The Elephant of Marrakech: Fred retraces his steps to Marrakech to ‘find the elephant’ and make the decision he should have done seven years earlier.
Disembarking from the aircraft in Morocco, Fred has answered the call of his conscience and returned to a holiday destination (and a decision) that had haunted him for seven years. During the first two week holiday he had encountered a challenge - a challenge of choosing between the charms of two fellow tour group members: the Latina firecracker, Mia, or the beach blond, Jessica. On his return, Fred relives the sights, sounds and interactions of that first trip - walking the ruins of Volubis, exploring the coastal city of Essaouira, singing in the Valley of a 1,000 Kasbahs and sleeping among the Dunes of Merzouga. He attempts again to weigh the competing qualities of each of the lady companions, knowing that the choice he made at the end of the first trip had to be revisited. But on the second trip, before any decision could be made, he would need to find the elephant, for it was only by its direction could any decision be made and any wrong, righted.
(A Short Story, 10,400 words approx.)