All Comments on 'The Duel'

and going out in his own style, TK U MLJ LV NV

Still not sure how I feel about it, but it was exceedingly well written and entertaining none the less. Thank you.

Not much to be said. Finally a Brit story where the protagonist is not a pussy-wimp or a willing cuckold. Perhaps there still remains a small spark of the manly strength that built an empire.

Very well written, although the fact that the loving wife, who was so loving that she "loved" TWO men, was the only one to survive and move on, left a really sour taste in my mouth.

Somehow doesn't set well with me. Let's call it what it was. She killed both of the them, one by her actions and one by actual deed. Yet, she walks away. Oh, she has grief. Bull!

re: free pass

No way, Stan killed Cliff, not Suzie. He also did it in the most gutless way possible - attacking an unskilled fighter with a sword and pretending it was even because he was weak. Even IF Stan had won, he'd have lost, because he would have gone away for murder. Really, who's going to believe that it was an accident that he killed a man dying of cancer with a sword? No, it was a fight he was meant to lose. Cliff may be a bastard for cheating with the man's wife, but Stan's nothing more than a murderer.

One of the more unlikeable aspects of this story is that he is willing to murder a man for fucking his oh-so-willing slut of a wife, but he's eager and willing to forgive her at the end. That's not love. That's stupidity.

He got his revenge on Suzie, because she has to live with the fact that not only was she not there for him when he needed it, but she murdered him as well. And yeah, that's murderer too.

Seems that Suzie and Cliff were meant for each other after all.

I place full blame for both deaths on Suzie. She chose to ignore her husband's call when he needed her the most and she broke her own rule by screwing her e-mail friend when she said she never would. If she would have responded to one text or one call none of this would have happened.

Just one man's opinion.

We all make choices in life some good some bad. Most are not one or the other, but judged afterwards by others. Life is not black and white, but gray and just goes on.

Imperfect people in an imperfect world. But beautifully written.

This is a very dark tale of how a clandestine relationship can have unexpected consequences. There are numerous, true-to-life examples where people, ordinarily good, well-behaved, and law-abiding basically "lose it," and they go bat-shit crazy. Just do a Google search for the "Debra Green Murderer" story, and read the Wikipedia summary.

A medical oncologist (Green) found out her husband, a pulmonary medicine physician, was cheating with a respiratory therapist (who was married to an anesthesiologist). Debra Green poisoned her husband, slowly, with a castor bean extract. He was hospitalized and his neurologists figured out what she was doing. While the police were on their way to arrest her, she set fire to her home, murdering 2 of her 3 children. The anesthesiologist was so humiliated when he found out, he committed suicide.

This true account illustrates how an entire row of dominoes can fall when just one is disturbed. It was a very good but troubling story, but maybe "Non-Erotic" would havve been a more fitting category. Thanks for writing.

to comment on the story's outcome, good or bad, deserved or not. Kant, Bentham, Hume would wrestle with the ethical issues. What is clear is that this is a wonderfully written story. The emotions described ring true, the dialogue rings true, the situation never falters from seeming real. The story had depth, it is written with style!. Mr. Grange, please continue writing.

You did an excellent job. Thanks.

The wife was such a whore. In the end, all the men were dead and she's happy as a lark.

Loved what the husband did. When you're going to die, dicking with that person is a bad idea. He had nothing to lose by fucking him over.

bitch

... up to the point where the swordplay was introduced. I really dislike stories where violence is seen as a solution to the problems that people face - no matter how extreme they may be. And, yes, I can accept self-defence as an excuse for it - sometimes!

I'm afraid it rather lost me after that, especially as there were no really sympathetic characters and so, even though it was exceptionally well written, I can't give it more than 3*.

At the same time, I really do hope you'll write more and I look forward to reading them.

I do have to say that the Russian antecedents of this melancholic little tale are pretty clear: all three of the principal characters are tragically flawed, (to the point that not one of them is particularly likeable,) and so the inevitable result of their interaction is tragedy. Unfortunately, tragedy as a literary art form is far, far out of fashion at the moment.

