As Evil As Murder

21 | Family Blood

I switched off the engine and breathed.

I have been driving for hours, through the dark roads, adrenaline being the only thing keeping me awake. At times, I didn't know which way to turn, so I relied on Google Maps. Now that I'm finally here, in New Jersey, I felt like I shouldn't be. It felt like I was going back to the scene of the crime, which in my case, might as well be true.

I couldn't sit down and do nothing either, so here I am, in my hometown, outside my uncle's building, too scared to even get out. Angry tears sprang at the corners of my eyes, and I wiped them off aggressively.

I had to know what happened.

The sky looked like a renaissance painting, the clouds and spreading rays of sunshine acting as if they were drawn by the hands of a talented painter.

I got out of the car, and slowly closed the door. I looked at the huge building, the one I remember coming with dad randomly. I didn't usually get out of the car, and would sit reading or playing video games while he went inside. Now, I'm wondering why. Why was it that after I turned nine, I didn't see Uncle Toby at all? If dad came here to see Toby, how come he always asked me to wait in the car?

Who was actually living here?

Guess I'm going to find out.

I walked through the front lawn, where I could hear the sounds of crickets dying out as it was slowly turning to daytime. I stepped onto the building, feeling a familiar tinge of fear as I looked around the first floor. Maybe I was having a deja vu but I knew I have been here before.

I forced myself to think hard about where his apartment could be. The hallway was empty, so I couldn't ask anyone and even if I did see someone, I wouldn't ask them where his room was. Something told me he wasn't living here in the first place. I just needed to know who my dad was visiting, and why I haven't seen Toby, not even at my father's funeral.

On some level, I knew the answer, but I refused to believe it.

All the doors looked the same, and it was like I was in a maze. I had to find out which one supposedly belonged to my uncle. I walked around the first floor, saw nothing interesting except a tabby cat which wanted to attack me, so I climbed the stairs and searched there. Here, I couldn't find names outside the doors, so I groaned. Maybe this was a stupid plan.

I turned to walk back downstairs but I heard one of the doors open. I bit my bottom lip, realizing that I can't just go back with nothing. I'll just ask the person if they know Toby Alberto and if he doesn't, at least I'll know my dad was lying, right?

I turned and saw a man around his late 40s. He had thin greying hair and had on a purple sweater with black stripes. His eyes were a warm shade of hazel, and he seemed like the kind of person who always wore a smile.

I was going to ask him about Tobias but didn't. Why would I?

He was standing right in front of me.

"You are alive," I stated, not knowing my mouth was working. It was the first thought that popped into my mind, and I had to verbalize it, maybe because saying it out loud would be more believable.

"Hello." He answered, his eyes on me cautiously, as if I'm a predator.

"I'm - I'm Char-" I tried to introduce myself, getting rid of the initial shock.

"Charlotte." He acknowledged, faster than I would have thought possible.

"You remember me?" I took a step forward and he tensed.

"Of course I do, you haven't changed a bit." His Spanish accent came through and a part of me wanted to hug him. He was real.

"I would like to think I have changed at least a little bit from how I was at nine," I said, not knowing where this was going.