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        I open the card. “Happy early birthday Cahira, but then again you were actually born months before your birthday. So I thought this was fitting. Grab Grace and the pictures sent with her gift. Go back to where it all begin. This scavenger hunt isn’t just for you. It’s also for me to. It is a chance for you to get to know my story of how I found you. Also send Chance home with no explanation. See you soon little sister.” I look at Chance “sorry I can’t tell you what this is about. All I can say is that this is for me to get Percy back.” I tell Chance and he smiles. “Okay, just be careful. Also once you get Percy back we are going to talk about what Enrique is doing in your bed. I mean I am your boyfriend.” Chance laughs. “I promise we’ll talk about it after.” I hug Chance and sent him out on his way. Now time to get dressed and get Grace out of the house. I walk back into my room to see Enrique is awake. “I need you to wake up Grace and get her to come to my room without my parents noticing.” Enrique nods yes. He gets up out of my bed. “One thing first.” I look at him and he kisses me on the check. He goes out my window. I start to get dress and think of the first box. The pictures and the box. It all began at that stupid carnival when I was a kid. Grace comes into my room. “Are you ready??” I nod yes.

                We head out of the window, Enrique agreed to keep my parent entertained until we get back. Grace points at her car. “Let’s go on my motorcycle.” I whisper. “No, it makes too much noise plus mom and dad will look for your motorcycle before they look for my car.” She makes a good point. So I follow her to the car and get in the passenger seat. I hand her the picture. “This is where we need to start. But I don’t even remember where this is.” I tell Grace. “It’s okay, I remember exactly where this is. They have this carnival every year. I have gone a few times since we were kids.” I had no idea that she has been back there since we were kids. “Well let’s go.” I tell her.  Grace starts to drive us away from home. I sit and wonder what it was about this place that our brother wants us to get to. Who even knows what this whack job is all about? We pull up to the empty field where they normally hold the carnival. We get out of the car and walk around the empty field. “What are we looking for?” Grace asks me. I shrug as we look around. I hold the picture of us up hoping it would help me. There is a tree in the background of our picture. I look around at the trees in the field. “Look!” I tell Grace as I point at the tree. “It’s an old tree” she says to me. “Yes, old enough not to change much since this picture was taken. I think this tree is where we start.” I walk over to the tree and circle around it. “Look up” Grace says. There is a balloon stuck in the tree. It is the kind of balloon you get at a carnival. I look at Grace as I put my hands out to boost her up into the tree. Grace climbs up and grabs the balloon. “Doesn’t this remind you of that one creepy clown movie?” I tell Grace as she holds the balloon. “Great that’s the thought I need in my head, a crazy clown that does weird stuff. You know now that we are talking about it I never really got that movie.” Grace says with a puzzled look on her face. “Yea you know what me either.” We both just stand there for a second. “Well at least this balloon is green.”  Grace says as she looks at the balloon. “Why would you stick a green balloon in a green tree? I mean it isn’t hard enough to see with all those leaves.” Grace looks at the balloon. “There are papers inside.” I pull my knife out of my pocket and pop the balloon. “Bye bye balloon.” Grace says as I pick up the paper off the floor. I look at Grace as I open the paper to start reading it. “Hello there my darling sisters. This journey to get Percy back alive is about so much more than just Percy. It is about me. So when you get closer to finding Percy you will learn about me. This is the place I first suspected I was adopted. This was the first place and first time I ever killed anyone. Cahira I am sure you have no memory of this, but you were there. You see I was always very smart and was always the top of my class. This made me a target for other children. As smart as I was I also had bad anxiety. It was super hard for me to function like other kids. I was teased because of my anxiety and my speech impediment that went with it. This is where I figured out my anxiety wasn’t anxiety. I was being teased this night at the carnival, that’s when Cahira walked up to me. You were the most confident child I had ever seen. You told me people can’t talk when they are dead. The way you smiled at me changed my life forever. I knew right then that somehow you were a part of me. I killed the boy teasing me that night and my anxiety went away. You caught me dragging away his lifeless body. You asked me how I did it. I told you with my shoe lace, you told me I should make it look like he hung himself. You smile and walked away. That was the day I became the person I am today. I started killing after that. So, this is where my story began. The next place you will find another piece of the story is where it all went a blaze. Happy hunting my dear sisters.” I look at Grace. “To the old house?” Grace says. “Looks like it.” I say as I head to the car.

