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An Instance Of Karma

An Instance Of Karma

It was a hot August night. Jill was working hard at the local convenience store, and her husband, Jarvis, was working hard also—busily digging her grave in the back yard. He just knew she had been cheating on him. Not that he had any proof. It was the way she smiled seductively at men where she worked.
The grave was at the side of the house where it wouldn’t be easily noticed by the neighbors. Bushes surrounding the fence made it even more unnoticeable. Just to be sure, Jarvis kept a camouflage tarp over the hole in the daytime. At night he worked by moonlight, mostly. On moonless nights he sat and thought about how he wanted Jill to suffer. Never mind that it was she who made a living for them both while he made no effort to find a job. Sometimes, he would visit her and watch as she worked. He was certain that if he waited long enough he would catch her flirting.
One night he was certain that he had found one of her lovers when a customer spilled change on the floor. Jill’s head was close to the customer’s as they picked up the coins. Jarvis smiled with satisfaction. There! That proved it. He thought he saw a tender smile pass between the two. It was time to end all this, and Jarvis could not wait.
The next night Jill was off work. She had noticed Jarvis acting strangely all evening, but decided he was just being Jarvis. She was aware that he was jealous and had finally decided to leave him. She was waiting for an opportunity to do so. She knew she would have to quit her job and move away. Otherwise she would never be free to live her own life.
As she sat on the living room sofa mulling her options and watching television, Jarvis came up behind her and put his arm around her neck. She could not escape the choke-hold although she struggled mightly, digging at his arm until it bled. She was a big, strong woman but no match for Jarvis. When she became unconscious, he wasted no time tying her hands behind her and putting duct tape over her mouth. He waited for her to regain her senses. She finally opened her eyes and looked around wildly where she lay on the floor not far from the front door. Jarvis stood over her with an evil grin that filled her with terror. He bent over her and said,
“I’ve got you exactly where I want you. You are going to pay for cheating on me. I am going to bury you alive!” Jill knew he meant it and kicked at him. He soon tied her feet together. Then he picked her up and positioned her over his shoulder. He staggered out the door with his load, down the steps and over to the side of the house where the hole was.
Just as he was about to topple Jill into the grave, he heard a menacing growl. He turned around and saw the glistening eyes and fangs of a German Shepherd dog. In the dimness he recognized Rex, the dog that lived several doors down.”Get out of here!” Jarvis hissed just before Rex attacked. His teeth caught Jarvis in the leg. The momentum pushed Jarvis backward. He fell into the hole on his back with Jill on top of him. The jolt knocked the breath from him, and Jill’s weight was agonizing.
“Get off me, you whale!” he croaked. Bound and gagged, she could only lie there, There was not enough room in the grave for Jarvis to wriggle free. Rex barked wildly, dashing around the grave. Jarvis hoped someone would hear the dog and save him. But no one did.
Morning came, and with it came the heat of an August day. Around noon Jarvis succumbed. Jill saw that his eyes were rolled back, and his tongue was hanging out. Jill tried to free herself, but it was hopeless. At least the sun is at my back, she thought. Rex had been lying in the shade of a nearby bush. When Jill moaned, he jumped up and began barking again.
“There you are, boy!” Rex’s owner stood watching at the back fence. Rex began whining, wagging his tail furiously.
“What’s going on?” Jeff asked the dog. Jeff leaped over the fence and came forward. He could barely believe what he was seeing. There lay Jill in a hole. All thoughts of an accident vanished when he noticed she was bound and gagged, with duct tape going around her head. Jeff wasted no time pulling her out.
He looked at Jarvis. No doubt he was dead, probably from Jill’s weight and the heat. Jeff guided as they made theirway to her front door. Putting her in a chair at the kitchen table, Jeff swiftly removed her bonds ans untaped her mouth. He gave her a bottle of water from the refrigerator.
As she drank the water, Jeff sat next to her. she finally stopped drinking and began to cry.
“Will you be okay?” he asked, putting his arm around her. She leaned against him wearily.
“Maybe someday,” she replied. “He was going to bury me alive!”
“But why?”
“He said I was cheating on him with guys I met at work. That is not true!”
“Do you need to see a doctor?”
“No, I’ll be fine. I was just overheated.” Jeff gave her a squeeze.
“He won’t be trying that again. I’m sure he’s dead.” Jill looked at him and sniffed.
“I hope he is dead. No one should treat me that way.”
Jeff , Jill and Rex stood looking at Jarvis in the hole he had dug. Flies buzzed around his eyes and mouth.
“Do you think we should call the authorities?” she asked. Jeff thought for a moment.
“No, he is already in his grave. We will put dirt over him and be done with it. I doubt anyone will ever find him. If we call the authorities, they might think we killed him.”
“He has no living relatives or friends,” Jill told him.
“Okay then,” Jeff replied, squeezing her arm. He kissed her forehead.
“He never found out that you and I have been sweethearts for years.”

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