The Drunken Warrior

• Corey Witcher, Grade 10
• Short Story
• 2018

It was as dark as midnight, it was as cold as ice, and my head was spinning like a top. I couldn’t remember what happened in the last few hours, but I knew, only as a hunch, that it was bad. I raised my head a few inches and looked around to try and see where I was. Nothing but buildings. When my head cleared, I made my way to the nearest hotel.
After I had paid for a room and slept for a few hours, I tried to remember what had happened. Every time I thought about it, I got a white flash behind my eyes and a face; goatee, bald, and middle-aged, maybe late thirties. My mind told me I knew that face, but I can’t remember from where. It wasn’t until I saw his face on the TV that I recognised who he was; he was the man I was looking for; the one who murdered my mother, 13 years ago.
I made my way to the police station in a daze. I walked in the door and an officer comes and says, “how can I help you?”
“I need to speak with Sargent nones, please”, I replied with urgency.
“Of course, follow me”, he said as he walked towards the door marked offices. “John, there’s someone here to see you”. The officer walked away as I entered the room.
“Hey John, I need your help” I said as soon as I sat down.
“What with?” replied John, “I need all the information you have about my mothers’ murderers’ whereabouts?” my hands were in fists, my fingernails cutting in to my palm.
Thanks to Johns information, I found him in a supposedly abandoned warehouse outside the old nuclear powerplant. The place had a certain doom and gloom feel about it. I pushed on the door, it opened. I pulled the gun I got from an arms dealer a few days ago and yelled, “I know you’re here, get out here”, and as soon as I spoke, he entered the room.
“Why are you here?” asked the man in a southern Texas drawl.
“I want to know why you killed my mother”, I replied with as much malice as I could muster with my throat clogged up in fear.
“Because she was in my road”, he replied with a look that said, derr.
“Is that it?”, I replied with tears in my eyes. “You killed her because she was in your way”.
“It was me or her, and I chose me, I’ll always choose me, which is why you can join her.” He rushed at me with arms out to try and catch me off guard. He smashed his elbow into my face and his shoulder into my ribs. I hit the ground and rolled into a crouch, aiming my gun at his head. He rushed me again, but I was prepared. I pulled the trigger. I ran and hadn’t stopped running.