Another site was having a challenge to write an entire story in exactly 750 words. Buckle up folks...

Mark Meadows slowly organized the packet of documents he had removed from the fire safe in his bedroom.

“Get your stuff together guys. We leave for Grandma’s in ten minutes!” he shouted to his three kids; Becky 13, Glenn 11 and Tabatha 8.

“K Dad,”s were chorused back to him from the three bedrooms down the hall.

Mark thumbed the speed dial for his sister and waited for her answering, “Hey Mark.”

“Just wanted to make sure you were going to be to Mom’s after lunch,” he said.

“Almost into Pennsylvania now,” his sister replied, “We will be to the house by 2.”

“Great,” Mark said, “I really am grateful to you and Sam for your support so far in the divorce.”

“Well, you ARE my only brother in law and they ARE not only our nieces and nephew but our Godchildren as well,” said Sam, his brother in law, obviously using the car’s hands-free.

“K, the kids will be at Mom’s when you get there,” Mark said and ended the call.

Making sure the project he had spent the weekend on was in his briefcase, he snapped it closed and began to herd his kids towards their car.

“Thanks, Mom,” Mark said, “Please make sure Sue and Sam get these documents when they get in.”

“OK, sweetie,” his Mother replied, “I just wish Dorothy was not being so evil about this whole thing.”

Mark’s sadness grew, “I know, Mom, and keeping them away from you is just wrong. At least you have them for now.”

Mark sat down in the conference room with his lawyer, ‘their’ lawyer, his soon to be ex-wife, Dorothy and the POS snake who had seduced her.

The meeting was to finalize the financial settlement as well as for him to sign away his parental rights so that POS could adopt his kids.

“Mark, you are such a looser,” Dorothy hissed, “Why don’t you just sign the papers? Bill has the power and connections to make this happen regardless of what you try to do. And don’t even think about trying to quit your looser teaching ‘job’. Bill can make sure your Teaching Certificate gets yanked for cause if you try to get out of paying alimony.”

Mark sighed and seemed to collapse in on himself. “OK. I will sign the fucking papers, all of them, if you will pass on some stuff I made for the kids.”

“Whatever,” Dorothy replied, “What is it? Another one of your looser ‘homemade craft’ projects?”

Bill’s face took on a condescending sneer at Dorothy’s words and held his hand to Mark, “Give me what you have there Markie and I’ll give it to the rug rats when we have the chance.”

Dorothy poked Bill and giggled at how her new MAN was putting down the looser.

Mark pulled his briefcase up onto the deck and was looking around the room; his lawyer was more interested in talking to ‘their’ lawyer about employment possibilities than Mark’s case. Their lawyer was just interested in getting a “win’ and not in doing what was right for the kids being ground up in the divorce. His soon to be ex and her new ‘man’ were smirking at Mark’s plight and the paralegal had left the room to get her Notary Stamp to witness the signatures on both the divorce and adoption papers.

Mark’s eyes hooded as the sadness began to overwhelm him again. What a waste he thought. At least my kids will be better for this, he thought, as he clicked the latches open on the briefcase. He was losing his wife, his kids, everything he had ever worked for and cherished, and after all, he was just a looser of a High School Chemistry teacher.

“Here you go, Dorothy,” he said, “Just a little something for the kids to remember me by.” The lid of the case blocked their view of the contents within so none of the other occupants of the room saw Mark turn the switch energizing the four ounces of homemade Lead Azide which detonated almost instantly. The shock wave traveled into the ten pounds of PENTA, also homemade, resulted in a blast that consumed the entire conference room.

KDKA Action news – Dateline Beaver Falls, PA. A massive explosion rocked the law offices of Richard Head, Esq. this afternoon. The cause of the explosion is under investigation but we can report that five bodies have been removed from the site by the Beaver County Coroner.