Very nicely executed. Which means you get a very good score despite having written a story I did not enjoy reading. I won't suggest that you write more stories like this one, because I prefer reading works where I enjoy the experience. But please do continue to submit more stories that are as well-written as was this one.

This story really makes you think. Clifford was really stupid for taking up with a married woman and kind of deserved what he got - he should have found one who was single. I don't blame the husband for taking control of his own last ways - there was an article in the WSJ a while back that physicians don't generally partake of the medical treatment they inflict on others when they know they are terminal.

Enjoyed the story even though it was a tad over the top in a couple of sub plots. I was slightly surprised when the wife never admitted in direct language that she had slept with Clifford after ignoring her husband's urgrent text. The obvious secret email relationship that she had with Clifford over such a long time and while they were both married was definitely not professional and was in total the path to seduction that led to the tow them fucking in a hotel bed in London. It well appears that the wife was a conniving, self serving bitch. How does a spouse not notice her husband in terminal phase of cancer when she is living with him. The reason is her world revolved around her and there was little room for anyone else in it. I actually liked a terminally ill man fighting a duel with his wife's lover and contrary to another comment here there most definitely are times when violence is rightly used to solve conflict. If the latter were not true then how does one explain the myriad of wars. It has been said that everyday there is a was or armed conflict going on somewhere in the world.

She played a game and lost a husband and lover, and wanted to believe that she was somehow a victim? Wanted both, and had neither. The husband handled himself well, under the circumstances. Her, little sympathy and guilt for what, gettinbg caught,how she acted, other?

were all humans and if you marry then that is your choice and you don't put yourself in a situation where your spouse can and will get hurt because of you, then how can it be a good story if the one character who survived is the asshole of the story.

she should have been made to suffer greatly. I'm glad the fucking lover was killed. To bad the wife wasn't too!!! Fucking whore

Deserves better than to be posted on a website.

"The best laid plans of mice and men".

An interesting story about lack of communication between people who happened to be married. A bit of a stretch to have her visit Clifford just when her husband reaches out to her, that and the phone tag all adds up an incredible number missed opportunities, but it could happen I suppose. The duel with Clifford who is in their home for unexplained reasons is also interesting. Why was Clifford there, surely the wife did not call him, she could not be that stupid to bring him into their home given all that had happened? This visit really needed some explanation at some point, probably in the hospital since there was no other opportunity, at least within the story line.

The mercy killing of her husband was nicely done and one is left with no doubt that she really did love him and regretted her choices and the pain she caused. Stories like this one can end two ways. The author chose to leave us with Suzie living life alone with memories of her dead husband. I always prefer the other that allows the widow to gradually move on and realize that her husband would not have wanted her to wither away hanging onto memories of what once was, but then I didn't write it.

Five stars, although it could have been fleshed out a bit as noted.

A strong story about a tragic circumstance.....she was forced to pay a very high price for a long running affair. Actually, one of the best I've read.

... But one of the best I've seen on this site. Very Nice Job!

Best LW story in months...please write more

Earlier commentators said it. You warned us via chekov. So an unhappy story and flawed characters. But you did it very well. 5*s from me.

More please,

Best

M

This story has kindled a desire to take up walking. Why not? Why wait for Death>

This is one of the best stories I have ever read on this site, and since I've read a hell of a lot of stories and there have been some very good ones here, that's high praise.

Of course the wife was wrong to carry on a relationship that was cheating in everything but the sex, wrong to be so blinded by her own life that she ignored her husband's dying, wrong to let herself wind up in bed with a man other than her husband when at every step she knew was she was doing was wrong. Clifford was wrong to bed a woman he knew was married, wrong to push and cajole until he convinced her to do something he knew she wanted to do, but knew she in some part of herself didn't want to do. The dying husband was wrong to kill a man simply because he'd broken his heart by turning his wife into a cheater. If we all killed the people who hurt us in this life, the world would be a vast expanse of bleeding corpses. Nobody in this life gets out without pain, without being hurt.

