Category Archives: pain

April 28, 2014

‘Xiphoid’ #AtoZChallenge

Plunging the blade deep into the abdominal cavity, I drive it upward until I hit the xiphoid. Twisting slightly to my right, I skirt the sternum and slice through the costal cartilage attaching the ribs to the breast plate. Careful not to puncture the internal organs, I stop my upward motion at the manubrium. Drawing the sharpened metal along the topside of the upper-most rib, I listen to the harsh breathing. Returning to the original point of entry, I pause, then again thrust into and through the abdominal wall, swiftly separating the flesh and muscle from the body’s left side.

Laying the knife on the tray, I reach down and peel the cavity open with a great deal of force. A slight groan escapes amongst the pops and rending sounds as the connective tissue still in place rips away to reveal the fluttering heart. A marvelous thing the human body, a machine designed by the hand of a master; a fragile balance struck with a sadistic keeper.

Welcome to my April AtoZ Blog Challenge post! I hope you enjoyed my ramble, and come back for more! Don’t forget to visit the other bloggers participating by clicking on the badge to the right, or simply using this link. :}

13 Comments | tags: 2014 AtoZChallenge, Blog hop, flash fiction, Nina D'Arcangela, Sotet Angyal, The Dark Angel, X, Xiphoid | posted in 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge, Flash, Flash Fiction, Horror, pain, Writing

April 23, 2014

‘Twang’ #AtoZChallenge

By Nina D'Arcangela

There was an audible twang. Turning back, he wrinkled his brow in disgust. Four! Four perfectly placed stitches had torn loose so far. He was baffled and more than a bit annoyed. Peering at the remainder of the skein, he examined it for defects; it looked perfectly fine. He wrapped a short length around his fingers and gave a hard tug. He received nothing but resistance for his effort. A bit perplexed, his fingers slipped between her lips to remove the defective stitch; he inspected it thoroughly with a loop before discarding it with the others.

Making his way to the old apothecary cabinet his grandfather had used many years ago, he opened each draw until he finally found what he was looking for. Cat gut! Sometimes the old fashioned way was the only way. Threading the much thicker needle with the coarse sinew, he again finished the sutures. He stood and stared in consternation for a good ten minutes willing them to stay fast yet daring them to break free. Finally satisfied, he turned to reach for the clay and began the final stages of reconstruction.

Two hours later, after finishing the cosmetic details, he gazed down upon the face he had just rebuilt and was pleased with his efforts. He’d done a fine job of covering the blemishes and abused areas. She looked peaceful, but the sedative would soon wear off. After a brief wait, a slight murmur reached his ears; one eye began to tear open. As his grandfather used to say, ‘death was just around the corner, one had to always be prepared,’ though he doubted his grandfather had meant it in quite the same way.

With a deep sigh, he inserted a trocar into her femoral vein to drain the body, then moved to insert another into her brachial artery to introduce the embalming fluid. The art of embalming was one so few had the opportunity to appreciate. Apparently, she was not in an appreciative mood.

8 Comments | tags: 2014 AtoZChallenge, Blog hop, flash fiction, Nina D'Arcangela, Sotet Angyal, T, The Dark Angel, Twang | posted in 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge, Flash, Flash Fiction, Horror, pain, Writing

April 22, 2014

‘Sting’ #AtoZChallenge

By Nina D'Arcangela

A brief but brutal spasm of pain shoots through her head followed by the gut wrenching memory of the last seeing. It draws her to her knees. The peace and serenity of the past now forever tainted. A flash through time, her mind reels; his eyes peer back into hers, the chalice is thrown, the fluid within betrays her trust. A warning forgotten, perhaps dismissed, arrogance assures her safety in this hallowed realm. Never has she been so wrong.

As she watches, the assailant approaches his target in the dark abandoned lot. A struggle ensues, but ends in a mere blink; the violence feeds her hunger, holds her in its thrall. She misjudges; allows the corridor to widen, permits him to see her watching. For a brief moment, the portal opens on both sides. She sits stunned as he jabs the narrow pig sticker through the wavering fluid and into her left eye.

