Gemotions

The box smelled of old paper and stale cigarettes. Michael felt a prickle of unease as he held the letter. It was his grandfather’s resignation, never sent, from the factory where he’d worked his entire life.

He knew his grandfather had been laid off, a casualty of the economic downturn. The letter, though, was full of rage. It described the inhumane conditions, the exploitative practices, the quiet desperation of the workforce.

Michael felt his face flush. He was vaguely aware of the pulse drumming in his ears. He gripped the paper, his knuckles white. Everything he thought he knew about his grandfather, about his family history, felt shattered.