BUT...she didn't know her husband was dying and if this had been just a normal cheating affair, maybe she could have put it back together and they could have led a good life. Despite the beliefs of many on this site, there is a lot of cheating that goes on in this world and a lot of people get past it. Clifford was a prick, but he'd just been cheated on and he didn't know the husband and maybe it shouldn't make a difference, but it does. It's easier to hurt strangers than people when you've looked into their eyes. And the dying husband....who can put themselves into the mind of a man who's had his life snipped short and all the rules and morality simply don't mean anything anymore.

This is one of those stories that goes far beyond the 'she cheated on me and she's going to pay and I'm going to beat the crap out of her boyfriend' template that is at heart of too many stories on this site. Nothing wrong with formulaic stories, but this one is different and is going to stick in my mind. And I think a lot of other readers as well.

A series of bad luck misses with telephone calls and texts. Some more fundamental failures ... Hubby is afraid to trust and confide his fears in his wife - but then discovers he needs her when the news is bad enough. Sweetie is not paying enough attention to Hubby's changes because she is getting wrapped up in thinking about the Bull! Once the dominos start to fall, it is unlikely they will not continue to fall! Stupidest move was Sweetie deciding to seek solace about her failure to provide succor to Hubby (because the Bull was in her bed), by contacting the Bull!

Let's see: you screwed up by diluting your dedication to Hubby with Bull. Hubby, in his greatest moment of need, can't get your attention because you're with the Bull! Hubby finds out and closes you out! You try to get back with Hubby, but it's not working immediately, and you need advice, so you contact the Bull to help you get back with Hubby! This is the very SAME Bull you had to lie to Hubby so you could console Bull because HIS wife dropped HIS ass and he didn't know WHAT to do!

Is that about it? Sounds like there might be at least one flaw in Sweetie crying on Bull's shoulder desperately enough so his Inner Bull Hero rushed to his New Sweetie's side!

I loved the duel scene. Bull, as has been noted, cannot win! Death, in my opinion, is too high a price to pay! Like Hubby, I hope Bull remembered the pussy the rest of his life!

Suzie cheated the minute she took he attention off the relationship with her husband and gave priority to her relationship with Clifford. She keeps it secret from her husband and makes up excuses why she should not tell Stan. Why, Stan might make a fuss about her cozying up to another man! She's quite good at the self justification game, annoyed that Stan is invading her time with Clifford. Smug, arrogant, and disrespectful she is quite unlikeable.

And she gets away with it. Stan dies and take Clifford with him. I wonder if Clifford was making up the whole story about his wife just to get Suzie into bed. Here's a guy whose wife has cheated on him and he is eager to inflict the same pain on another man. Clifford is a sleazeball.

The characters are well developed, believable, and stick to their character. The author tries to rehabilitate Suzie at the end of the story but I don't buy it. Suzie cheated on her husband. She did it quite deliberately and felt justified in doing it. I have no sympathy for her solitary life. It's her penance and she deserves it and more.

The subtle irony of this story was that she was lost to Stan months before because of her emotional affair with Clifford. She never noticed or gave any thought to the clear signs even his secretary could see of his pain. She never considered that his change in behavior was a symptom. The author as skillfully, and adroitly placed all of this information in the story.

She had failed long before she went to London. I actually thought and still think the dual was Stan's way of ending his life, but he got "lucky" and it ended Clifford's life. The whole series of events seem to go that way and thus the ending was consistent with all that had gone one before.

Well done and I hope you write many more stories.

Thank you for a very well written sad story, I can see this sort of thing happening in the 'real' world, and sadly I am sure it does happen. Anyway the story was good and the characters were very well written. characters? And Clifford got what he deserved, while the wife hopefully has a lifetime of guilt.

Thank you for a great story.

