Hey guys.
This is a short story referring to the German play: ''Der Besuch der alten Dame'' by Dürrenmatt. There are also to different musicals with the plot: ''The visit'' in English and ''Der besuch der alten Dame'' in German.
The plot (for those who don't know): An old rich woman (Claire Zachanassian) comes back to her run-down hometown and promises 2 billion euros if they kill her first love Alfred Ill because he denied her as a young girl so she was scated as a whore with an unborn child in her belly which she later lost. After marrying seven men she became riche and now comes back to take revenge.
This little story came into my mind because I thought of what would happen if Alfred had tried to seduce Claire to save his life.
This is my first English story (im German) and I hope you will help me with grammar and spelling and so on. Pleas feel free to criticize.
Treason
„I love you" he was whispering while he softly touched her belly.
She just smiled sadly. She knew the movement. A horizontal eight from her hips just to the deepest ribs. One could see them now. 'You really are getting a skeleton, old woman!' she thought. Her skin strained, in the opposite to former times. She remembered everything.
"I love you'' he whispered again, but this time it sounded like he was accusing her.
''You said it twice'', was her only response but he didn't want to give up yet:
''Why do you want to kill me?'', he asked.
''You do not love me.'' She answered without looking at him, '' You just made love with me to save your ass. I'm not the young beautiful silly with whom you could disappear into a barn just to deny her if something goes wrong. You're sicken, sicken at my prostheses, my age. I saw your eyes when I took of the artificial leg!''
His face was red when she was finishing.
'' You are saying it!'' he stated ''We were both very young! How could I have known what would happen, but...''
She interrupted him: ''...that a girl can get pregnant by making love was well known! Even then, even here.''
She took his hand away from her belly and he gave in:
''Ok, I did not pay attention. I should have known, I should have expected but I didn't! Jesus Christ, I was a careless twenty years old fool. I was completely unable of cope in this moment!''
She turned to him very slowly:
''And what do you think I was? You don't think I was young too do you? Don't you believe I was unmesurably over strained too? I was seventeen and a girl! Do you really think I was happy when I had to leave the town, scorned, betrayed by the one I loved and with a sick child in my belly?''
''You can't forgive me.'' It was not a question but he waited for her answer curiously. Her eyes were closed when she responded:
''You never asked me to forgive you and I don't know why I should.''
He took her hand hopefully and tried not to think on the ivory he touched but on the real warm fingers it replaced. Hesitatingly he started to speak:
''If you are hating me so much. Why did you sleep with me? Hardly because you wanted to know how it feels like in a real bed instead of straw and dorns.''
He shortly laughed trying to dub his flurry, but it sounded like a cough. When she finally started to speak again he couldn't move.
''Because i am still in love with you''
She said it without any emotion, cold again after the short outbreak. However he regained a part of his hope. Maybe, just maybe there was still a little chance. Maybe it wasn't over yet.
''I love you too my little cat!'' he nearly yelled enthusiastically but her next words felt like daggers cutting into his skin:
''You never loved me! You used me like all the others did. No one ever loved me and how should they have? I was a strumpet even for you. Men request a strumpet they don't love her. When my first husband married me, to own me completely I learned I could use this desire. The one's trying to use me became used by me. Her desire made them available. If they had loved me, they would have noticed my disgust. They were the same, all of them and I acted the same way with everyone. They did everything for me. Not out of love. They tried to tie me this way not understanding that every gift freed me a little bit more.''
She opened her eyes and regarded him a long time. Her voice was full of grief when she finally spoke: ''Even you just desired my body, my black panther! Not more ore less than the others. I simply didn't understand it yet.''
She touched his face softly: '' I loved you, but you...in your whole life you didn't really love anyone.''
At first he didn't understand her words but then he became angry:
''My wife'' he expressed loudly, but she just laughed.
''Mathildchen? A good match. The daughter of the town's wealthiest man: Nice, silent and without the courage to say 'no'. Sounds perfect, don't you think? Didn't you mention the day of my arrival that you married her because of me, because you thought I would be happier without you? Well, since the day I went away I wasn't really happy any more so I think you should consider your plan as 'failed'.''
''My children...'' he tried to counter, but she cut him off:
''The 'brats without ideals', yes I think that were the words you used in the forest. Doesn't sound like a loving father don't you think?''
''I love you'' he yelled and turned her violently so she had to look him in the eyes. In her's he saw a perfidious sparkle.
''And still you reneged and abandoned me'' she whispered that quietly that he could only read the last words from her lips. He draw her close and pressed his lips on hers. She didn't return the kiss but she didn't push him back as well though when he noticed the tears running down her cheek he surceased. Her eyes were cold and bitter again even if they still looked sad.
He resigned and turned away. He knew she didn't take back her offer for the town, money for his death. He sat up and tried to stand in front of the bed. In the same moment the room began to turn around in front of his eyes and he felt dizzy.
No, they could not travel back in time, they both had become old!
''Kill me''
Her words were silent but very clear. He looked at her, horrified.
She pointed with her hand at his trousers on the ground.
''To conceal a knife in the bag of the jeans the women you want to kill helps to take off is not the best idea!'' she noticed nearly with fun in her eyes.
His face became red. She knew him better than he had thought.
It was true, he had taken the knife with him to kill her if he would fail. Now he was ashamed. How far he was gone!
''Kill me.'' she said again. This time she nearly begged. All fun in her eyes was gone. '' The biggest part of my body is gone already. It's time for my heart to follow and that's only possible if one of us dies. So kill me Alfred!''
He didn't move. He looked at her, wide-eyed, shocked.
She stood up, hobbled to his jeans and looked took out the knife. Then she looked at the carved grip.
''Didn't you use this knife when you were scoring the heart with our names into that tree?''
She wanted to gave it to him but he draw back.
She just laughed and hobbled to steps in his direction.
''Go. Take it. It's your only chance. If the money source is gone no one has to fulfill the terms!''
She tried again to get closer to him but she lost her balance and had to hold on the sofa. God, she hated this prostheses.
''They will know that you did it, that's for sure. But what if there would be another possibility for the town to get the money?''
She stinged the knife into the sofa and draw herself in his direction.
''What if the term for the money would not be to kill my murderer but to let him go?''
Like a fool he had to look at the stumb of her leg. It wabbled bizzarly in all directions while she stinged the knife deeper into the red cushion to pull her body up to him with the other leg.
''What if you would get rid of all your problems with my death?''
Her eyes fixed his. She was now less than a meter away.
''The town would look over the fact that you would have killed me like they would look over the fact that they would kill you for the money!''
She stumbled and fell in his arms. Like in a trance he held her in his arms. His eyes looked over her shoulder at some point on the wall.
One moment she released into his armes before she took his right hand off her hips and pulled it around the grip of the knife. Then she laid her sane hand on his cheek so that he had to look at her.
''Either you kill me or the town will kill you. It's your choice.'' she whispered, placed her hand in his neck to bring his head closer to hers and kissed him. The top of the knife touched softly her breast.