Now, when it is a seeing night, she seeks only the most remorseful; souls in need of comfort and caring, not the heart-pounding excitement of an outcome unknown. Now, when it is a seeing night, she sees with only one eye – the other forever clouded and dead to the world. Knowing better, she no longer reaches for the vials containing drops of venom. Having learned her lesson well, the wasps’ sting will forever be with her – but always more so on a seeing night.

8 Comments | tags: 2014 AtoZChallenge, Blog hop, flash fiction, Nina D'Arcangela, S, Sotet Angyal, Sting, The Dark Angel | posted in 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge, Flash, Flash Fiction, Horror, loss, muse, pain, Writing

April 21, 2014

‘Revealed’ #AtoZChallenge

By Nina D'Arcangela

Tears run in rivulets between the ashen layers – they carve their own landscape in the hardening cushion of falling powder. Fathers, mothers, small children, they reach for one another; some huddle close with barely a moment to spare, others remain a hands-width apart – all held fast in anguish as death sets upon them. This thriving valley swiftly transforms into a diorama of human terror and suffering.

Many years go by, a window into the past is unearthed; horrors the likes of which mankind has never seen before are revealed. A visage of haunting forms preserved in their final moments of agony – life pocketed in a cocoon of time; tragedy locked in the layers of its vice-like grip. Coincidence that this stroke of Mother Nature’s brush was encapsulated with such precision, or warning that another is coming?

8 Comments | tags: 2014 AtoZChallenge, Blog hop, flash fiction, Nina D'Arcangela, R, Revealed, Sotet Angyal, The Dark Angel | posted in 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge, Flash, Flash Fiction, loss, pain, Reflections, Writing

April 18, 2014

‘Petals’ #AtoZChallenge

By Nina D'Arcangela

Petals drift softly upon the breeze; they twirl, they dance,
they float, they soar

The day you were born to me was the day I knew
you were lost to me

Glorious in pale pink, flushed deeper on your edges,
how you outshone the others

You began to drift away, I reached for you,
but there were so many

You sang as you lifted high upon the current,
free from my arms at last

Then the air stilled, you spiraled downward and I,
stiff with age, could do nothing

You settled in a soft plume of vibrant green,
a lush cushion to rest upon

I watched, I smiled, then a moistened drop of dew fell,
followed by another

The torrent began, you were trampled by the onslaught
and I wept for your pain

The sun shines once more, I see tattered pieces
of beauty all around me

I know you are among them, with that
I will rest easy

9 Comments | tags: 2014 AtoZChallenge, Blog hop, flash fiction, Nina D'Arcangela, P, Petals, Sotet Angyal, The Dark Angel | posted in 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge, loss, pain, Reflections, Writing

April 17, 2014

‘Once’ #AtoZChallenge

By Nina D'Arcangela

Do I know you? Certainly I’ve seen you somewhere before? Your face is so familiar, but I can’t quite place it. It seems I should, know you that is. I remember now – your eyes. I’ve seen your eyes before, bright and glistening; dancing shades of blue and green with a hint of ocher when the sunlight strikes them so. Beautiful, your eyes; but something else as well – something deeper, something hidden. You mask it well, the pain, the sorrow, the dejection; the overwhelming regret. You’ve a knack for such things, don’t you? Constructing an elaborate veil to keep the world at bay? But eyes, they reveal what lives within if one is honest enough to look. I always remember a set of eyes; particularly ones guarding wounds so old yet still so raw. Yes, I’ve seen your eyes before, though it seems I choose to forget this particular set until the mirror forces me to see their grief once more.

