Tabitha

The water on the window collected and trickled into the bonnet
gully. The night sky was black and the telephone kiosk bulb dim, in the
car Billy studied the map under the fading interior car light. It was
no good, it was late November and cold on the Pennines. Billy's car had
shuddered and stopped about half an hour ago. For the first ten minutes
Billy had sat and smoked his last two cigarettes. Now he decided to get
on with the ghastly business and to walk to the cave.

He sat back and looked at the phone kiosk who could he phone, who could
he trust? Nobody was the resounding reply in his mind. He put on his
Berghaus and grabbed the spade and map and got out of the car. He
walked round and opened the boot, inside, the body was motionless, a
peaceful expression on Tabitha's face betrayed the pain she had been in
before she died. He picked her up easily and laid her gently over his
shoulder and started off in the direction of the cave.

It was about three miles to the cave and only about half a mile further
along the road which he done quickly to avoid any passers by, there was
none but he couldn't be careless now. The cave had been clearly marked
by him two days before but he struggled to find it now, the wind blew
the rain in his face and his cheeks felt raw with the cold. Eventually
though he found the orange jerkin he had left at the mouth of the cave.
He went inside, which seemed quiet but still cold. He continued to the
back, which was about nine metres from the cave's mouth and laid
Tabitha down on the earthen floor. With tears in his eyes he began to
dig, an hour later the hole was dug. Tabitha was white and still and
Billy stroked her cheek with his muddied finger. then he lifted her up
and laid her to rest three feet down in the cave in the Pennines, with
the wind and the rain outside and the dry leaves in the corner. Beside
her he laid their wedding photo and out of his pocket he took the death
certificate that had been sent to him the day before. On it he read,
Mrs Tabitha Bluely, age, 30, cause of death, suicide. The tablets that
had done no good for Tabitha's state of mind Billy kept, he had a
feeling he might need them now.