Some people were offended by the violence of "the duel". My question to that is, what is a man to do when the one person in the world you trust and love above all else, betrays you with the acts of adultery, contempt and deciet, and you have nothing left to live for? My answer is exactly what Stan did. If you are a real man you take out the dirtbag. At least he gave Clifford the dirtbag a fighting chance. The dirtbag wasn't even up to the challange with a sick and dying man. Clifford was a certifiable dirtbag and a yellow spined coward. He knew she was married, but he pushed and pushed, even to the point of getting her tipsy on wine, until he managed to get her into bed. No! That shithead got excatly what he deserved. Now Suzey will have to live with the guilt of actually luring one man to his death and the murder another. I hope when this selfish bitch dies, she rots in hell. She deserves all the torment that this world can bring down upon her as well.

Great story Morton. Well written, a very nice read.

Gale 82's reason for giving it a three are irrelevant to the worth of the story, but anon re:pass misses the mark by a furlong. If I find myself in the same situation I'd do more, kill the usurper, cripple the cheating slut and then I'd head to D.C. to take out Scalia, Alito and Clarence Thomas, the three most destructive people in our democracy. When you are dying cowardice is evidenced only by leaning on people, not by giving them what they deserve. Yeah sure, some people maintain their civility, but nature could give two shits.

You've tauught me a new word - benignantly - I'll take some effort at using it now. Thanks. More comment after reading more.

It is well written. I did cry a bit and felt for Stan.

The truth of real life.

Are you off your meds again?

DQS said it all. A new level of writing comes to LW. Perhaps a bit wordy, but deeply moving and thought provoking. Thank you.

What I don't understand is -

Why didn't he kill the cheating slut while he was at it?

Although letting her live in her personal hell, did have a nice touch to it.

Ya know - death would be so much easier if you Limey's were still able to buy guns over the counter.

Giving Clifford a fighting chance was just wrong on so many levels, especially since he really didn't seem to want the slut back at that point anyway.

But then you would have had to call this story;

"Stan pops a cap on Clifford’s Ass."

I know, I know, it lacks literary merit, but you should remember that, "well written" isn't always that much fun to read.

But I gave you a four for being Brittish, and not being a wimp! Keep up the good work.

(Squeekums, Squeekums, my little anonny"mouse.")

Typical british style

The husband dies,slut wins.

Still worship lover

1*

Absolutly loved the writing. Unfortunately I found the story plot extremely depressing. Life kicks us around and hands out its far share of heartbreak far more often than we humans deserve. Personally I come to his section to escape for a couples minutes and hopefully read about people winning and finding happiness or contentment, whatever that is these days? 5 stars to tempt you to come back here with another story.

Thank you to the author for sharing this exceptionally well written story. It reminds me of other well-written stories on this site like "The Pre-Nuptual Agreement Ch. 2" by cloacas or "Requital" by Longhorn_07. The story is deep and the ethical issues addressed will tie moral philosophers in knots. It is sad that these types of stories do not receive the ratings that they deserve.

...J.Taylor...don't use benignantly too much it's a soon to disappear from the vernacular cumbersome form of benignly so why bother with the extra syllable?(I notice spellcheck doesn't even recognize it.)- DQS- if more people would use this option the world would actually be a much better place since the virus known as humanity would be in remission.And there's nothing funny about that.

An easy 5. I rate a lot of stories, especially in LW. I try to be fair, rewarding well-written, well-plotted, interesting, moving and original stories highly, even if the story isn't my storyline, etc. I usually rate a pretty good story a 4, and anything better than that a 5. After reading this, which has become an immediate favorite of mine, I now, in retrospect, think that I have been too lenient in my rating. There are very, very few stories in LW that are this good. I wish I could give you a bonus star to differentiate this story from other, very good (but lesser) stories to which I have given 5 stars previously.

It's amazing to me that you hit on all cylinders: storyline, pace, style, dialogue, character development, originality, drama. It really had it all.

My humble critiques: I did notice a couple of editing errors-use of the word "that" which should have been "than," and a slightly confused time-line (did wife know the asshole for 3 years or 5 years?).