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 It has been a few days since my mother announced that she is going to execute our possible big brother. My parents are letting Enrique stick around. He has been sleeping in my room, not sure if they know that. We sent off the note to get Percy back and now it feels like a waiting game. I lay there in Enrique’s arms. He likes to scoop me up in the night and hold me, I know I probably shouldn’t let him, but it is nice to be held. “Are you scared?” He asks me. “Yeah, I am scared I might never get to see Percy again or Hope.” Enrique pulls me in tighter. “We will fight to find them and kill if we have to.” He kisses me on the head. I don’t think he knows that I won’t kill. I can’t kill anyone. I like to make my mother think that I would kill her if she pushed me, but I can’t. It is not in me to take someone’s life. I don’t think I could live with it. I am not sure why he is so okay with the thought of killing someone, maybe he has no idea what it will really takes. “We should get some sleep” I tell him not sure what else to say. “Okay.” He says, and he loosens his grip on me for me to have some room to sleep. There is so much going through my mind. First thing is what if we do get Percy and Hope back, what will my parents do with Enrique? Will they kill him? I know they won’t let him just walk out the house knowing their secret. Will I let them kill him is the real question I guess. That is a problem for tomorrow I suppose.
                “Cahira wake up.” Grace says. “What time is it?” I ask her. “It’s 6AM he sent something.” Grace says. I jump out of bed and look back to see Enrique is still fast asleep. I put my hands up for Grace to be quiet so we don’t wake him. We slowly head out of my room trying not to make a sound. After we get out of my door we run down the stairs. As I head down the stairs that’s when I see a giant pumpkin. “A pumpkin?”  I say very confused. “Yeah we are just as confused as you.” Grace says as we meet with our parents. I walk around the pumpkin to see that the top has been cut open. “Did a note come with it?” I ask my parents. “We think that the note might be inside.” I pull the tops off and there is a string with a note at the end. I pull the note off and open it. “Cheater cheater pumpkin eater. You were not supposed to have outside help with your secret. The fact that you let Enrique in on a family matter makes me not trust you anymore. So, to ensure this stays in the family I am going to send you on a scavenger hunt and since you excluded your parents when you got help from Enrique. I have decided to do the same. It is sibling time and if you decide not to listen, we will turn from four siblings to 3. I hope you’re ready to hunt for tomorrow the game begins. Love your big brother.”  I look at Grace. “What if this was always the plan?” Grace says. I look at her. “I don’t follow. His plan is to make us go on a scavenger hunt?” I ask her. “No, to get rid of Percy so he could be our only brother.”  I look at Grace. “We can’t think like that. He might not want to get rid of Percy he might want to be our big brother. Someone for us to all look up to. I mean look at what he has done so far all on his own, It’s a little impressive.” I don’t mean a word of it, but he can hear us and anyone who has done all of this clearly wants attention. So, let’s give it to him. Grace catches on to what I am doing. “You’re probably right. That is why I don’t want mom to kill him. We could learn a lot from him.” Grace says we look back at our parents who look completely confused. “We will play by his rules. I just want my baby boy home.” My mother says as she walks away.
                I go back up to my room to get a few more hours of sleep. Enrique is awake sitting at the edge of my bed. “So a scavenger hunt huh!” He smiles at me. “It is not nice to easy drop” I tell him as I push him to the side and crawl back into bed. He crawls up next to me and wraps his arms around me. “I’ll do anything you ask of me.” He whispers in my ears.  I can’t help but feel safe when I am with him. I just want to close my eyes for a little bit. “Cahira open your eyes.” I hear gently. I open my eyes and see Chance. “What are you doing here?” I ask him as I start to get up. “Don’t wake up Enrique.” Chance says I nod yes. I slowly get up and Chance leads me into the bathroom. “So why is Enrique even here?” He asks me. “It’s a super long story.” I peek out my bathroom door to make sure I didn’t wake up Enrique. He is still laying there asleep. “There are a lot of long stories you need to catch me up on but that’s not why I am here. I got this in the mail today for you.” It’s a birthday card. “You know it’s not my birthday” I tell chance. “It’s a gift for the scavenger hunt.” He tells me. “What?” I grab the card out of Chances hand. “He said it’s time for the game to begin. My note said he was sending someone you trusted first, it took me a minute to figure out he meant me.  Plus it said he wanted to be sure your parents weren’t prepared to follow you.” I just look at Chance. I look down at the birthday card. “Okay” I say as I begin to open it. “Cahira what the hell is going on?” He asks me. “I really can’t say if I want to get Percy back. Did you read the birthday card?” I ask him. “No my note was pretty clear I had no choice not to. There was a threat to out me in my note. So how about you read it and tell me what it says.” Chance looks at the card in my hand. “Yeah I’ll read it.” I open the card but I am 100% sure I am not ready for what’s inside.

