Staring into the jaws of defeat

Jimmy threw the stinking piece of meat in a slow arc.  A wide mouth rose up, snapping its jagged jaws closed with a thud, sinking back into the swamp. 

‘Big bastard, ain’t he?  American Alligator.  Grows up to fifteen feet long.  He’ll eat just about anything - fish, birds, lizards, critters.’

He glanced across at the bound man, then up at McKenzie sitting at the helm of airboat.

‘What do you think?  Ten footer?’

‘Maybe twelve,’ McKenzie answered.

‘Might be thirteen, you don’t tell me where my money is, Carlos.’

The jaws snatched another piece of meat from the air.




A drabble is a story of exactly 100 words.