One of the things that you developed very well in this story is the idea of the pen-pal affair. Having a correspondent of brief in-person acquaintance, exhanging occasional telephone calls and regular emails, does create an intimacy. However, it is a false, or at least incomplete, intimacy: you never really get to know a person, not really, without the face-time, without the day-to-day experiences, without the mutual sacrifice of sharing a life together. The author did a good job of getting to that. What the wife had with the asshole was a partial relationship. She says she loved him, but it really was an infatuation with a projection of him-a projection he controlled and she interpreted in a romanticised way. As she acknowledged at the end of the story-she heard stories about him at his memorial service and they had no connection to the man she thought she knew.

I appreciated that she even knew the sexual aspect of the affair was wrong (not just morally, but also tangibly/physically wrong), as soon as it had been consummated. The wife, like almost all cheating wives, was an egoist. She fed on having her cake and eating it too, on having this accomplished, successful, wealthy, attractive man carry on this long-distance flirtation with her for all these years. A man who was a counterpoint to her husband, who, I believe, she did really love. I believe she was right in her private evaluation of the asshole: he was a predator who loved the chase, only to quickly grow bored with his conquests. She fed on the romantic notion that what she had with him was special, that she was somehow different and better than those legions of successful, wealthy, well-connected beauties who had graced his bedroom over the years. It is sad that she didn't hear the asshole's cowardly plea that he would leave and never see her again if only sick, dying hubby would let him leave in peace.

That said, despite the flaws of the wife, I do believe she loved the hubby, and made the sacrifice at the end to prove it. She didn't redeem herself totally, but she made amends. I actually hoped at the end that she would find some happiness in her future, and that might be the greatest achievement of this story.

I say again, Well Done!

Glad we have some wimpy Brits writing on this site. ; )

A sad Consequence story. Not a Cruel Revenge Story because in a Revenge Story the earlier betrayed main character is a winner in the story. I think and I agree the widow will overide the her depression and with becoming wiser she may be a chance to restart............

Not a lot more to say than that. Well-written and compelling. Certainly no winners here--everyone's life is shattered.

I hope we'll have more stories from you.

Thanks,

ohio

You wrote the emotions well, eliciting the reader to react with our own emotion.

The PistolPackinPete dude threatening to kill Supreme Court Justices is over the top.

If you can write so well that you stir the freaks to start a rampage, we should lock you up, take away your internet access. You could start a war, just by writing stories.

Overall, this story is top of the line, thanks for making the effort to write it so eloquently.

Regards,

-Pultoy

Too bad the cheating slut Suzie didn't get AIDS AIDS fron Clifford and die a slow lonely painful death her body riddlesd inside anbd out with oozing sores. Good play on

Stan killing the bastard Clifford with a sword, if would of had the strength he shouldhave rammed the sword up his wifes cunt and fucked her with it

Obviously you are a very skilled writer. I obviously liked it Up to the cheating part it.s easy. Afterwards it's a problem. What then? You did a great job with origionality and good writing. I only read it once, but wondered why the swords were lying on the table. sort of a jarring detail. Or maybe you had them hanging on the wall, I don;t remember.

Anyway clean up the next few strories you have on your computer and publish more?

Chilley

This was a nice read, subtle and compelling. The dialog between Stan and his wife during the confrontation was just outstanding. I thought, killing Clifford was a little too much until Stan pointed out Clifford wasn’t willing to fight for Suzie --- Stan protecting his wife’s honor. In the end , Stan forgave his wife’s adultery and Suzie showed her love by taking his life. Really interesting twist and turns. Thanks . I am looking forward to your next story and putting you in my favorites.

The strong points of this story were twofold for me.

First, you gave a very rational path how a wife could be led down the path of adultery. First she makes a secret friend...then it's caring for the person...then a secret meeting...and then...oops! Additionally, her reaction was also pretty spot on, at least as I imagine a woman to respond. "Oh dear! How the heck did that happen? I really didn't want to but...when can we meet next? But first I need to exorcise these feelings of guilt by giving my husband what should have been his all along..." She didn't want to but she did but...