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“Why wouldn’t he have just showed up at our front door?” My mother asks. “He was scared he thought you would kill him. He just kept asking for me to bring him to dad.” I look at my mother. “We don’t know for sure if he is who he says he is.” My mother says as she looks over at my dad. “Or who he thinks he is. He might just think he is dad’s son. He might not really be him.” Grace says. My dad cannot take his eyes off the TV which is paused on his face. “He is mine.” My dad says without a doubt. “So now that we know who he is we just have to send a note back and we get Percy right?” Grace asks. “Why would he do all this now??” I ask wonder why he waited so many years after my coma. “Do we really think he is just going to give us Percy just like that? He planned this for a long time. I think there is more to this.” Grace says. “I think that you need to figure out his name” Enrique says. We all look at him; it is like we all just forgot he was here. “Why do we let him live again???”  My mother says to my dad. “Because he got us this footage and he is the one with the idea to find out his name. Honestly why do we let you live?” I say to her as I stand in front of Enrique. My mother looks at me. “How much do you know about us?” My dad asks Enrique. “Nothing besides the kidnapping” I say. “I know everything. I have since I was a kid” Enrique says. I hit him on the shoulder. “Why haven’t you ever told anyone or turned us in?” My dad asks him. “Why would I?” Enrique askes back. “You’re not scared of what we do?” My dad asks. “No, I think it’s interesting and the fact that you do it as a family so no one feels left out.” My dad seems to be eating up what Enrique is spitting out. “You’re willing to do anything to help us find Percy????” Enrique moves me to the side and shakes my dad’s hand. “Anything.”
                My mother stands over me as I write my note to our long-lost brother. I still can’t help but wonder why now. What made him take Percy now? He knew where we were all these years why not just show up. I didn’t remember him, so he wouldn’t have had to worry about me telling about him causing my coma. Something about all of this just isn’t sitting right with me.  “I am still not convinced that he is yours.” Grace says to my dad. “She is right sweetheart the likely hood of us ending up in the same state as him let alone the same city is highly unlikely.” My mother says to my dad. “Wait what do you mean?” I ask my mother. “Well you know me and your dad are not from here. That’s why grandma has to take a plane to visit us.” My mother is so condescending. “Actually, it wouldn’t be that unlikely.” My dad says as he finally breaks eye contact with the TV. “I mean dad really the statistics.” Grace says to my dad. “I moved us here because I found out he was adopted here. But that was all I could find out since it was a closed adoption” my dad says. My mother looks like she is going to kill him. “You moved us here for him?? You never once said anything about him.”  I can tell my mother is angry. “I wasn’t sure if I would ever even find him. So, I thought it was best not to it bring up.” My dad says. “First you do this without telling me and then you send Hope away. All for what??? For your blood children! He took Percy and is holding him and Hope hostage. Since you have been making all the decision without me it’s time for me to make one. When we find him he gets executed!”  My mother is serious we can all tell. She is going to kill him weather my dad likes it or not. “He hasn’t done anything to hurt Percy and he is our older brother. I don’t think we should kill him.” Grace says. “He has done things to hurt Hope. So I am with mother on this one.” I can’t believe I am agreeing with my mother but I am. “Hope is your blood only. I don’t think it’s fair to deny all of us our right to know him.” Grace says to me. “Excuse you Hope is my mom. He is some messed up guy who thinks he is our brother, like you said he might not be. Plus he took Percy we don’t know he has done nothing to hurt him.” I say back to her. “I am just saying if he is our brother I would like a chance to get to know him.” Grace says. “I say we kill him.” I say back. “This is not up for a vote he is getting executed.” My mother says. “Your right it’s not up for a vote because no one is killing my son. If we find out he is not my son, then fair game.” My dad says to all of us. I look at my mother knowing this isn’t going to end well. My parents almost never disagree on anything. “Even if he is your son he needs to pay for what he did. So you can say whatever you like but he is going to be executed by my hand. So you need to make a choice on who is more important to you. Your whole family or a long-lost son of yours!” My mother says as she leaves the room.

