Chapter 3

 

By the time I woke, Dad had already left. I made myself a breakfast of rice cakes and strips of dried beef. It wasn’t too bad. The cakes were a little stale, but c’est la vie.

Today, we were gonna leave port. I’d already packed the week before. Guess that shows how eager I was to get away. All that I had to add to my pack was the book Suzie gave me. Right now, I wanted to look at it so badly. The bible points to hell for liars, but I couldn’t remember if it mentioned punishment for breaking a promise. Well, all I knew was harm couldn’t come to you here if you broke a promise.

I walked over to the night stand. Breaking a promise didn’t kill me, but knowing that she had planned for me to read it on the boat did. I nibbled at a bit of rice cake lodged under my nail. I picked up the book. “Hidden Sin” was printed in bold, red letter across the cover.

 

She must’ve thought I’d really like this book to stop reading it for me

 

Promising didn’t hurt. Waiting never hurt either.

 

Forget it. It can wait.

 

I began putting on my trousers and the shirt I wore yesterday. The cold morning breeze slipped into all my pours. Chilly, refreshing air filled my nostrils, cooling all the way down my throat. It was good weather for Goosebumps to grow. Only 5 o’clock could bring that feeling.

There was plenty of time to get down to the docks, but there wasn’t anything to do in the house anyway.

I left the apartment. No one was on the streets but me. Only a few blocks separated the docks from my house. When knowing this, you might think it strange that I’d take the longest route there. But if you were there, you’d follow me every step down the alleys.

When the world’s still and no one’s around, there’s something that makes you wanna keep it that way. So many things have been seen by others and so many islands already discovered. When you find a place that only your eyes have seen, you cling to it before anyone else can.

Dad used to say that women were like that too; when you found the “one”, you never let go. Mom was still alive then. I don’t think Dad realized that sometimes you just couldn’t hold on.  

I stopped. I thought I heard a clicking like the noise a shoe makes on cobblestone sidewalks. 5 minutes passed, but no more sounds came. I shrugged it off. Adults can’t walk silent that long anyway and the street kids were younger than me. 

Sometimes I thought it wasn’t mom’s death that sent Dad over the edge, but how a time came where he couldn’t hold her. Anyone would—

A cold, leathery hand snapped over my mouth. My head jerked backwards, trying to get a glimpse of my attacker. Feet shuffled behind me.

I gasped for breath. Lightness came over me. Purple stars covered the sky.  

“Shhh…stay calm,” a voice said.

If it hadn’t been for that voice, I wouldn’t have resisted. This was a man behind me. Not a god, not something out of my control, but a man. Hate swelled within me. My gums itched, my nostrils flared. Hunger burned in my belly. The revulsion for my father, the world, and all of the damn rich families squeezed together inside of me.

I spread my mouth wide and crunched down on the attacker’s finger. Warm blood filled my mouth. My teeth scraped at bone.

The purple lights dissipated. Everything seemed clearer. All of the lines were more defined. I sucked cold air into my lungs. It never felt as pure. 

The attacker pulled back. I slipped from his grasp and squared myself for a fight.

He was crouched against the alley wall, cradling his hand. His long strands of hair trembled as he shuddered in pain.

“Come on!” I yelled. “Get up you b*****d!”

The man slowly stood. His face was still in the shadows.

“Show me the pretty piece of meat I’m gonna rip apart. It’s so much easier to fight when you can’t see right? And now you’re just a coward in the dark”

He looked uncertain of what to do. Any pain he once showed was gone, hidden by his stiff posture. Slowly, the man walked forward. Each tap of his shoes on the ground counted my heartbeats.   

Sunlight hit his face, setting it aglow. Before me, with a thin face and black matted hair, stood my brother.