Unlucky Winner

Each morning, Jim walked to the corner mart for a coffee and lottery ticket. He always passed Pete and gave the same reply to the jangling of coins, “Half when I win.” Pete invariably responded with a tip of his soiled, red hat. When it actually happened, Jim searched everywhere for Pete. After months, his wife finally convinced him to spend the other half, and home renovations began. The following spring, working in the garden, Jim unearthed a familiar red. While lost in astonishment and horror, the faint smell of her perfume permeated among the roses before...darkness.