Sherry Molteni is the readers’ choice in this week’s Indies Unlimited Flash Fiction Challenge.
The winning entry is recognized with a special feature here today and a place in our collection of winners which will be published as an e-book at year end.
Without further ado, here’s the winning story:
Bird in the Water
by Sherry Molteni
“Roger that. Team 12 has located debris field. Over.” The marine radio crackled.
The first piece of wreckage was very odd. It was a dark gray tail panel with half of a white star barely legible on the rusted material. It seemed to be from an older plane, nothing like the lightweight tail panels of the XD 880.
Team 12 continued their slow trolling towards more debris which bobbed aimlessly in the waters ahead of them. Several other panels, similar to the first one were located just a few hundred yards from their bow.
“Team 12 to base, we have a strange find here. Five tail panels found. No XD 880 debris. Over.”
“Roger, Team 12, proceed with caution. Over.”
Team 12 wearily motored forward to an unusual spot in the water.
The waves began to crash in a circular motion and pulled team 12’s rescue boat inward toward the center of the whirlpool. The engine strained under the load, then could no longer power against the gravitational pull of the vortex. The boat became hopelessly caught in a downward spiral.
The next day, the news reported that rescue efforts for the XD 880 had been called off. No survivors or wreckage were found after an exhaustive four day search.
The news neglected to disclose that the debris from Flight 19 (the “Lost Patrol” from 1945) had been found in the same vicinity of the last known coordinates of the XD 880 – in the center of the Bermuda Triangle.
Thank you. 🙂
Congratulations, Sherri! 😀
Oops, Sherry. Sorry!
Thanks Laurie. It was a very close race and you had a great story as well.
Congratulations, Sherry!
Thanks Carol.
Congratulations Sherry! I really enjoyed the not quite expected snap at the end. 🙂
Thanks A.C. It was fun writing those last two paragraphs. 🙂