The Truth Unfolds

• Isla Pribilovic, Grade 7
• Short Story
• 2022

My legs are heavy from running. I can hear them not far behind me as my bare feet make frantic indentations in the cold, wet soil. What do they even want? Tears are streaming down my face. I’ve been running for 30 minutes! As I look up ahead of me I see a huge, dark, shaded tree with vines hanging from it. If I keep running I will crash into the tree, but if I turn to the left I may slip and slow down and they might catch me. I decide to take a risk and turn to the left but as I turn my foot slips on the wet soil, and I start to stumble over my own feet. As I tumble down to the ground I splash into a puddle and slide underneath the tree, leaving a trail of mud as I go. I can hear that the thugs have also tripped over but they haven’t slipped into the puddle. They get up and start to run again muttering how the ‘big boss’ is going to kill them if they don’t get the job done.
As their voices start to fade into the distance I peel myself off the ground and realise that I have mud and dirty water all over me, and a portion of my hair is soaked. As I stand up and start to walk out from the safety of the huge tree I stumble over something hard. I look down at my feet and see a distressed leather suitcase. I start to examine it, taking in every detail I can find. I can see a scratch on the left side of the suitcase and the gold paint on the handle is scratched and faded. There are a few faded and scratched post stickers on the front, so I can tell that this suitcase has been through many years. I feel an urge in my gut just screaming to open the suitcase, but my brain is telling me to get up and run while I still can. I desperately want to get back home but I’m curious to know what’s inside the suitcase. My heart is pounding as I reach for the handle. As I clutch the handle I hear heavy footsteps thudding towards the pathway. My heart skips a beat, and my palms start to sweat profusely. The footsteps stop and I can hear a muffled conversation.
“Come on guys, she couldn’t have gone far! She’s only a little girl!”
“Just remember guys, if we get this job done, we will be rich! Let’s keep searching this way!” I hear a man with a gruff voice say.
The footsteps start up in the other direction. I regain my breath and wipe my hands on my shirt. I open the suitcase and see that there is a rifle inside. On the roof of the suitcase, I can see a picture of my dad, with the words next to it… “Head of Human Extermination Company”.