Antoinette L Brey
Bio
I am an elder in a time of freedom. I am now retired. All i want to do is have fun. Without a daily routine, my imagination is one of my only salvations. I am not planning on writing a book, it is just for my own pleasure
Stories (238/0)
The pond
She lay in bed hand on her forehead. She was so tired she had not even changed for bed. Her hand was hot. She had tied up her shirt to cool down. The air was on, and no it was not summer. It was fall she should have been dressed in a sweater and socks, not dressed down. She lay back on her pillow, and relaxed. Despite her body's warmth, she was not nervous.
By Antoinette L Brey3 years ago in Fiction
The guards
Anna heard them over to her right. No birds flew over her head, but she knew their chatter. They were the king's guards. They made sure that none of the citizens got out of hand. The pretty birds that everybody had originally trusted had hidden recording devices on them. The sound recording was constant, but the visual, only worked when their wings were spread open.
By Antoinette L Brey3 years ago in Fiction
Circles of ice
She stared down at the frozen ice. She wondered what had caused the designs on the surface. They were pretty but were they strong. In the middle was a slipping and sliding kitten. The kitten looked scared. She did not like ice skating. The young girl was crying for the kitten. Who would have been so unkind to have placed it out there? The girl leaned over the edge of the ice. She couldn't reach it. She crawled over the ice and pulled on the poor animal's leg. The kitten fought but moved closer to her. The young girl heard a crack and felt some water on her arm, but she kept pulling the kitten. The girl went and sat by the edge of the water and pulled the kitten. The cat was shaking and wet. She was scared of this person who had saved her. She ran off down the street. The young girl did not seem to notice the rejection, she was just happy to no longer have the stranded kitten crying in front of her. She stared at the road ahead of her. She could not walk forward. She didn't want to crawl across the whole patch of ice. Her house was on the other side of it. She headed back to her friends. She was house-sitting she had the keys. She looked over at her house. Nobody was there. She went into her friend's house. She practically lived here. Maria was a good friend. They would stay up watching vintage movies, dancing to Elvis. But for some reason, it was not as fun when she was here alone. She left a message on her mother's phone. Hopefully. her mother would pick her up on the way home. The heat of the car would melt the ice. She turned on the huge tv and then she thought she heard it. A little meow by the front door. But Maria didn't have a cat. Was it the same cat as earlier? The girl opened the door. She thought she saw a shadow of a man so she quickly closed and locked it. But the kitten had had time to slide in. She wondered if the kitten would eat dog food. The girl went and checked all the doors and windows. Everything was locked. It was the same kitten it came and sat on her lap. The girl watched a mindless game show, but really she was listening. She had thought that was a shadow of a man. A nice man would have just knocked, a creepy man would have lurked in the corners. A scared man might not have knocked, but she was not going to open the door to investigate. The kitten actually ate some of the dog food, Outside the window, she saw shapes walking around with flashlights. She wondered if they were looking for this kitten. She fought with her family's rules. Don't talk to strangers, help people who are in need. But she curled up with the kitten and said nothing. She didn't even notice that the internet had gone out. The electricity was still on. She turned on the radio. The blast of noise made her jump. It was dark out. Her family should have been home. She redialed her house. Glad that they still had a landline, but no answer, She called her mother's cell phone. A young girl answered the phone. It sounded like they were having a party. She tried not to sound nervous when her mother answered the phone. She explained where she was, and explained about the ice, and asked for a ride home. She tried not to show her nerves. She did not say anything about the shapes with flashlights, the shadow by the door or, the kitten who she kept saving. Logically there was no reason to be scared. But her mother, being a mother said she would be there in five minutes. She had just started the car. The young girl sighed turned off the radio, switched on the outdoor light, and grabbed the kitten. Nobody was out there, no shadows and no flashlight. She saw her mother's car, closed the front door and ran. Her emotions made her want to curl up like a ball, but she babbled on about the kitten. The car slid a little as they crossed the ice. At one point the car stopped, but after sitting for a few minutes they continued to their house. Under the car the ice prison was now water. The driveway made them slide, but the heat of the car allowed the car to pull up and park. She calmly walked in the house with her mother. The house was warm despite the cool air outside. The young girl did not want to show her fear but she wanted the whole house locked up. Her mother thought the house was too warm and left the back door purposely open. They turned on the radio. A prisoner had escaped from a jail in their immediate area. The young girl wondered if that had been the shadow. There was a message from a neighbor about the kitten. They called the owner back. The kitten's owner walked over with a flashlight. The young girl handed the kitten to her owner, Were you looking for her earlier with flashlights she asked. She had been caught on a slab of ice, I saved her and gave her some dog food. The owner thanked her and the young girl started to relax, but she was still worried about the shadow. I saw the flashlights but it had never occurred to me that you were looking for the kitten. Did they catch the prisoner? She heard her mother chuckle. The kittens owner hadn't heard about the prisoner. She said goodbye, and the young girl closed the door.
