Taken

The flower market at Lunar New Year was exquisite. Rosita held her daughter’s small hand as they glided through, admiring the brilliant exotic plants.

They chattered excitedly, making their way back to the hotel where her husband waited.  They had planned a special dinner for the last night of their vacation.

A scream popped their joyful bubble.  Rosita ran toward the young woman who had been knocked to the sidewalk by a man on a motorcycle, after he had ripped her bag from her shoulder.

Dropping her daughter’s hand that day would haunt Rosita for the rest of her life.

~~

“Friday Fictioneers” is a weekly challenge hosted by the lovely Rochelle Wisoff Fields, to write a story using only 100 words in response to a photo prompt.  This week’s photo was provided by JS Brand.  I have enjoyed starting off my weekend by writing a story.  If you would like to join in with this encouraging group of writers or read their stories from this week, visit HERE.

Sometimes I feel the need to explain how I came up with a specific story based on the photo prompt for that week. When I first saw the photo, I thought of trapped, maybe twisted, and began to write.

I was influence by an email I received yesterday, a travel warning by the US State Department for one of the Asian countries we travel to, “Recent reports of criminal activities include … targeting children in public places for potential kidnapping…”

That email plus the fact my husband witnessed a woman being robbed in this specific country, near the flower market at Lunar New Year.  The motorcycle driver pulled alongside the sidewalk some distance ahead of my husband, took the young woman’s purse and pushed her to the ground.  It happened quickly, but my husband took off running on instinct.  Of course, he couldn’t catch the motorcycle and the woman was okay, just shaken.

And so, the story was born.