16460122e7eb23a1cb99a0ca8aab6cd0 by Unknown

Author:Unknown
Format: epub
Published: 2019-03-14T00:00:00+00:00

-10-

2009

I was eleven when it happened. My mother had picked us up from school a few hours ago: me, my little brother and sister. As she was busy preparing dinner, we were bumming around on the sofa, bickering about which channel to watch. We’d been so involved in our fight that I didn’t even hear the front door open. It was only when I heard my mom’s surprised voice that I turned around to look.

My father stepped into the living room. His folded coat was dangling from his arm and he was carrying his briefcase in his left hand. He seemed perfectly normal, except for the look in his eyes. It was hollow – terrified, even. Ashen rings were visible around his eyes. His skin had a deathly pallor. He plonked down in the first available seat while shaking his head.

Joey and Hannah – those were not their names at the time, but to avoid confusion I’ll stick to the fake names they’d be given later on – didn’t notice at first that something was wrong. They were too young for that at the time. All they noticed was that their dad was home, so they tumbled off the couch in order to give him a hug.

“Hey, little rascals.” My father’s voice was barely above a whisper. He dropped his case on the floor and hugged the three of us.

“Daddy, are you all right?” Joey let go of my dad and looked up at him in confusion.

“I’m afraid I’m not, kiddo.”

Only now did I realize that my dad wasn’t the only one to have come in. Two men in uniform had followed him in, both of them showing us a forced smile. Their eyes betrayed the horror that was about to descend upon us.

“Jacob, who are these men?” My mother’s voice sounded shrill.

In the background, a laugh track poured out of the television speakers. My father wordlessly extended his arm, so Hannah could dump the remote control in his outstretched hand. He switched off the TV. “We need to have a talk. All of us.”

My mother’s gaze morphed from surprised into accusatory. She narrowed her eyes and her mouth pressed down in a grim line. “What have you done?”

“Where’s Steph?” was my dad’s only reply.

“He’s been upstairs for hours,” my sister told him, almost beaming with pride for betraying her older brother. Yes, I do have another brother, but there’s a good reason why I haven’t brought him up so far. “He’s just been lying around on his bed texting with Kim. One weekend without her and he’s practically heart-broken. I wouldn’t be surprised if they moved in together soon.”

Normally speaking, that would have gotten a chuckle out of my dad. But now he just asked for someone to call Steph down, addressing no one in particular.

“Steph, downstairs. Now!” my mom hollered, before anyone else had the chance to open their mouths.

It took a while before we heard footsteps. A door flew open. Steph sauntered down the stairs and stopped on the bottom step, a question in his eyes.

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