Thu Mar 18, 2021 11:07 am
Well I was a little unsure as to exactly how they wanted us to re-write the story especially as it seemed to me that the moral could not remain the same as the original and appeal to modern audiences - maybe that was the point?
Anyway I did have a bit of fun.
Gina and her sister, Elle, loved nothing more than partying and online shopping. Elle had a steady boyfriend but Gina never found anyone good enough, going through boyfriends like dresses, discarding them after a few wearings.
Their mother feared Gina would never settle down, until her brother (in the film business) introduced Gina to a business associate, renowned for his wealth and slick lifestyle. Rostov, as he was known, was charming and exceedingly polite, but he was getting on in years and had been unlucky enough to have had two wives die. He showed much interest in Gina but she thought he was far too old and grey for anyone of her age – goodness he was old enough to be her father!
Despite this the sisters accepted an invitation to stay in one of his London mansions for a few days celebrating his birthday. Oh but you should have seen the rooms, all glass and style and chocolates on the pillow every night. Rostov attended to her every need and she began, as she sipped her champagne in the jacuzzi, to see him in a different light. He was kind and considerate and owned an island in the Caribbean. He knew people who might help her with her acting ambitions. What was there not to like?
It was not long before Gina was wed at one of the most popular and talked about weddings of the season. They were in “Hello” magazine and shortly after Rostov told her to invite all her friends to stay and party for a few days. The guests would be free to roam as they wished, ride and swim and play in the mini fairground, but Rostov warned Gina that she must not unlock the door to the cellar at the end of the East Wing; the key to that door was not to be touched and on no account was she to enter, to do so would unleash his anger.
Gina’s friends came over and no sooner had she settled them in the infinity pool with Pina Coladas than she ran to get the key to the cellar door. She found a light by the door and crept in to see several chest freezers.
What was this interest in frozen foods?
Tentatively she opened the first one… then the second…then the third. The contents of all the freezers was the same… dead bodies…female bodies.
Feeling sick to her stomach she ran out of the cellar and rushed to lock the door. She placed the key on its hook just as a hand tapped her on the shoulder…Rostov. “I’m back early.”
He threw her in the cellar and promising he would be back shortly to “dispose” of her, he left to tell the guests she was ill. Quickly, she texted her sister and best friend of her dilemma just as her battery ran out. She sat sobbing until sometime later when Rostov returned, his face distorted with anger, a knife in his hand.
She began pleading with him, making as much noise as she could muster. Then through the blur of tears she saw her friend descending the cellar steps. Then, just as Rostov heard the footsteps behind him, he was shot dead. Her best friend had brought a rifle from the fair rifle range just in case, one her hobbies being clay pigeon shooting. Lucky or what?
In the months after, Gina used her wealth to help her family and was much more circumspect in her choice of men. She married in due course after establishing her career and learning the value of mutual trust and respect.
