Somnolent Strike

Hospital

I woke up in a bright room, on a metal bed. An IV drip was stuck in my left hand, attached to a bag of fluid.

This is unreal. I'm in hospital.

I wondered why.

Did my illness get worse overnight? Did I have another hemorrhage? Was I-

"Hi boo. You look better!" Mother burst in, striding over to my bed. Then reeled back in shock.

"Ugh... Never mind. You look worse. Your whole face is swollen like a balloon!" She wrinkled her nose and dropped a glossy bag on the bed with the name of a fancy department store scribbled over and over and over again until the bag looked almost black.

"Check out what I got you. I know you youngsters love that stuff - it's all the fashion."

I did my best to sit up, but the pain in my body brought me back down.

"Awww darling... I'll open it for you." She scrabbled with the bag, hauling out a small blue box with headphones attached. "See, it's those new portable cassette players. Sony's."

"IT'S A WALKMAN! OH AND IT EVEN HAS SQUEEZABLE HEADPHONES!" I forgot all about the pain and sat up fully, starting to switch it on.

"Not now, you'll get to play with it later. You need to rest darling... that nasty policeman has ruined your face forever, the bastard. We'll sue him. We'll sue everyone. Treating you like a goddamn criminal and beating you to death! Poor you. I could never allow that to happen to me. I'd have fought to me death. But you and I are very different." I hated the way she said that, like I was a disappointment. I knew she was comparing me with my father in her head. I was nothing like that psychopath.

I slumped back down, putting the Walkman back it the box.

"Ohh look. You're sulking. Smile! I brought Uni to see you. She's just buying a snack from the machines outside. Travis didn't want to come, you know how he is with hospitals. And he is staying with his dad so he wouldn't have come anyway. I need to press for child support! He gives me a pittance one every threw months. I can't even buy clothes ... for his kid ... with that. Imma have to go to court and sort it out with him or else there's gonna be..." She went on and on and on about her problems, ranting and venting, her eyes flashing in anger, her cheeks flushed.

I fiddled with my new Walkman, and tried to remember how I got here. What policeman was she talking about? The one investigating Jul's murder? But he hadn't beat me up? Unless-

"Vera! Are you listening? Honestly! They still haven't managed to find the body of that guy at the funeral... it's a shame, he was cute. Such a good friend of your brothers... ex brother. Not a patch on my Sam, in terms of looks, but close enough. They used to go to that underground place up in town, every night. Near the river. I had a feeling they were up to no good but I knew Sam would be ok with Gilly... and now they're both dead."

I frowned. "What? Did they find the body?"

"No no. But it's obvious he's dead. Or abducted... which equals death. They'll never find his body at this rate. That haunted house was always keeping victims. I have no idea why you went there anyway." She suddenly focused on me again. "Actually why did you go there?"

"Gil invited me. He wanted to tell me why Sam wanted to kill himself."

Mom twitched, but stayed smiling.

"Did he now? How sweet. My Sam did not kill himself though. He loved life so. He loved his siblings and me. He'd never have been selfish enough to leave me!" She laughed fakely, pointedly. She obviously meant to say: "Unlike you." Because I had left.

Alright I wasn't totally honest with the officer. I lied a little bit. But it was just to avoid suspicion. I'd left because of Mom yes, but it was because of what Mom did to us. To all of us, not just Sam, though he was her faviorite.

Mom liked children so much.

Too much.