The Lottery Part 2
Bill Hutchinson lay awake unable to sleep. By now it was after midnight. He could hear the owls outside his window and the neighbor's yappy dog that never stopped barking. He wouldn't be getting any sleep tonight, there was too much on his mind. Memories of his beloved wife Tessie played through his mind, like a movie. Exactly one year ago Tessie won the lottery and was viciously pelted with stones while Bill was forced to watch helplessly from the crowd. He wouldn't stand by and watch this reckless tradition continue. He vowed this day would be different.
The sun rose over the horizon, like any other Sunday morning. The flowers were in full bloom and the grass was wet from the overnight rain. Today was the day. June 27th. The schoolboys fight each other for the best stones they can find, while the women finish last minute chores before joining their husbands in the town square. All the children playing nearby join their parents in the square. By ten o'clock everyone has gathered for the annual lottery, waiting for Mr. Summers to begin.
Mr. Summers checked his watch and scanned the crowd. "Is everyone here?" he asked. "Old Man Warner?"
"Yes, I'm here," the old man replied from the crowd. Mr. Summers always made a point to check if Old Man Warner was present.
"Alright, I suppose we should get started. We all have lives to get back to," Mr. Summers proclaimed.
"Well, not all of us," someone whispered from the back of the crowd.
Mr. Summers continued through the opening statement about the head of the families coming to the front first, keeping the papers folded until everyone has had a turn, and so on. He looked down at his paper and began reading names, "Adams…Allen…Anderson…"
With each name Bill became more nervous. The heat of the sun was beating down on him.
"Delacroix…Dunbar…"
Bill thought of Tessie. What would she think of what he was about to do? Would she be proud of him? Or would she tell him he was foolish for even considering such a thing? More names passed, each person silently taking a slip of paper.
"Harburt…"
"I'm next," Bill whispered under his breath. This was it.
"Hutchinson…"
Bill stayed with his feet planted in the concrete of the square.
"Bill Hutchinson"
Bill stayed put. Everyone in the crowd began to turn toward him, staring.
"Well what are you waiting for?" Old Man Warner shouted from the back.
"Bill you need to come draw a piece of paper. You know how this works, what are you doing?" Mr. Summers questioned.
With all eyes pointed his way, Mr. Hutchinson answered, "We do this every year. We come to the town square every June and we all draw a piece of paper from that stupid black box, but for what. The north village doesn't do it anymore. Neither does that town out west. They got rid of the lottery. Why do we keep putting up with this madness? Subjecting ourselves to its stupidity? It doesn't have to be like this, we don't have to do this anymore."
There was a moment of silence as the crowd stared back at him.
Old Man Warner broke the silence, "It's what we do. There has always been a lottery and there always will be."
Mr. Summers called Bill Hutchinson again but Bill refused to move. Sweat was now dripping down his back but he stayed put, unwilling to give in. This kind of thing had never happened before in the history of the lottery. Mr. Summers was unsure of how to proceed. The crowd began backing away from Bill forming a circle around him.
"Come on people! We don't have to do this anymore. We can put a stop to this right now. Haven't we all had enough?" Mr. Hutchinson said frantically.
Whispers filled the air. The villagers' minds were filled with doubt. "Should we?" "Shouldn't we?" "What should we do?"
Mr. Summers shouted angrily, "Silence! There is a reason for the lottery. It's tradition. We don't break from tradition."
Everyone was taken aback; Mr. Summers never yells.
He continued, "Now Bill you either march your ass up here and draw a slip of paper or I hereby pronounce you the winner of this year's lottery. Which will it be?"
Mr. Hutchinson held his ground. He was determined to see this through. In this moment he was alone. No one stepped forward to defend him and no one questioned Mr. Summers. He thought of Tessie. Her memory burned into his mind. He could almost feel her there with him.
There was a long pause.
"What's it going to be Mr. Hutchinson?" Mr. Summers asked.
"I'm not moving. This lottery is ridiculous! For God's sake, people, what are you waiting for?! We can bring an end to this insanity right now!" Mr. Hutchinson pleaded.
Suddenly a stone came flying from somewhere in the crowd and hit him in the shoulder. Then another. "We would be cavemen without the lottery," said Old Man Warner as he threw another stone, this one Bill dodged. "We started the lottery for a reason and we must continue that tradition." More stones came flying toward Mr. Hutchinson, this time from other members of the crowd.
Mr. Summers announced Bill Hutchinson as the official winner of the lottery as more stones flew his way. Bill begged for help, pleading for someone to step forward and put an end to this but no one came.
He felt more alone now than ever before. The stones continued to fly. Images of Tessie filled his mind as he waited for it all to be over. This must be what she felt like. No one was willing to help her. She was alone in her final moments.
A large, pointed stone came flying and hit Bill in the head. He fell to his knees. He could see Tessie now. She was kneeling next to him. She was more beautiful than he remembered. She had a sort of angelic glow about her that knocked the wind out of him (or was that another stone?). It was almost over now. He could sense the end coming. This was it. It was all over.
In those last seconds he faintly heard Old Man Warner say, "There has always been a lottery and there always will be."