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We need to get all of the boxes together. He has clearly been in our lives for a long time. We need to figure out how.” I tell my family. I push Grace away from my mother and walk her over towards the sofa. “Where is your box?” I ask her. “It’s in my room.” I look at her. “It is going to take you a while to walk up there, go get it” I tell her. I know it is mean to make her get it with her injuries. I however need some time with my parents alone. She slowly heads up the stairs. My mother and father bring their boxes into the living room. “Go easy on her. You don’t have to be so hostile with her.” I tell my mother. “If she would have done something you might still be you.” I can’t believe her. “I am me. Nothing she could have done that day would have changed anything. The moment you realize it that is the moment you will finally get to see your daughter for who she is.” My mother just looks at me. “The only way I think you can even begin to understand this is for me to put it this way. You were like a great artist who could create amazing things and he broke your hands. You can still write but never really create again.”  Of course, that is how she looks at it. Why would she ever look at it any other way?  “Your right I lost my ability to destroy lives without a second thought. I might not be what you wanted me to be but at least I have a soul.” I tell her as I walk over to look at all the stuff from the boxes.  I start to line everything up in order of which it came. Just looking at all the pictures, letters and things he has sent us in order of which it came makes no sense.

                After hours of pouring over every detail we are all exhausted. “We need sleep” my mother says as she looks over at Grace who is already asleep on the floor. “I agree” My dad says. “I could use some sleep.” I tell my parents. I shake Grace awake. “Go to your room” I tell her. She slowly gets up and we all head to our rooms. I just crash into my bed and pass out. “Cahira” I hear as I roll over. Enrique has something in his hand. “How did you get in?” I ask him. “You didn’t lock the window.” He points back at the window. “You need to wake up I got the footage. It wasn’t easy, and I broke a few laws, actually more than a few but I got it.” He sounds so excited. I start to get up. “Footage of what??” I look at Enrique. “I got his face.” I jump out of bed. “Grace’s laptop is in the living room.” I wave for him to follow me as I run out the door down the stairs to get it. I turn it on and connect it to the TV. Enrique gives me the microchip that the video is on.  I start to watch it and at first it is just me standing there when a guy approaches me. I just look at him with no emotions. He turns and looks up and I can see his face. It hits me, I remember him. I know who he is and why he took Percy.

                I wake up my parents and Grace. “What is he doing here?” my mother asks. “He got us this footage.” I tell them as I play it for them. “That’s my imaginary friend” Grace says. My mother puts her hand over her mouth. “It’s the boy with the lion.” I turn and look at my mother. “My lion?” I ask. “Yes, oh my….. he was in your room when you were in a coma. I asked him what he was doing there, and he said he heard that you got hit by a car and brought you a lion, he said he was a candy stripper and was moved by your will to survive. There was just something about him, he was so charming.” Well now I know how I got my lion. “The hospital is where I met him to” Grace says. I look at my dad. “Well have you ever met him before?” My dad just stands there looking at the TV. “No I have not but he looks so familiar.” I can tell my dad can’t put his finger on why he looks familiar. “Really dad? What about him looks familiar to you?” My dad looks back at me with a puzzled look on his face. “It’s his eyes. They look like someone I knew a long time ago.” I go and stand right next to my dad. “Whose eyes does he have?” I ask my dad. “His eyes look like my high school sweetheart. If he has her eyes that means……..Wait is he?” My dad ask me. “Yes he is. Dad you’re looking at your son.” My dad just turns and looks at me. “That is what seeing his face reminded me of. He kept saying he was my brother. He just wanted to be with his family that would understand why.  He said he couldn’t control it like we could and that he had killed a few people. He saw me at a fair and just knew I was like him. He said he followed me home. He said he just wanted to be with his family.” I look at my dad. “So this is my son.”

