Incident on the N12 – Friday Fictioneers, February 2022

Copyright Na’ama Yehuda

The late afternoon thunderheads erupt suddenly, sweeping the storm quickly across the Highveld, its progress heralded by the pungent aroma of newly-dampened dust.

A bakkie pulls alongside her stationary car, the driver shouting over the crackling skies and torrential rain.

“Jump in – your husband sent me….”

“It’s ok, I’ve called for Roadside.”

“Traffic’s chokka, the road’s flooded back there.”

Every instinct screams no…

But she’s wet, cold, desperate.

Get a grip, girl, she thinks, reaching for the door handle.

He leans across to unlock it, his features briefly and unforgettably illuminated by the recovery truck’s headlights as it pulls up behind.

The photo this week reminded me of our time in Johannesburg, when summer storms arrived at almost the same time late afternoon/early evening for days on end. The wonderful smell of wet earth was always a signal that it was close at hand. The highway dangers are pretty much the same everywhere these days. Thanks to Rochelle for all she does for Friday Fictioneers.

And here’s a picture of our new rescue cat, who, someone says, is a Russian Blue. So this is Bellarovsky.

Bellarovsky