The River of Secrets
A Short Story About Truth
I walk down the riverside as I run my hand through the gentle water. The soft sound of the running water is calming. Mother says that this river holds secrets. The biggest secrets that have ever touched down on earth. She sings a lullaby about it sometimes to get Daisy, my baby sister, to get to fall asleep.
I sit down and stare at the river.
"Little water...soft and gentle...will you keep my secret? Little river...gentle waters...will you hold it tight? My little baby...in her rocking chair...fell down the stairs... will you heal her, keep my secret? And make it yours?" I sing quietly to myself.
"Clara! Clara! Mother! She's sick!" A familiar voice yells in the distance.
I jump up and look around, startled.
"Jakob! Lead me to her!" I yell, my eyes meeting his. Jakob turns around and runs back the way he came. I run as fast as I can, my bare feet pounding on the dirt and leaf covered ground.
We arrive at the doctor's tent and I see Mother laying down on a mat, coughing. I run over to her and kneel next to her.
"Oh, Mother, this can't be it. It can't be. Please, please, please, don't leave me." I beg, squeezing her hand.
Mother weakly touches my locket with a picture of her and me in it. Then she looks up at me.
"Everything happens for a reason, love. And fait was on my trail." She says, squeezing my hand.
"Goodbye."
She lets go of my hand and her eyes close.
"No...no..she can't be gone!" I say, tears staining my cheeks.
I look up at Jakob and he looks down at me.
"You need to know that she is right." He says.
"Everything happens for a reason."
AUTHOR'S NOTE
Hi! Everyone knows me, but yeah! I love doing old-fashioned and modern realistic fiction. I wanted to step out of my comfort zone and do fantasy, but the closest I have ever gotten to fantasy was sci-fi. Thanks for reading!