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                My mother brings me the laptop. I plug in the thumb drive and open the file on it. It is a video of Percy. “Hi Cahira, I miss you. So, he wants me to tell you that you can’t remember him but for my sake you have to. Here is a little insight to where you met.” Percy cuts off. It is playing a video of me walking down the street as a kid. A guy with a hoodie is grabbing me. He seems to be talking to me. It looks like he is trying to get a good hold on me. I seem to be laughing; I keep looking back at the street where the cars are passing by. I seem to be counting how long until the next car. The hooded man keeps trying to talk to me. He is shaking me and I seem to keep laughing at him. He is trying to lift me off the ground and I am fighting him. I look back again at the cars. I give him the middle finger and push myself back from him and get hit by a car. This must have been the accident that put me into the coma. I look back at my parents. “Did you know?” I ask them. “No we didn’t know how you got hit by the car.” My mother says as she stares at the screen. “Here is your real test.” Percy is back on the screen. “You have to remember your first conversation that you had with him and you will get me back. It is all on you Cahira. I love…” the video cuts off.  “Do you remember anything about that day?” My dad asks me. “No, I wish I did.” Grace holds my hand. I look at Grace and realize she wasn’t with me. Why was I walking by myself??? I never use to walk home alone. “Where were you at?” I ask Grace. “I was with you that day, but I walked into the store to get candy. When I saw the guy with the hoodie you gave me a hide look. The same look you gave me when mom got mad at us and was going to get us. So I hid but I could hear some of what he told you. Just a little bit nothing really.”  Grace puts her head down. “Why didn’t you ever tell us what happened?” My dad asks Grace. “I was scared, and I felt horrible. The only person I ever told was my not so imaginary friend.”

                Both of my parents are furious with Grace. I just want to know what little she heard. “Grace don’t worry about them just tell me what you heard.”  Grace looks at our parents and then looks back at me. “He just kept saying that you needed to take him home. That he needed to meet the rest of us. You laughed and said over your dead body. You just kept laughing at him. You always called him the tramp which I didn’t understand. I never saw his face I just heard his voice when he was yelling at you. I just knew that if I told mom and dad what happened they would get mad at me for not trying to protect you. For letting you jump in front of the car to protect me.” Grace won’t even look up at me. “Grace you are the most important person to me. I would have done anything to protect you.”  I can’t remember anything about that day or any days before it. This is like a puzzle I have to figure out. I look at the stairs to see Enrique sitting at the top. I am shocked that my parents haven’t seen him yet. He waves to me, for me to go up there. I nod yes so, he will go back to my room. I can’t believe he is still here. “I am going to use the bathroom real fast.” I get up off the sofa to walk up the stair. “Cahira….” My dad says as I start to walk up the stairs.  I stop to look back at him. “We will figure out who this man is and we will get revenge for what he did to you.” My dad says. I look back at him and just smile as I continue to walk up the stairs to my room. I walk into my room to see Enrique packing her back pack. “I can get you the rest of the footage.” I don’t understand. “Wait what? What footage?” I ask him. “The rest of it, that video that you’re watching is only one side. I know that road and where all the store cameras are. I can get you the rest.” I never thought about the fact that we could find a different angle. “This was years ago. How do you know the stores will still have it?” I ask him. “I don’t but I can try. I want you to get your brother back. I’ll do whatever I can to help you” Enrique says. He walks up and kisses me before heading out the window. “Thank you….” I say under my breath as he is already gone. He moves fast. I need to get back to my family.  I start to head back down the stairs and I hear my mother. “You should have told us what happened. You care so little about your sister!” Grace starts screaming at my mother. “She isn’t even your daughter I am! She jumped in front of that car to protect me! I was just a little kid I was scared but not of him of you! Of what you would do to me for not protecting her. I thought you would throw me out with the trash. You made me feel like that my whole life!” I can hear Grace’s anger. I don’t want her to piss off my mother. I start to run to Grace’s side. My mother slaps her across the face before I can get there. “You do not raise your voice to me child. You are my daughter my blood. So, I can take your life. Don’t think for a spilt second that I won’t.” I run in-between them. “Enough mother” I shot as I push Grace back. My dad rushes to my side. “Let’s not lose sight of Percy we are so close to getting him back.” My dad wraps his arms around my mother and moves her back.

