Anna Rogers

“Conversations With The Cat” by Anna Rogers

Submitted to Contest #187

Marcia the cat and I once flatted together in the capital . When her person Chrissie moved out she swore it’d take her ages to recover. At the time I’d found that a bit harsh. After all no one told her to bring her over sensitive cat into the household.Watching now as she padded gracefully through the open French doors that seemed a lifetime away. From the way she was eyeing me it was as if we’d never met.“It’s me Marcia.”, I whispered. “Surely you remember me?”The expression she fixed on me said otherwise. “Traitor.”; I mouthed hoping my fo...

8 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Winging It - Outside The Comfort Zone Of Kiwi Omerta” by Anna Rogers

Submitted to Contest #135

Facing Gwen my therapist I heave a sigh.‘Fussy ould mother hen wanting to gather this chick under her wing.’Or if she was being honest that of my family’s nemesis Detective Inspector Somers of Auckland Police. Like Victor Hugo’s arch villain Inspector Javert he’s dogged our footsteps since foreva.”The offer of Witness Protection’s still open.”, says Gwen in her no nonsense manner.“Wit-less Protection. Thanks but no thanks.”She means well, but that comes with strings. Like being in Somers’ clutches for an unspecified length of time. Otherwise...

10 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“God Botherers ” by Anna Rogers

Submitted to Contest #132

I’m Alex (short for Alexis) Roberts, my younger (and very annoying) sister is Geneva (Neva for short) and we live with our mum. We’re also God Botherers or Christians, Mum converted after her and dad split up. As a newly minted solo mother she needed someone in her corner. With a handful like Neva I guess she figured only God was up for the job. Honestly my sister would try the entire heavenly host’s patience. Dad’s a cop and he preferred crowd control duty to managing her in full flight, Actually he met mum crowd controlling but that’s a wh...

12 likes 1 comment 1

Read story

“Deathly Repast” by Anna Rogers

Submitted to Contest #100

There are times when being a community worker sucks. Jacko’s situation being one of these, and worst of all it was preventable,I knew it wouldn’t work. That far from regretting giving him up all those years ago his birth mother Wendy remained bitter at his continued existence. I met her just the once and should've refused to even discuss it further. Except for years Jacko had lived for a reunion with Real Mummy as he referred to Wendy and I didn’t have the heart to add more disappointment to his life.Wendy’d been fifteen when he was born, an...

5 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Saving Grace Street” by Anna Rogers

Submitted to Contest #88

As she walked to school Belle Fraser heard rumbling sounds. ”It’s all over bar the shouting”, commented a passerby. Catching his eye Belle shook her head exclaiming “Not if I can help it.” “Yeah right kid.”, the man chuckled. the rumbling was being caused by heavy earthmoving equipment. Contractors were starting demolition work at the top end of Grace Street. City Hall called it gentrification. To the local community it was corporate invasion. Belle’s family had been involved in the Save Grace Street campaign. Yet to her annoyance they...

8 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Avoidance “Mish” (Mission)” by Anna Rogers

Shivering inside the flimsy bivouac Ally sighed. in the time she’d spent eating a breakfast she considered hearty, freshening up, putting together a Go Bag and faithfully consulting Google Maps she’d failed to check the weather forecast. A pretty basic slip up considering her morning’d felt a lot like a disaster evac scenario.’Just as well my windjacker’s also waterproof and I chose Doc Martens over sandshoes.’ At least the rain had given her time to set up camp. But for its unwelcome arrival she’d brought the makings of a rather pleasant da...

3 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Rejecting Omerta - A Mother’s Stand” by Anna Rogers

Submitted to Contest #69

Facing down her fellers in a way she’d never imagined having to Beth Mallory steeled herself. 4 pairs of eyes met her pained ones, none of them sympathetic.The first to speak was the youngest, Shaun.“You what?” Two little words that bristled with meaning,Had mum really just announced that she was giving up the family business?Mike nicknamed Mikey in the middle (he loved exasperating the cops by insisting on answering only to that) did a double take,”Is this some kind of effn joke?”As a rule swearing at mum was strictly off limits, respect fo...