The next part I really liked was how the husband knew and dealt with it. It wasn't wishing. It wasn't crying (though he did feel sad). It was a sucker punch to him, but considering the rest of his life (a rather short term), her infidelity ranked rather low. Again, you ran things rather realistically. Yes, anger. Yes he wanted to cause her pain, because she had thoughtlessly caused him pain. That is realistic. Not the high minded gentlemen of Matt Moreau and half of Stangstar's stories, where they want to simply walk away with their dignity intact (Wait...I said that about a MM story? I need sleep and have to stop hitting the bottle). If he's human, I can relate to him. A walk in God's good earth, an afternoon with some pretty young things, a bit of bile, and some peace. A dignified ending.

I scarcely blame him for his actions. So many people want to do things without a bit of consequences. Clifford thought she was free tail (and don't for a moment think that I don't think he played her across the board. A so called wife. A so called divorce. A full bottle of champagne. Yeah...). He found out otherwise too late and more cads need that kind of example. Stan, your sacrifice is not in vain!

My quibbles: You write well, but several times, a word was misused and it was like a speed bump along a super highway, unexpected. I am sure I'm as guilty as the next guy, but it was still there.

Next, why was the memorial service a year later? That seems...inexplicable. Secondly, why was SHE invited if her relationship was so secret? Excuse me, it WAS exposed...as the whore he was sleeping with while married whose husband murdered him. Somehow, I doubt Emily Post would approve of her invitation...or was that in one of the sub indexes?

All in all a fine read.

is that you end up rating the characters and not the author. but i guess that is how it works in real life. people like the characters in your book and buy it and if they dont then they dont buy it.

A sad tale, excellently told. Very truthful. 5* and favourited. Thank you.

It was too tough and depressing for me to favorite but it was really good for the type of story it was. As my Father died a long, lingering, painful death from cancer it would doubly depress me. The entertainment value for me was nil but it does not detract from your story as a whole. The wife was a slut in her heart for all those thousand emails and the dear friend, she was giving her friend emotions she owed to her husband. No husband-wife relationship is perfect but she cheated for years without sex and then gave it, too. At least she did the right thing on the end, putting him out of his misery. That was her only redeeming action (to me) in the whole story. You win first prize for melancholy. Please keep writing.

if we were buying customers we would pay to buy them and if we did not buy them we would be giving the equivalent of a 1 and a purchase is a rating of 5. lots of good authors dont sell because they have bad characters. this is not an english exam where we rate their use of a perior, comma, and spelling. i loved that clifford was killed and i thought it sucked that she went to his service - she was a cheating cunt.

mess up the marriage and stayed strong at the end, TK U MLJ LV NV

Little or no remorse for killing two men? Such demons you possess.

Good enough to be published in a traditional venue.

Thanks for such a good read and I look forward to seeing your submissions in the future.

I like this story. A little melodrama but with the feel of real life. A duel with a dying man, and he kills the one who has so much to live for. She honors the one she betrayed by following his past time.

I think Stan said it best. When he needed her most, she wasn't there. The only question is; will she punish herself for the rest of her life?

i love the story except where the cheating whore goes to her lovers service to honor him. you did a great cheating cunt that never quite understood the evil she did when she cheated. 5

And kill the good guys? It doesn't make the story any better

Totally self centered with little love or respect for her husband carrying on an affair for years. Finally lying to her husband and committing adultry with a man. And while her husband is near death and in the hospital for surgery she brings her lover into her home. After her lover is dead and she has killed her husband, she lives a life that would have been more suited to her marriage and enjoys life. Another story of the good die young after leading useless painful lives and the evil prosper and move on. A very depressing story of a good man destroyed by a very evil woman.

The worst was when the cheating fucking slut went to the memorial service for her fuck buddy. She still did not get it.

A lot to admire and a fair bit to roll one's eyes at. The truer ending would have been Stan impaled on the sword. A dying man finding his inner Zorro & sending wife's conniving but healthy lover to Hades was better theater then story. Still I admired this much of what this story had to offer.

