The Anniversary

By C P Sennett

A troubled couple come to terms with tragic events of the past. With their wedding anniversary approaching the hope is a much needed break will help heal and improve the fortunes of Emma Morton and her husband Andrew as they both seek a return to normality.

Sometimes though, the past won't let go.

• Language: English
• Publisher: C P Sennett
• Release date: Jan 2, 2019
• ISBN: 9780463892169

C P Sennett

C P Sennett is a multi award winning business owner, trainer and author based in Suffolk, England.His latest work is a novella series called The Suffolk Sentinel, a modern day supernatural series with an ever growing list of title in this series.As a writer and owner of an IT Business he finds enjoyment in many things and even his day job. As a writer he writes in a range of genres such as Crime, Sci Fi, Fantasy and even business books. He has even added to the writing community by creating the popular Writers Vault software to help authors to make better plots and memorable characters..Outside of work and writing he has a range of interested including martial arts, psychology and he also does a lot of community fund raising projects around the Ipswich area.

Book preview

The Anniversary

By C P Sennett

©2018

Having purchased this eBook, it is entirely for your own personal use. It may not be copied, reproduced, printed or used in any way at all other than in its intended Kindle format.

This book is published by the author C P Sennett and it is entirely meant in its original format as a short story.

This is a fictional story and the characters and events depicted in this bear no relevance to any persons living or dead. It is purely a work of fiction and as a result, it should be treated this way.

Chapter 1

It was Friday the 5th of December. Andrew and I were out walking along the beach at Catherton Bay.

Its soft sand was now as hard as rock with the chill of winter. In honesty, I knew Andrew hated walking, even more so in winter but this had become a tradition of ours since we lost our son Toby, four years ago.

As a child, when Christmas neared my family and I would walk along this beach and it was a tradition that Andrew and I carried on when we married but we never did it when Toby was alive. I don't know why, it was one of the many things we just never got around to with all the changes a new baby brings. Then, when he passed away four years ago we restarted our Christmas walks.

I remember how I loved the smell of fresh air as the strong wind hit me and the sound of the waves breaking as they snuck in under the cover of darkness. It was a raw, almost primal feeling and one I loved.

Andrew and I walked along the sandy beach in silence, arm in arm, with just our thoughts and the dark to keep us company.

There was the crash of waves, the hard sound of our feet squashing against the sand and all the smells I remembered as a child and a young wife. They all came back so fast whenever we did this. It felt amazing, almost welcoming.

This was our fourth walk since he passed on and the first bit of our walk was a little quirky, we always now walked the first half-mile in silence. This gave us a chance to truly be alone in our minds, for each of us to remember Toby in our own special way as we had agreed. We would then get to the corner where the lighthouse shines its beams and sit on the same big boulders, just as we always did and talk about our memories and feelings.

Last year Andrew cried. 

He cried when telling me about the first time Toby actually sat on his lap and he read to him. I just about held it together but it was nice to see Andrew show some emotion, sad in a way but nice at the same time. Normally he was so guarded about things, even more so since Toby passed away. I guess you could say he had become a little distant, I guess we both had in honesty.

****

Walking for a while arm in arm but alone with our thoughts, I could see we were nearing our favourite rocks when Andrew stopped, suddenly jerking me back to the present and away from memories of Toby’s smile. Ahead of us was a small glow in the darkness, oddly we hadn't seen it before but it was there now. Something was glowing at the shoreline giving off a faint light as it moved with the waves.

I didn't mean to but I gently pushed Andrew forward as my mind raced. Suddenly I suspected it could be a life vest with the distress beacon pulsing, even worse I thought, could it have a body in it. After all what good's a husband if he leaves you to tackle strange things in the dark.

I watched as he cautiously approached the light source. He stopped after a few steps to speak but I kept him quiet with a sharp Shush. Our rules were never to speak, no matter what until we got to the rocks. Neither of us had broken this pact in four years and we weren’t about to now.

With a flap of my arm, I commanded him onwards.

Andrew, now some fifteen feet in front of me bent down to pick up the slowly flashing object.