Photo credit: Ted Strutz
When The Mask Slips
By T. Delaplain
The acrid whiff of Polaroids couldn’t mask the remembered scents of cotton candy and caramel apples. The first time had been on Halloween. Had it been the innocence of her pink tights or the silky feel of her crinoline skirt? Terrifying betrayal; a father with no boundaries and his princess.
No longer his Precious, she wielded the scissors like a surgeon. Her mask askew she excised him from every family photo before plunging the blades again and again into his drunken doughy flesh.
Her costume next year would be orange.
A Friday Fictioneers offering of 100 word fiction. Sort through your photos and tell us your tale.
Ballerina photo from Pixabay, no artist identified.
Tracey Delaplain, MD 
Wow! Well done! I’m terrified by where you took this photo ~ in a good way, of course.
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I don’t know where this little girl came from but she had a story to tell, obviously.
Thanks for stopping by my dusty desk.
Tracey
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Chilling, both in his action and her revenge. No winners in this situation.
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I agree. Thanks for wandering by Iain.
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I’m not sure she’ll have a costume next year. But you adocate her case well. She may get off
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So grim, yet so is such a betrayal
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Powerful, Tracey. I didn’t get the ending straight away, but the delay rendered it all the more shocking. Well done.
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It started out as a cute Halloween story for me too. It took a sharp turn. Thanks Sandra
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Dear Tracey,
Gut wrenching story and brilliant melding of two prompts. So happy to see you in the FF queue this week. 😀
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Thanks for giving me a place where I’m welcome even when the ink isn’t flowing so well.
Tracey
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Nice one. I liked the “drunken doughy flesh”! I hope she doesn’t get stuck in orange for too long, given what she went through.
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In my opinion most abuse children never get justice. She’ll pay again and again. Very sad.
Thanks for reading Ali.
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A daughter’s hurt so strongly displayed. A situation all too real in today’s age. Horrible, but could be oh so very true. Great story!
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Thank you, I wish we could do more to protect children in the real world.
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I do, too.
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Graphic, grizzly and brilliant! A refreshingly different take.
Here’s my story
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Thanks Keith. “Grizzly”, not praise I usually hear. Ha
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Tracey… your story left me with chills all over my body. Incredible story in just a few words and one that is sure to leave an indelible mark.
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Thank you, a real Halloween horror story.
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Powerfully done, Tracey.
I like to hope she won’t wear orange at all.
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Thanks Dale
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I pray one day she will heal from the soul-crushing actions of a monster.
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I hear you.
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Concise in the telling and the details, telling us everything we need to know. I would love to volunteer to help her slice that evil man into the trash.
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These very real stories make my skin crawl.
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Powerful!
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Oooo the emotions are dripping out of this piece. Beautifully done. Her justifiable anger comes through with every word. I could feel the plunge of the scissors.
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Thanks Laurie.
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