Life Sentence

Copyright 2010 by Carl Garrett

Ed was not sentimental; he'd married Emily for her money and murdered her for the same. He produced his well-prepared alibi, smirked behind the backs of the departing officers. But when Emily's brother, Rick, stormed in, his voice a-tremble with rage as he hissed, You won't see a penny of her money. You'll spend the rest of your life in prison, Ed laughed the silly bore out of the house and into the night. He chuckled to himself about the incident until the attack came in the dark, the well-aimed blow to his spine just above the shoulder blades, the sickening crack, and then nothing.

Later, as he lay in his specially-designed bed, gazed upon his now-useless limbs, felt the hissing/muttering clamor of machinery and caregivers that would surely consume every cent of Emily's money, he realized that Rick had kept his word.