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Ours was a curious love.
He would come every day, spending his time working on what I heard him call his “Classic Chevy”; a gargantuan beast of rust and steel, he spoke to it like a female. And I was always his lucky one.
A young spider, fresh on her web, I watched each evening as he shuffled through the door, killing any he found. The tragedy was that none of us had any way of knowing before we made our nest. It was a game of chance, and I just happened to weave mine safely out of the way; between a window pane and shelf in a corner.
Nevertheless, even the more discreet of us would suffer the fate eventually. If he was not in any such of a rush and caught sight of us along the wayside, he would stop, glaring closely into our eyes.
Then came the spray.
I watched how they writhed and twitched as the sickly sweet fumes infected the air. They would try to wash it off, but I suspect that only made it worse. It was a slow, painful death, and when it occurred, each of us simply stared on. In our hearts, we knew our time would come as well.
It had been a rather fruitful night when he finally came my way, his massive eyes glistening mere inches from my body. But there would be no spray. He simply stared as I wrapped and twisted a fly, binding it like the other I had managed to already catch.
“Good job,” echoed his titanic voice.
I wasn’t sure what he meant at first. Yet days passed and still the spray did not come. The following night I caught another, while the next, luck served me with three. I had grown rich with food, the only web cluttered with them, and as my collection expanded, he would come by, his massive face spreading into a grin, showing large, pale teeth.
“Good job, you get those bastards!” he’d bellow.
In time, I became the only remaining survivor. I thought perhaps that I was special. With each pest I fed upon there came his lovely smile; and I was growing, as was my web. Molting and aging, I admired my long, darkening legs. I would lavish in their lithe grace and power as I fell upon the prey, my fangs injecting a spray of my own.
I was safe and rich in my little corner.
One day, as the last of the amber leaves outside danced adrift on frigid winds, I caught sight of a rather beautiful change. My dull orange markings had finally grown into a vibrant, piercing crimson! Such a rich contrast against the fresh, deep obsidian of my body. I knew he would come as he always did, and I was eager and proud to show him my pretty new form.
That evening, I lay on my web, upside down, pleased with myself. Yet as he entered, he turned to me with eyes wide, and my heart sank as that precious smile turned to sneer.
“You’re a Widow?” he growled.
My skin tingled as instinct surged a warning through my body. Suddenly, he was upon me, spray in hand. I felt I should go, but I hesitated, I had to be sure.
The murder in his eyes was all I needed to see.
He raised the can and I ran; my web crystallized with beads of dripping poison. But he did not stop. He pursued me as I went, spraying a long swath in my wake. I dropped hard to the cold floor, ducking under what he called a lawn mower. It was then that he finally gave up.
Frightened, I waited for his noise to fall silent, and still I waited longer. The air was thick with the poison’s pungent aroma. It dizzied me, turning my guts. My instincts called me to my window, to my pestilential web, but I knew there would be no returning; the noxious stench reminder enough of what dour fate awaited me there.
Thrice over my luck had proven true. I was alive, and free to make my leave. But as I lay in the dank shadow of the mower, I thought hard about where I should go. I knew from my window that outside was a vast, frightening land of light and cold. I would have to traverse that to find another warm, dark home. Yet I could not leave, not yet. I did not understand his actions! I desired closure.
Resigned to my decision, I abandoned my safety, crawling along the cluttered floor into the mouth of danger. It was upon the open hood of his Chevy that I settled, waiting long through the night for him to come again.
And come he did.
He opened the door with a choke, waving his hand through the dusty air. Perhaps his spray is not so good for him either, I thought as I watched him walk past my abandoned web, uttering a pleased grunt. He shuffled his way toward his Chevy, closer and closer to me. Still I watched as he pulled a large tool from his work table, and with a cough, bent over the “Engine” below me.
Calm and stoic, I gazed down upon the dark curls of his hair, the pale pink nape of his neck. I admit I felt quite the mixture of emotions. Perhaps I should have hated him. I wanted to! But I admit I felt a certain love for him as well. I wanted to be bigger than hate, better than that. Perhaps I would never understand his sudden rage, but I did not want to leave, engulfed by that pain.
