By Nadja Maril

Why She Loves the Water

No one knows her legs refuse to kick. In the ocean she is floating. She rides the waves on her back, then flips on her belly to move her arms with powerful strokes. Her secret is safe. She is just another swimmer on a hot summer’s day.

Nondisclosure

Walter was a liar and a cheat. He overcharged them and never finished his work, but they can tell no one. Their lawyer negotiated a partial refund but, they must keep their experience a secret. The case is sealed. Walter is searching for his next victim.

Falling Through the Cracks

He doesn’t know how to read, but he’s good at pretending. His wife is happy to keep his secret.

She opens the mail and teaches him where to put his signature. He can scribble an “S” and an “X” that almost look like the signature of his children’s teacher on the bottom of their report cards. Maybe one day, he’ll have the time to go to school.

*   *   *

Nadja Maril’s writing appears in publications that include The Lumiere Review, Lunch Ticket, Spry Literary Journal, and The Sunlight Press. Nadja earned an MFA in Creative Writing from the Stonecoast Program at the University of Southern Maine and is a Contributing Editor to Old Scratch Press. She lives in Annapolis, Maryland. Her chapbook, Recipes From My Garden; Herb and Memoir Short Prose and Poetry, is scheduled for publication release in October. Follow her at Nadjamaril.com