Faustian Fraud

Just one more duty to perform... The moon is full and navel orange on this hot August night. The crickets and tree frogs have just begun their sublime serenade. In the distance, the steady clickety, clickety, click of a train wending it's way along the track soothes my nerves and before long I am lost in reflection of my recent past- At forty-five my life was idyllic. The perfect wife, three awesome kids and a steady, stable career with the United States Marine Corps. I was living the American dream in all its pampered glory. That is, until I met her Half my age with devil-green eyes that lasered straight through my ribcage and into my heart, catching me quite off guard. Soon, our weekend affairs were filled with expensive dining, alcohol and cocaine-laced nights of revelry followed by the kind of sex you'd die for. How could I resist? How could any man of flesh? She was a sorceress sent by Satan himself to seduce and entrap my very soul. All she asked was that I leave my world behind - the wife, the kids, everything and everyone that ever meant anything to me. Leave it all for her. In return - a life of hedonistic pleasures beyond my imagination. Adrenalin rushed through my veins causing my heart to explode and my brain to overload. I promised her everything. I would lie for her, cheat for her, steal for her, even murder for her. I placed my bet, sealed the deal. The game was full on. Six months later she dumped me for a stockbroker. I am left with nothing Suddenly, the cry of a wolf howling in the distance snaps me out of my trance. That is my cue. I know what must be done. Here, deep in the Appalachian mountains, no one will find me. In reality, no one will bother searching. Just one last duty to perform