THERE'S NOTHING BEYOND THIS POINT

 The wind blew so hard that  day.  She walked in a quiet, rather sad sort of way.

It was not an easy time.  Her husband had left her with three small children.  She

wasn't angry, only confused and more than a little sad.  She supposed it had all

been a bit to much.  The children were at school, she smiled at the memory of their

little faces...so eager and optimistic.  But she had no money and now she would have

to work in a brothel.  They  had told her she was young and attractive and would

do well.  The woman stopped an sat on a huge boulder.  There was a ship out there.

What if she just jumped in and swam for the ship?  Where would it take  her, would

they give her a job scrubbing the deck or washing pots and pans?

 She had one cigarette left.  She lit it and smoked.  All things considered, she

didn't feel that bad.  Working as a whore was probably not the worse thing that could

happen.  She could save money and move away...where, she had no idea.  She noticed a

man walking along the beach.  She knew him, his named was Adam Silk.  He had visited

at her place a few times, an occasional drinking pal of her husband's.  The woman

had liked him more than most of her husband's friends.  He was talk and young...with

a dark mustache and curly, dark hair.  He noticed her and approached.

 "Hello,"  he called  out.  "Its nice out, isn't it?"

 "Yes, very nice."

 "Where's Tom?  Haven't seen him in a good while."

 "I'm afraid hes moved away...he felt to tied down and just up and left."

 Adam's face took on a puzzled look.  "He had a fine family...some men are never

satisfied I suppose."

 "I suppose, what are you doing out here...surely you aren't another bewildered soul

seeking some peace of mind like me?"

 Adam lit a cigarette of his own and thoughtfully blew the smoke into the wind.  His

coat was a bit tattered.  "Oh, I'm leaving on a ship in a few days for four months.

I suppose I'm just trying to enjoy as much of the land as I can...don't really like

going to sea but its a job you know."

 "I had no idea you were a sailor?"

  "Its only my second time out...hard times call for desperate actions  you know.  Its

lonely out there, and no women of course."

 "That must be very hard on a young man like yourself?"

 "Yes," he replied somberly.

 "So Tom's really gone for good?"

 "Yes"

 "That's a shame, you're a fine girl...and a damned good cook as I recall once."

 "I'd forgotten than you ate with us once."

 "Would you like to take a walk with me...I'm to anxious to sit long."

 They walked together for nearly an hour, sometimes talking, sometimes saying nothing.

The wind died down, then sprang back up.  Sea gulls darted here and there and they

shared Adam's cigarettes.  He offered her a drink from a bottle of brandy.  She took

a long swallow and enjoyed the burn.  She began to feel giddy.  It had been almost

ten years since she'd been along with a man like this.  Suddenly being free was such

a strange yet somewhat interesting sensation.  She felt foolish and childish but not

really so bad.

 That evening Adam followed her home.  She cooked a wonderful meal for him and her

children.  Later they sipped the brandy and smoked.  Her bed seemed so large and

cold that night but she had a difficult time going to sleep.  He returned the next

night and the night after that.  He gave her a little money that he had saved.  "I

won't need it out there," he said.  Finally the day come for him to leave.  For the

first time he kissed her and walked out the door.  "I'll return with my pockets full

of money," he promised.  "Just come back safe and sound," she begged.

 The next day she walked by the ocean and looked out at the ships there.  This time

her steps were different, her gait more steady.  She sat on the boulder and smoked.

For a long time she sat there and listened to the song of the wind.


 


Hearts in the Windby meanus