So I chose to forgive.
Sliding silently along my silk, I descended, my legs outstretched. I knew I would need to leave, and soon, but as my dark limbs fell gently upon the soft of his flesh, I wanted dearly to give him one final kiss goodbye.
Born in the Blue Ridge Mountains of West Virginia, J. Chris Lawrence spent much of his life traveling. With a love for fiction, he fancies himself a writer, and hopes to convince others of the same. He currently lives in Georgia with his wife and two sons.
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THE WIDOW'S TALE • by J. Chris Lawrence,
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42 Responses to “THE WIDOW’S TALE • by J. Chris Lawrence”
Comments
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October 28th, 2011 at 1:38 am
So many stories told from the POV of insects or animals grate. This one was cool.
October 28th, 2011 at 2:10 am
Fabulous story – so very well realised. I very much enjoyed!
October 28th, 2011 at 2:26 am
One of my favorite EDF stories of the year. Five stars, eagerly given.
I like that you don’t shy away from using poetic phrases, while the subject matter in other hands might become more straightforward.
Well done.
October 28th, 2011 at 4:16 am
spider turned vampire!
well done
October 28th, 2011 at 4:28 am
A well written piece, though I felt the outcome was a little obvious from early on.
I found the phrase ‘the only remaining survivor’ awkward. Perhaps ‘remaining’ is redundant.
That aside, it’s interesting to read an animal POV story that’s a bit different.
October 28th, 2011 at 5:18 am
[...] very pleased to announce that “The Widow’s Tale” is now live at Every Day Fiction! I’m rather proud of this piece, and hope you all [...]
October 28th, 2011 at 5:21 am
Oh I really liked this story. Fun and yet touching. Excellent!
October 28th, 2011 at 5:31 am
Excellent.
October 28th, 2011 at 5:37 am
Wow. Found myself rooting for the spider and not sure why. This guy didn’t do anything that I haven’t done; why should I be relieved the man is going to die and not the spider?
Probably because the spider was in love and love is a positive emotion. Interesting. Good character study. Well written.
Wasn’t sure about the first line; it seemed the love was one-sided at first, all on the spider’s part until I realized the man loved the spider for killing the flies until he found out she was potentially dangerous. Cool for sure. Five stars.
October 28th, 2011 at 5:41 am
I love how each word has it’s own gravity and beauty. 5 stars.
October 28th, 2011 at 6:11 am
Beautifully rendered voice. There’s so much to admire here. I liked the widow’s uncertainty in the end, and I wanted more of it ’cause the ending felt a little rushed.
I’m going to have to go reread the Chaucer’s Widow’s Tale now to look for connections.
October 28th, 2011 at 7:06 am
Excellent Halloweenish story. Now, when I spot all those decorative paper Black Widows hanging down in store windows and above candy displays, I’ll think about this tale…and maybe shiver just a bit.
Four silky stars for this one….
October 28th, 2011 at 7:35 am
As someone who catches spiders (and moths and crickets and the occasional opossum)and releases them outside, I disliked the man and cheered for the spider from the start. But even if I was afraid of or disliked spiders, the gentle and poetic hand Mr. Lawrence used to draw the Widow would have made me cheer for her.
Yay, spider!
October 28th, 2011 at 8:00 am
Nicely done Mrs Spider
Great story, Chris 5 stars
October 28th, 2011 at 9:57 am
Well done, Chris. And your blog about this story made it all the richer. Five stars.
October 28th, 2011 at 9:58 am
Just awesome. I also rooted for the widow spider
October 28th, 2011 at 9:59 am
I thought this was awesome. I love the fact that it’s a new twist on the classic, “Hell hath no furry like that of a woman scorned.” 5 Stars!
October 28th, 2011 at 10:04 am
Very nice. Refreshingly sweet, despite (or because of) the twist ; )
October 28th, 2011 at 10:22 am
Excellent tone and rendering of this story. The suspense leading to the conclusion was well executed.