12 Comments | tags: 2014 AtoZChallenge, Blog hop, flash fiction, Nina D'Arcangela, O, Once, Sotet Angyal, The Dark Angel | posted in 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge, Flash, Flash Fiction, loss, muse, pain, Reflections, Writing

April 15, 2014

‘Memory’ #AtoZChallenge

By Nina D'Arcangela

Why does a building in ruin speak so directly to me? What allure does a dank, musty corridor hold that a newer structure lacks? Beyond being one who embraces her wanderlust, I’m also drawn to the decay and sense of abandonment such places effuse. What stories have they to tell, what past once thrived within the now crumbling walls? What of the soul that may still canvas the lonely walkways? How do I turn my back on the call, look away when something begs to be seen? How am I to fight the desire to lay my eyes on what has long since gone unnoticed, unwanted, unwelcome? Perhaps I’m not meant to turn and walk away. Perhaps I’m one of the few who must see, must feel, must know what such a place wishes to whisper. Am I to consider myself a chronicler of all things forgotten, one who sits in judgment of those who haven’t a care? Or am I to realize that what has been abandoned, pushed to the side, lost and discarded recognizes me as a similar breed and is reaching out so that somewhere, somehow, something will retain a memory of me?

16 Comments | tags: 2014 AtoZChallenge, Blog hop, flash fiction, M, Memory, Nina D'Arcangela, Sotet Angyal, The Dark Angel | posted in 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge, darkness, Flash, Flash Fiction, muse, pain, Quirky, Writing

April 14, 2014

‘Last’ #AtoZChallenge

By Nina D'Arcangela

The day has come, I’m not quite sure I’m ready. I hear him moving on the wooden floor-boards above. He’s changing his clothes; dressing to play the part. A day, an hour, a moment longer, that’s all I need to say my goodbye; but then, is there ever enough time to lose the one you love? The back buzzer sounds, the last bit of my solitude drifts away. I open my eyes. Sunlight streams through the curtains, it illuminates the subtle cream tones of the room with sheer radiance. I hear him descend the steps, pass the guest area and head for the service entrance. My heart breaks one final time before the day intrudes.

As I hear them rustling in the hall, I close my eyes once more and draw deeply of the air. Roses. More roses are arriving, and orchids – they smell of coconut, and warm vanilla. As the florist brings them in, I can’t help but gush, it’s all so beautiful! A riot of colors and odors that mingle as he artfully spreads them throughout the room. Alstroemerias arrive next, they are beyond stunning – the huge cascades crafted in what she knows are my favorite shades. A surprise, a parting gift.

The final piece is carried in. It is exactly as we discussed, but more beautiful than I dared to hope. A magnificent spray of the darkest midnight-purple Calla Lillies masterfully arranged with nine strands of crystals representing her tears; one for each year we spent together. Each miniature flower a work of art, the entire arrangement a blanket of love to warm my coffin.

16 Comments | tags: 2014 AtoZChallenge, Blog hop, flash fiction, L, Last, Nina D'Arcangela, Sotet Angyal, The Dark Angel | posted in 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge, Flash, Flash Fiction, Gift, loss, pain, Writing

April 12, 2014

‘Kick’ #AtoZChallenge

By Nina D'Arcangela

Slamming her head into the window, he hears it shatter with a resounding crack. “Look what you made me do? You think I’m made of money, huh?” She cringes as his boot comes up, landing in her gut. Gasping for air, spitting up blood and the remains of her meal, she reaches for a piece of the cracked glass; stumbling and unsteady. “What? You gonna stab me now? F’ing tramp!” She drops the sliver, tries to apologize, but the rage in his eyes is beyond reason. She curls in on herself to protect her already battered body. Instead of the expected kick, he slams his elbows down onto her bent neck. The crunch of bone is unmistakable.

12 Comments | tags: 2014 AtoZChallenge, Blog hop, flash fiction, K, Kick, Nina D'Arcangela, Sotet Angyal, The Dark Angel | posted in 2014 A to Z Blogging Challenge, Flash, Flash Fiction, Horror, pain

April 10, 2014

‘Information Desk’ #AtoZChallenge

By Nina D'Arcangela

For the second time that day, his cell phone rang with an unknown number. Annoyed, he answered. It was the hospital calling to say his son had been in a minor accident and had broken his arm.

