Duel

The heady scent of summer nights glorify a lady much adored; musky premonitions of an unrequited love, a passion much too deep to be ignored. All-consuming frenzy, reason does not rule his fevered mind. She has said: 'No more!' yet he won't accept her condemnation, won't endure a heartache that would cut him to the core. Magnolias fill the air with the fragrance of desire; two men at odds, emotions frayed, yet resolute. Two shots resound through morning's early light, one man lies dead, the other's hopes lie mute.