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  I run into the game room where both of my parents are. I see the girl strung up with a gag in her mouth and I stop instantly. I am not sure what to say so I stand there. It isn’t Enrique, but I can’t walk away. She is still a person even if I don’t know her. “You need to go.” My dad says as he grabs my arm. “Dad please don’t kill her she is a person.”  My dad pushes me up the stairs and out the game room door. They lock the door behind me. That poor girl will never see her family or friends again. What if this is why someone took Percy because of their urges. I walk up my stairs and go to my room. I open my door to see Enrique lying in my bed reading a book. I rush in and close the door behind me. “What are you doing here?” I ask him. “Well your parents are thinking about killing me and the best place to hide is in plain sight. So, I hid my motorcycle down the street and snuck back in.” He says with a smile on his face. “You have to get out of here. If they do find you here, they will kill you without a second thought.” Enrique shifts his head back and forth. “You know what I think the safest place to be is right here. I’m just going to stay the night and tomorrow you can throw me out to fend for myself.”  I look at Enrique. “I am really not in the mood to argue with you about this. You can stay for the night.” I push him off my bed and throw a pillow on the floor with one of my blankets. “So, I guess this means I am sleeping on the floor.” Enrique says. “Of course, it does. I know you didn’t think you were going to sleep next to me.” I say as I crawl into my bed. I lie down and wonder where my box is?? I just want to tell my secret whatever it may be. So, I can get my mom and Percy back.  
                I open my eyes and I am lying on Enrique chest. I start to pull back, how did he end up in my bed. “It’s okay Cahira I am right here.” He whispers to me as he holds me tighter. I feel slightly trapped but safe. It is still the middle of the night. I just let him hold me and I close my eyes. I have never had anyone hold me let alone a boy. I hear the door bell and jump up. “Whoooa, is everything okay?” Enrique says. “Yeah I just heard the door and how did you end up in my bed?” I ask him as I hit him. “You were crying in your sleep last night. So, I comforted you. You really didn’t seem to mind last night.” Enrique sounds almost cocky. “Get out! Go home or wherever it is you like to dwell.” I start to get out of bed. “CAHIRA GET DOWN HERE NOW!” I hear my dad yell. “You really need to go out the window okay?” I tell him as I head out of my room. I made sure to close my door behind me. I run down the stairs to see a gift. I know this is my box. I take a deep breath. My mother and Grace are both standing back. My dad is standing over the gift wrapped in what looks like car wrapping paper. I don’t understand why mine would be wrapped in car wrapping paper. I don’t have any secrets with cars. “The card is on the outside this time.” My dad says as he point at the envelope with my name on it. I open the envelope. I don’t want to read whatever this card says but I know I have to. I open the card and start to read. “Last but most defiantly not least you are where it all started so I took most care in making your gift. Your secret might not even be one you can remember. Better find a way to jog that broken memory of yours. See we have met once before. I told you and you alone exactly who I am. No pressure for you have longer than a week since so much more is at stake. Get it right the first time and you will get them both, get it wrong and you only get one. I know your family will only really want Percy back but I am sure you will fight for Hope. When you think you got it figured out just order a dozen red roses and put your guess on the card. P.O. Box is inside your gift. So, get excited on opening it. I hope to see you soon little warrior.” So, it sounds like I have met him before. I look at the gift and start to pull off the bow. I slowly unwrap it. “Cahira.” Grace says. I stop and look back at her. “Let me.” She says as she walks next to me and opens the box. I don’t even want to look in but I know I have to. There is a car and a doll in a medical gown. There is also a mini stuffed lion that looks just like mine. “Look at the bottom.” Grace says. “It’s another thumb drive.” I grab it out. “Get the lab top.” I tell Grace. “It is in my room. I’ll go get it.” Grace is still injured and moving slow. “I’ll go gets it. It will be much faster.” My mother says. “I mean it is the least you could do.” I tell her since she is the one who injured Grace. “Don’t start Cahira.” My mother says as she heads up stairs. I wish she felt even the slightest remorse for what she did to Grace.  I look back down at my hand and wonder what is on this thumb drive.