8 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Origins” by Anna Rogers

Submitted to Contest #68

It had been twenty-four years since she’d last seen it, but the place looked exactly the same. Which didn’t surprise Lorraine aka Raine.Named in colonial times for the Founder’s son Trent was that same 1950s throwback she’d left behind. The alternative had been marriage to self proclaimed high school sweetheart Tommy. Having dogged her teenage footsteps, and ruined School Ball night because she’d let another boy take her Tommy had staked his claim on graduation day.To both families’ delight he’d even bought a ring.As mum explained, gushing. ...

6 likes 4 comments 4

Read story

“Kiwi Version Of Omerta” by Anna Rogers

Submitted to Contest #67

In our house TV classic Outrageous Fortune was staple viewing. The people it depicted were like us. Living on the edge outside of the law. I even entered a Cheryl West Look Alike Contest, but didn’t make the finals. Mum went ballistic screeching to neighbourhood wellwishers “Bloody thing was rigged. Picking a bunch of wannabe tarts when my kid’s right there beside them.” To her way of thinking as the real thing I should’ve been the main contender. Dad and my brothers reckoned I should’ve applied to be a scriptwriter. I would never have been ...

10 likes 1 comment 1

Read story

“Remembering Margaret aka Maggie” by Anna Rogers

Submitted to Contest #61

After a quick glance at the wall clock Abby re-read the flyer. A bolt from the blue it’d been the last thing she’d expected in the mail.‘By now‘ she mused ‘they’ll be packing out the hall of Barrett High the old alma mater and I wonder having hand addressed the envelope will Margaret aka Maggie be expecting it to have borne fruit? In the form of me ‘answering the royal summons.?’ Barrett High School Reunion Class of 86 We want you.....to join us for a weekend of fun and reminiscing. Culminating in a Saturday night ball.Followed of course by ...

8 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“The Second Fall” by Anna Rogers

Submitted to Contest #60

’If you believe in Adam & Eve stuffing up and causing the original ’Fall’, then I guess you’d have to call this episode in time “The Second Fall.” The result of climate change it happened after The Great Pandemic. Here it coincided with the official change of our country’s name to Aotearoa. Both events are required learning for our kids, with the job of teaching now “vested in parents” rather than an institution, In other words home schooling’s become the norm, the government insisting that “Families who learn together stay together.” Fa...

10 likes 2 comments 2

Read story

“Required To Move” by Anna Rogers

Submitted to Contest #59

With a sigh Emma heaved yet another box across the room. ’This isn’t real’, she told herself. ‘It’s just a dream, and soon my alarm will go off releasing me....Except this was real life, no such reprieve in the offering. If anything her clock had become the doomsday variety.Lulled into a false sense of security, after eight years‘ undisturbed tenure Emma had forgotten the precarious position of a renter. You could love a place, take the best of care and settle but it was never yours. It was a situation you accepted, making the best of it wh...

6 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“That Flashback” by Anna Rogers

Submitted to Contest #57

Robbie and I were best friends, at least that is until I achieved dubious fame.Missing Girl Found By Walkerscreamed the headlines, above a photo of me holding a bewildered,dishevelled child. Two days prior 5 year old Jennifer Dreaver had wandered off during a family bush walk. Searchers were combing another section of bush. We saw them on the way in , and of course Robbie wanted to join them. I managed to talk him out of it. Which is ironic considering that I emerged an accidental hero.Now that was a right circus.Amidst the scrum of reporter...

9 likes 1 comment 1

Read story

“The Bond” by Anna Rogers

” I Kayleigh take you Robert.....”It’s your wedding day, and watching you embark upon the next stage in life’s journey I think back. To our very first day, when a tiny bundle was handed to a nervous 19 year old.Where did the years go my Kayleigh? One minute you’re greedilyguzzling your breast milk, next it’s your first day of school, then graduation, first job and next thing we’re meeting Robert your future husband. When the minister mentioned impediments I wanted toinsist that “Yes, this is madness. I can’t allow this. She’s still my little...

2 likes 0 comments 0

Read story

“Her Worse Nightmare” by Anna Rogers

Submitted to Contest #52

“Ellen?” just that, her name (the one from her old life) spoken in a familiar lackadaisical tone made her heart miss a beat. Two even if she were brutally honest as she glanced in the direction it came from. ‘It can‘t be’ she told herself. He’s supposed to have died and I’ve been so careful;’ Except who was she kidding? Nowadays everyone knew her as Abby, except for him. Because it was him, even though the police had informed her of his death in prison five years ago. ”There was a riot, inmates including your husband overpowered guards a...

11 likes 6 comments 6

Read story