Caught on the Sill

A skitter... across the cold limestone! Hah—a dry scrape cutting through the dusk! I threw myself forward against the rough wall, arms twitching wide. There, shivering beneath the iron latch in the draft—a curled, brittle bay leaf! It rustled, trying to scuttle, trying to flee! Jagged breaths rattling in my chest, I hovered... then whack! My red hands snapped down, slamming the dry stem flat against the cold stone. A tiny crunch echoed in the quiet. Trapped! Silenced beneath my grip, never to stir again.