Having arrived at St. John’s Medical Center, he stormed the information desk demanding to know where his son could be found. He gave his last name and after a frustratingly long wait, was handed a visitor’s pass and directions to the Critical Care Unit. Utterly confused by the ward assignment, but terrified, he ran through the corridors until he finally shoved his way through the CCU doors. Other than the sound of beeping monitors and a few muffled sobs coming from behind closed curtains, all was very hushed and quiet within. His son was sitting in a chair off to the side – cast on his right arm, eye blackened, head swathed in bandages. He rushed to the boy and hugged him until he heard a small gasp of pain. “Thank God you’re alright. What happened, bud? Why are you in CCU? Where’s your mother?”

“Mr. Seftling?” As he turned, he saw a large nurse standing behind him.

He rose to his feet and answered, “Yes, I’m Robert Seftling.”

“Please, sir, come with me. We need to speak in private,” her eyes shifted to the waiting child.

Glancing back at his son, he was confused. “I don’t understand.”

She looked at him with great sympathy in her eyes. “Sir, Robbie suffered a nasty fall, but he’ll mend in no time. Now please, step over here for a moment.” Without waiting for his approval, she firmly grasped his upper arm and guided him farther down the hall, out of the boy’s range of hearing.

“It’s regarding your wife. The hospital contacted her at 2:37 p.m. to report Robbie’s accident. I’m afraid that in her rush to get here, Mrs. Seftling suffered an accident of her own.” As a tear formed in the hardened nurse’s eye, he knew; she was gone. He looked back at his son, dropped his eyes to the floor and barely nodded. Clearing her throat, the nurse continued, “She was apparently traveling on Route 391 when her car careened off the road. It took the rescue crew over an hour to reach…”

Interrupting her, he simply said, “Please… stop.”

Pausing for a moment, she allowed the news to take root before placing a gentler hand upon his shoulder. For the first time in twenty-three years as a CCU nurse, she allowed the tears to come. She barely spoke above a whisper. “Someone has been waiting to speak with you.” She gestured with her head to a young man still partially dressed in a fireman’s uniform. The man got up and walked over while the nurse returned to her station.

Fumbling with the straps on his overalls, the young man began, “I… I was the last one to speak with your wife, sir. She asked me… she wanted me to… she was weak, but made me promise to give you a message.”

Robert wanted to reach out and choke the younger man, grab him, hug him, scream and yell his fury; his devastated rage. This man was his final link to his wife. Again, Robert nodded his head as his world collapsed in on him.

“She told me her name was June, said it was important that I repeat her name for you to understand. Even in the condition she was… well, even after what’d happened, she was calm, almost sweet, reminded me of my own… Anyway, she asked me to tell you she was sorry.” Looking uncomfortable, the young fireman shuffled from foot to foot. When it became obvious the other man wasn’t going to respond, there was nothing more to do but leave. He ruffled Robbie’s hair as he passed him and walked out the doors.

A brief smile flickered across Robert’s face; her name wasn’t June. It had been a running joke between them for years. Her name was Nan – just Nan, not Nancy or Anita or anything else Nan might have stood for, and she hated it. So he’d always called her June as a reminder of the month they’d met; his June-bug was saying goodbye.

Turning back, he walked to Robbie and gently grasped his left hand. “Come on, kiddo.”

The nurse began to approach him again, “Sir, there are some forms the hospital needs you to sign. We can’t release…”

He waved her off and managed to croak out, “We have no one else. I’ll come back tomorrow, if that’s alright?” He glanced down at his son.

With pinched lips and a smudge of mascara on her cheek, she placed the clipboard back on the counter top and mouthed, I’m so very sorry…

He knew there would be tear-filled goodbyes, paperwork to be handled, arrangement to be made; but not right now. Now he needed to take Robbie home and somehow make him understand his mommy wasn’t coming back.

(part two of two… yesterday, ‘H’, was part one)