Choice Cuts

Early Morning Walk

Cries and wails of agony provided the perfect backdrop to Lucian’s relaxed footsteps towards the army barracks.

If you didn’t know him very well, you would think he was the kind of man who absolutely abhorred needless sounds of any kind. The kind of man who would prefer the environments he dwelled in to be perfectly quiet and devoid of unnecessary minute noises, save for the ticking of the wall clock and the droning hum of the air conditioner units in his room and office. You know, the ones that are considered normal, everyday noises. 

But you would be mistaken. 

Because, oh. He didn’t mind the noises at all, in fact, he more than welcomed them. He’d rather have the nightmare-inducing screams of pain seize every waking moment of his life, rather than the eerie silence that always paid him a visit during his sleepless nights. 

And so he enjoyed his early morning walk with the groans and sobs of misery bleeding into the crisp, Monday air. 

He savoured each and every step that brought him closer to where he needed to be. The one place he wanted to be at, so he could finally begin his busy day. ‘You need to get the easiest things done first.’ His mother always said. 

He kept to the concrete pathway snaking the long way around the barracks instead of the shortcut through it along the grass. It may have cost him a couple of precious minutes, but it couldn’t be helped. It rained the previous night, and he did not fancy getting any speck, nor dot, of mud and dirt on his well-polished boots and magnificently-pressed trousers. And his mother always drilled into him that a clean uniform added appeal to a man. He’d be a fool not to believe her. 

He walked with the well-practiced ease of a man who favored walking, instead of hopping on an army vehicle any chance he got to get wherever he needed to be. Unlike those other so-called “Generals” who keep insisting on wasting gas on a mere five to ten minute walk to their stations. No, Lucian was certainly not like them, his mother had made sure of that. 

Lucian smiled inwardly at cherished childhood memories of waking up before the crack of dawn and trudging up a hill with his mother to get to the town market. 

He finally arrived at the small, forgotten shack at the very edge of the barracks and didn’t stop to knock at the door. There’s no need for that. No need at all. He went inside. 

A pair of warm, brown eyes pinned him on the spot, and Lucian grounded his jaw. 

“Don’t you feel powerful wearing that suit?” 

Lucian gently closed the door behind him. 

“Yes mother, I do.” 

Silence. 

Lucian swallowed, trembling hand reaching for the inside of his coat pocket. “You shouldn’t have come here.” he said, voice small and almost whispery. 

Cynthia’s smile was small. “I know.” she said. She stood up from the damp ground on shaky legs and leaned heavily against the wall of the wooden shack. 

“I just wanted to see my little boy.” 

Lucian pulled out his gun and slipped two bullets into its chamber. 

“Even just for one last time.”

|Originally written: January 05, 2023