This is a premeire effort with streaks of sterling exposition, dialogue both inner and spoken. If this author stands en garde against his random impulse for a few contrived excesses , his outlook as a writer of blight and human folly is bright indeed.

should have killed the wife she was nothing but a worthless whore. All that oh i am sorry bullshit and i love you shit shows just how fucked in the head women are. Once you cheat your damaged goods go the fuck away

She knew the error of her way. But still carried on till the affair became sexual.then the shit hit the fan. She lost her lover who she really did not know anything about who he was or his life and lost her husband at the same time due to his discovering her affair and his cancer,that was killing him. So much for life. 3 lives destroyed tragically.

Great work

completly wrong here , this is even worse. are you necrophiliac ? or what's your kick to write here ?

Not exactly what we would enjoy reading but once started it had to be read to the end. They were beyond the pale and so the normal considerations are meaningless in the context of the story. Was he a wimp? No, he was a murderer but he also was a victim. Basically, it comes down to why do people become involved outside their marraige instead of first ending a relationship before starting another?

Nice story. Life is drama and there is drama in real life. Keep writing and forget the asinine critics.

Nice style different to the norm somehow..

However, Suzie got off way, way too easy. Should of been retribution for the terrible thing she did to Stan. Perhaps pregnancy by Clifford and a life of horrible guilt.

I generally don't feel the need for revenge for the other guy. The one at fault is the cheating wife. However, when you fuck around with another guy's wife, all bets are off on how he will behave. I don't feel Cliff was mistreated in this story.

Came to this after reading the first two chapters of Caroline Alone. Don't know how I missed it. Brilliant story. Sad, real. Characters, plot, dialogue. A story worth paying for. Thanks again. Keep up the good work.

Welcome to the association of good writer on the site! I vote you in.

Chilley

... it reads like he was afraid of everything and made life miserable for those really close to him. Losing a loved one is always traumatizing. Giving her the gift of a possible relationship after he goes would have been the humane thing. His death just extends the misery.

Good read.

Thx.

Second time reading the story, I couldn't stop by without leaving a comment.

Nicely written tragedy, compelling plot, flawed but well developed characters, interesting setting with the climbing/hiking. This is what a good story should be. People may not like the message, the outcome, or the characters themselves, but it's a hell of a tale.

Thanks for the welcome gift.

I also read it after 'Caroline'. Glad I found it. Excellent story, well written. Thanks....

This is a real work of mind fuck. I don't get the point of writing black stories. The only thing that could've topped this off would've been Suzie gang raped and murdered awaiting the death call outside of the hospital when Stan died. This story was absolutely terrible. The characters stunk ...there was nothing likeable about anything. I can't comment about the author other than give advise about your choice of subject matter. I prefer happier stories as my little escape from my own realities. For me at least, fiction should have a winner and good guy. I know that's not life, but that's my purpose in reading fiction. I enjoy a good story as entertainment. This was not entertainment. I wasted my time on this thing.

Well written story of tragically flawed characters. Everyone could have made better decisions that would have prevented this sad sequence of events, but sometimes fate meets self-centered desires and it happens!

another fucking "everyone was wrong" comment. get some fucking balls. the husband was not wrong, he was wronged! he got his balls back and the whore he married went to the piece of garbage's service, how fucking lovely, how god damn sweet for her. she should have stood up and said 'my husband killed this asshole because he seduced and fucked me and he was a cheating piece of shit and so am I and i am glad my husband killed him."

I do not like dark stories unless it is the cheating spouse, male or female, getting retribution. This bitch did not pay enough. Imagine her having Clifford to come visit to give her moral support. She should have been made to pay, in this life as well as the next one.

If your intent was to write a story with the moral of "Life's a bitch, and then you die", then you have succeeded in a very admirable fashion! I read it and reread it to see if I had missed something. Don't think I have. A story of two very shallow people caught in an end of life situation that is at best, poorly constructed. Not much here. No humanity evident in either character. Not my cup of tea.

