WeWriWa—From bad to worse

Welcome back to Weekend Writing Warriors and Snippet Sunday, weekly Sunday hops where writers share 8–10 sentences from a book or WIP. I’m now sharing from Chapter 45, “Imre’s Revenge,” of my hiatused WIP The Strongest Branches of Uprooted Trees.

It’s November 1945, and Imre has stayed behind in Budapest instead of being smuggled into Italy with his girlfriend Csilla and their friends. He’s determined to perform some modern Herculean labors, starting with going to Csilla’s hometown Abony to recover important possessions she hid last year.

The gendarme who now owns Csilla’s house, Mr. Mészáros, discovered Imre in the cellar and demanded he leave immediately, without the unearthed valuables. The normally peace-loving Imre flew into a white-hot rage during their increasingly heated discussion, and pushed Mr. Mészáros against the wall, punching him over and over. Now he’s on the floor, blood coming from his mouth and nose.

Fascist Arrow Cross flag of Hungary, November 1942–May 1945

Imre still wasn’t satisfied, and began kicking him again and again in the ribcage and head. His rage was still at white-hot levels, to the point he didn’t feel the throbbing pain in his hand anymore. As a final measure, he grabbed a shovel propped against the wall and banged Mr. Mészáros over the head with it.

“Now how does it feel to be at the mercy of someone who hates you and doesn’t give a damn about your pain?”

There was no response.

“Answer me, you faszfej! Don’t you dare ignore me when I’m speaking to you!”

Imre’s heart beat even faster when there was still no response. He grabbed Mr. Mészáros’s wrist to check for a pulse, then ripped open his shirt, revealing an Arrow Cross tattoo over his heart. In revulsion, Imre ran back to the valuables, put the postal bag around his neck, tucked the skis and globe stand under his left arm, and picked up the typewriter with his right hand.