October 28th, 2011 at 10:34 am
Positively loved it !!
SO very believable.
Never saw the ending prematurely.
Figured that man would slay insect upon arrival.
Like me….he never saw it coming…L O L .
Five silken webby stars
Thnx Chris
October 28th, 2011 at 10:50 am
Poetic and gripping. Even if the ending was inevitable, the story writing was superb. Cant wait for your next piece Mr Lawrence
October 28th, 2011 at 11:26 am
This reminds me of Charolette’s web except for a pig, its a hill billy with a chevy
October 28th, 2011 at 11:49 am
Very cool story – nicely done!
October 28th, 2011 at 2:53 pm
Thanks to everyone that read, rated and commented. I’m very proud of this piece, and I can’t express how much I appreciate all the feedback!
October 28th, 2011 at 3:26 pm
All in the name of love. Good story about love’s challenges. How innocent they both are; how much they want to do for each other.
October 28th, 2011 at 5:50 pm
Very good!Some psychoanalytic symbolism there.
October 28th, 2011 at 8:04 pm
Call me naive (you’re naive) but I didn’t see that ending coming…interesting twist on a ‘love’ story.
October 28th, 2011 at 10:29 pm
Come on, S.A.George, tell us, then. What does it all mean?
October 29th, 2011 at 9:04 am
Not only is this an extremely well-told story with empathy created for all the characters, suspense, and a great twist, it gave me a whole new view of spiders. If they’re larger than a pinhead, I can’t get past their “creepiness”. The widow’s pride in her crimson spot was superbly written and I feel a bit of sadness at all the eight-legged creatures I’ve destroyed. *****
October 29th, 2011 at 9:10 am
I love the symbolism, the original ‘voice’-narrative, and the unique and well executed progression of the piece. Love Hate Love:) Well done!
November 1st, 2011 at 8:14 am
[...] Good Use” was written, and largely edited before I started “A Widow’s Tale“, and I feel that much of the elements used in that story came from lessons learned through [...]
November 3rd, 2011 at 8:03 pm
Nice job Chris, the story reminded me of the encounter I had with my neighbor spider. Ending was different it vanished after they power washed the building.
November 10th, 2011 at 7:23 pm
[...] I found this short story today on one of my favorite websites called Every Day Fiction. Take the time to read it. I promise you will like it. You can read it here [...]
December 2nd, 2011 at 12:50 pm
[...] rather excited today, as I just discovered that my story, “The Widow’s Tale” was nominated for the Pushcart Award by Every Day Fiction magazine! It’s among a bunch [...]
February 12th, 2012 at 7:55 am
Wow…having been ‘kissed’ by a Black Widow the ending gave me that terrible crawly shivering horror that now follows me everywhere when I see spiders.
Well done!! I was sympathetic to my nemesis until the end.
February 15th, 2012 at 2:53 am
Hi Chris, I’ve linked this site from tumblr. I hope you’ll be more followers to know your work
February 15th, 2012 at 2:54 am
*you’ll have
(I’m sorry for my Engish :S )
April 16th, 2012 at 1:08 am
[...] “The Widow’s Tale” by J. Chris Lawrence was originally published on October 28, 2011. [...]
April 16th, 2012 at 1:22 pm
Loved this story. The suspence kept me bitting my nails.
Well done.
May 31st, 2012 at 11:46 pm
[...] 59. The Widow’s Tale by J. Chris Lawrence suggested by Vlad Osmo www.everydayfiction.com/the-widows-tale-by-j-chris-lawrence/ [...]
September 11th, 2012 at 9:56 am
[...] less, with some dipping as low as fifty. My work will be present in at least one anthology, and for The Widow’s Tale, I even found myself nominated for The Pushcart [...]
February 1st, 2013 at 3:06 am
[...] We’ve had some great stories from him in the past, including Pushcart-nominated “The Widow’s Tale“, but as he says he’s focusing on longer fiction this year, it’s great to have [...]