Series Wednesday: Family Game night page 30

I run behind my dad who is flying down the stairs to get to my mother and Grace. I can hear Grace screaming in pain. As I go down the stairs I see Grace strapped to the table with cuts on her stomach. “Tell your father what you told him!” My mother screams at Grace. “Rose enough!” my dad says. “Not quite yet” my mother says as she cuts into Grace some more. I push past my dad and grab a scalpel; I shove my mother against the wall. “Touch Grace again and I swear I will do twice as bad to you.” I tell her putting the scalpel to her stomach. “I dare you to Cahira!” My mother says with a laugh. So I stab her in her stomach nothing that would injure her, just a flesh wound. My mother starts laughing. “You think you are Hope’s daughter? Because all I see is me in your eyes.” My mother says as she leans into me. “If you see yourself in my eyes then you of all people should know to back off. You know what you would do if someone didn’t listen. Maybe I’ll grow up to be just like you mother!” My mother smiles. “All a parent ever wants is a child to follow in their footsteps.” I push my mother back into the wall as I step back. “No, a good parent wants their children to be better than them. They do not wish their daemons on their children.”  I can’t help but scream at her. “See you call them daemons I call them strengths.” I walk away from her to help Grace off the table. 
                “Leave her!” My mother tells me as I loosen the straps. “Rose enough, Grace is our daughter. You can’t treat her like this.” My dad says as he grabs my mother away from me. “Fine, I’ll be upstairs but I would ask her what she told the boy before you let her go so quickly.” My mother says as she heads up the stairs.  My dad turns back to me “Stop!” He tells me. “No, dad please just let me help her.” I feel tear start to form in my eyes. “Daddy I promise I will tell you everything but please don’t make me go through this.” Grace says in pain. You can just hear the pain in her voice. I look at my dad. “Fine, Cahira clean her up and take her to her room. I’ll be up in a bit.” I start to help Grace out of the game room and up the stairs. We head to the middle bathroom. I put her in the bath tub to clean her cuts. My mother really did a number on her. I hear my dad leave the house. I am not sure where he is going but he must be angry if he left. I start to clean Grace’s cuts, as I clean them I notice one of them is a lot deeper than the others and won’t stop bleeding.  “Grace this one won’t stop bleeding.” I tell her as Grace looks down. “Shit! I am going to need stiches.” Grace says as she points toward the hallway. “Why are you pointing over there?? Is there a doctor hiding in your room I don’t know about?” I ask Grace as she continues to point. “No in my room there is a fishing box. It has fishing line in it. Go get it.” I look at Grace. “When in your life have you ever gone fishing?” I can’t help but ask her. “Never, now can you please go get it.” I get up to find my mother in the hallway. She has the fishing box in her hand. “Move aside I got this.” My mother says as she pushes me aside and walks up to Grace. “Please don’t!” Grace screams. “Grace, calm down I would never hurt you in your own bathroom. I’m not a monster” she says as she starts stitching Grace’s cut closed. “You just don’t want me to get blood on the carpet” Grace says. “Well your dad and I paid a lot of money for the carpets. So yes, I wouldn’t want you to get blood on them. Grace believe it or not you are very special to me.”  My mother says as she cleans Grace’s wounds. “Cahira was always your favorite she was the daughter you wanted.” I feel awkward when Grace and my mother talk about me like I am not here. “Cahira was the daughter I always wanted before the coma, but you were always my daughter. You are special because no matter what you do you will always have my DNA coursing through your veins.”  My mother says as she gets up to leave the room. “Is that all I am something else you own?” Grace asks. “What do you want a touchy feeling mom?? Sweetie you’re in the wrong family for that. I said what I said take it or leave it.” My mother says as she walks out of the bathroom.  I hear the back door open and the game room door. I look at Grace I know what this means. My dad has lost his temper and is going to regain his cool by killing someone. I just stand there with my eyes closed. “Cahira, what if it is Enrique.” Grace says knowing the sound all too well. I didn’t even think about that. “Do you really think dad could have found Enrique that fast?” I ask Grace knowing I sent Enrique away. “Yeah I do. It’s dad he could find him that fast. Please don’t let dad hurt him.” Grace pleads. I get up to run down stairs to the game room. I am not sure how I can stop my dad but I will try.