By Antoinette L Brey3 years ago in Fiction
Cage or Freedom
Her mother meant well. The caged bird was viewed by many tourists every day. She and her two daughters were just three more tourists. The bird hardly noticed them. But the girls noticed the bird. They both had wishes and desires. The dark-haired child wanted to add the bird's beauty to her artwork, and the blond-haired child was less certain. She wanted the bird out of that cage. Either to be home with her and her family or else to fly free. The bird should be surrounded by family .not strangers and tourists. Both girls stare silently at the bird and its bright red feathers. Both in awe. The mother tried to demonstrate the educational value of the bird. She stated Polly wants a Cracker and even though the bird was not named Polly she repeated the phrase. Tourists after a tourist took a turn. The family moved on shopping for tourist trinkets.
By Antoinette L Brey3 years ago in Fiction
The Sun
No people for miles, just me and the woods, its natural inhabitants, and the water, I had brought a charged laptop and smiled that it was working. I probably should have thought about how. Across the lake was a housing project and some stores, but society although present was not a close neighbor, I sat on the lakeshore as the sun faded. My camera was in action
By Antoinette L Brey3 years ago in Fiction
The Goddess
I felt like I was caught in a spider web, but they were just branches that lined the forest floor and wrapped around my legs. I tried to focus on the comfort of the weather, and the sweet odor of the foliage. And the fact that I was not alone. We had paid a guide to bring us. And we also had faith, when it got tense I reminded myself that faith would guide us. There was a casa (house) a few miles ahead of us. A small house. most likely a hut or shack, I made my way over to the guide, if I didn't wander off the path I would not get caught in webs. There were no manmade trails, just the young man's instinct, He was clearing the way as we went. He carried water and food along with his supplies. I carried my camera and other necessities. I had wandered off to take a photo of some flowering plants, but now I was back with the guide. He had not asked anything about us. His English was so so. But with our limited Spanish we were getting by. We paid him before he took us, he did not rob us and we had the right amount of money. I thought if all those movies were the naive tourists were robbed and left stranded, but the hotel had suggested him.
By Antoinette L Brey3 years ago in Fiction
Ray
The other day I got rid of most of my books. I saved the rest mostly because of the illustrations, and the fact that they had been autographed. or written by a friend. Why keep something that can be found on the internet. Are books a necessity? The book Farenheight 451 addresses this question. It was written by Ray Bradbury in the 1950's. The story takes place in a futuristic society where books are not allowed. The government has firemen who burn citizens' books. It is illegal to own books. The main character of the story is a fireman, Montuk. He has been a fireman for years, He has no trouble with his job. He is a pro. It was a pleasure to burn books. Books provide different opinion, he is protecting society's happiness. Or so it appears.
By Antoinette L Brey3 years ago in Futurism
Frozen
She stared at the hot vapor of her breathe. She wasn't used to crisp bursts of wind and below zero weather. She had thought she was prepared for it. Long underwear, leg warmers, and of course a down jacket. She thought she looked ridiculous, but she seemed to blend right in. Nobody gave her a second thought. Not even when she tried to enter the subway with a quarter instead of a token. Some middle-aged man had grumbled at her for slowing him down, but he did take the time to point out the token booth. Everywhere she looked there were people, but she also noticed all the secluded cameras. She was not as hidden as she had originally thought. But her thoughts and the contents of her bag were only known by her. She saw no policemen. There was one parked cruiser but it was empty. It gave her a false sense of security. Nobody was keeping guard, but again there were those cameras. The businessmen the store managers, all were prepared. She had reserved a hotel room. She was happy to be settling into a glitzy establishment. Her boss would pay for her drinks. She wondered what actually she was doing here. They had been so secretive. They had told her when she got there to order a White Russian. She didn't know you could get cocktails through room service. The drink arrived with a pretty cocktail napkin. Taped to the back of the napkin was a key. She was slightly angry. A key to what? She looked at the design on the glass. A traditional hotel glass, no numbers or hidden message. She heard a knock on her door. He had forgotten to give her her copy of the bill. Customers don't usually request one. She thanked him. The clue must be on the bill. The cocktail napkin was very pretty. It had on it a photo of a frozen lake decorated with icicles. Nobody was ice skating on the lake, what a strange promotional image. She looked at the bill. At the bottom of the bill was an advertisement for ice skating. It was at a downtown lake. Would they have lockers, and if yes how would she know which one. Why the nonsense? Why not just a note on her pillow?
By Antoinette L Brey3 years ago in Fiction
To stop or start
Were they punishing me or was it some hidden reward? I woke up and found my room was empty, and on the table was a pile of money. Well not quite empty I was laying in my bed. On sheets and under my favorite blanket. There also was my laptop sitting. on the end of the bed. When I signed on I saw a huge green sign and then the words shop and decorate. Was someone giving me the money to redecorate, and what had they done with my dressers and my clothes. How was I going to go shopping in my nightclothes? How had this happened? But it was even weirder than I could have imagined. I clicked on the green sign on my laptop, and a picture of the clothes that had been hanging in my closet appeared. I clicked on the picture of my white dress and suddenly it was laying beside me on my bed. I clicked on the other five dresses I wore a lot, and they were hanging in my bedroom closet. There was a photo of my bathroom. I clicked on it and all the objects in it became visible. My bra was in a glass bowl I clicked on it and it lay on top of my dress on my bed. I would wear the underwear I already had on. I changed and went to see how much money I had. $3700 not a little but not a lot if I was not keeping the furniture. One of my dressers had been missing a drawer front. it just looked like a stuffed hole. I had been planning to get rid of it.
By Antoinette L Brey3 years ago in Fiction