon deaf ears. The father had never done anything
in his life with such purpose, but he had to know if what he dreamed was
just that, a dream, or if it was real life. The father’s eyes swelled with tears as a
bone revealed itself in the dirt, and the father broke when a shred of the brilliant
floral dress emerged. He climbed out of the grave just as his wife reached him.
“Honey,” she spoke softly, “what’s goin’ on?” Something heavy appeared in the
sonless father’s pocket. He reached in and felt a rubber handle, so he pulled it out
and saw that it was a six shooter revolver. Engraved on the side of the barrel: For
that bitch. The sight of the gun startled the wife and she let out a yelp.
“Who are you,” the father spat.
“Ba-baby it’s me.”
“LIAR,” he pointed the gun at her. “That,” he looked into the grave, “is my wife, so
I’m goin’ tuh ask again, who the hell are you?!” The wife leaned forward to look in
the grave.
“Oh my God…” she muttered, “oh my God, what did you do, God, please, not
again, don’t tell me you did this again!” Tears flowed down the woman’s face.
“I didn’t do anything. I never did anything! All along it was you.” He was so enraged
that his hand holding the gun began to shake furiously. “That is my wife’s
dress, I got it for her for our 13th wedding anniversary.”
“That is the dress Sally down the street wore, I know because I always remember
commenting how overdressed she got to impress her boyfriend’s parents.” She
said through the tears, “Don’t you remember? Hell, she even wore it one night
when she babysat Andrew.” The sonless father did remember that, and now he
was questioning everything. He began to sob.
“That’s the first time I’ve heard you say his name in 20 years.” With snot and a
line of drool falling onto his shirt, the father lowered the gun. “Oh my God, oh my
God, what’s wrong with me.” He cried hysterically. The wife took a few steps forward,
hoping the father had come to his senses. However, as she walked forward,
through her legs the father saw the rooster from his dream, and just as had happened
in his dream, the rooster sang his song. Once again, the gun jumped up to
threaten his wife.
“Baby, please, let me help you.” His wife’s tone was warm, but with each step to-
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