RI

She was a cheater; her lover was knowingly destroying a marriage. Story totally "hosed up."

The husband has no redeeming quality. What is the moral of the story beside adding more guilt to a cheating wife?

The thing with an unwilling cuckold, just about any response is possible and justified in the heat of the moment. And as a cuckolder, you should be aware that you deserve whatever you get. When a man's world is turned upside down he will strike out in the heat of the moment. This man was willing to be a martyr, step aside and live his last days as he saw fit, away from the cunt. But to find her defiler in his own home: the hormones rage, the emotion boils over. Similar to the raging hormones and emotions that led her to stain her slutty soul. He had to find satisfaction.

I wonder if dear old Cliff felt sadly pathetic, knowing he was bested by an invalid.

Fucking cunt. Yeah, that's how I'm starting my comment. In your comments in the beginning you talked about a loving wife. To me that meant she was not unfaithful. You fucking lied. The cunt went to meet her "friend" and fucked him. Her husband found out he was dying of cancer and had been in pain weeks before. Although he didn't reveal the nature of his problems she in her infinite wisdom mocked him every time he struggled in pain. I liked that in his clouded and unrational mind he killed her faggot lover in a duel. I'm happy that in the end she was alone. I hope she lived in unmerciful mental aguish for the rest of her life. Hopefully she lived to be quite old.

No rating for this . It was a well written tale but I absolutely hated it. In that respect any rating would be jaded. But she did cheat and love is diminished by infidelity.

Have you try to apply to number of asylums near you ??

"1*" !

they were full with dumbasses that read stories they don't like so they say!!!!!

I hadn't favorited this story.

That has been rectified.

wow husband goes to hospital so instead of going to work as she made her husband believe she brings her lover into the house, no disrespect there or unfaithfulness there. She isn't in love with her husband she is just wallowing in guilt over betraying her spouse while he is sick. If he hadn't been sick be would never have known what a common slut she was.

No final solution....bill

Life sucks, get what you can without hurting someone else...

I think it would have been a stronger story if Stan had not killed Clifford. After Stan's death, she would have had to deal with the guilt etc etc.

Good tale anyway. Thanks.

.............their all whores.

A realistic moral too.

If you as the author stipulate she is a truly loving wife - so be it -

She is a foolish, selfish, self centered wife whose love for her husband is less than her love for her own wants. She works very hard rationalizing her behavior even as she violates every one of her plans and decisions knowing all along she is doling and rationalizing it to herself and deciding she can make him accept it - fully knowing in her heart she was wrong.

It destroyed him and her and caused the death of the predator who took advantage of her weakness. Yes the true evil one was Clifford and he got what he deserved. But so did she - maybe too well but she got it.

The victim was the husband who suffered in silence then found nothing there when he reached out - was he perfect - of course not he was human.

Nice thought provoking story though -

Give him a fucking break. He is dying of cancer, he has and is in intolerable physical pain and he just finds out that his wife has made a cuckold of him at the worst possible time in his life. He cannot be reviled for his irrational solutions and feelings and I don't blame him for killing Clifford, at least he gave him a chance which is more than I would have done. Since I was dying anyway I would have had no compunction about killing him and would have put a couple of slashes across my "loving wife's" face. She showed no regret when she went to Clifford's memorial service. The bitch, she should have been anguished and guilty all her life, instead she trots off to her lover's memorial service full of herself. Miserable. A black story, no entertaining elements but still a good strong story. If I had it to do over I would not have read it, though. I read to be entertained, not to be depressed.

Most depressing piece of shit ever to have the misfortune to have been place on loving wives

Even after he was dead she went to the asshole.

I must have read like 75 to 100 stories on this site and I have to say that in my opinion this has to be absolutely the best story I have read on here so far. excellent job I loved it. of course it didn't paint the wife in a very good light but hey, shit happens right ?? I might like to also add it was a fucking sad story also. But again super great job with this story.