Blackbird

1 - The Goodbye

Blackbird singing in the dead of night
Take these broken wings
and learn to fly.
All your life, you were only waiting
for this moment to arise

-The Beatle's Blackbird

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Elaine's POV

I remember the night clearly. My brother and I were fast asleep in our room that we shared in the one-bedroom apartment. When you're on the run, your resources are low, and you get what you get. Declan and I shared the one room, and Mom took the couch. We were awoken that night by yelling and crashing from the living room. I got out of bed quickly, Declan clinging to me as I tiptoed to the closet. "You stay here," I whispered, gently pushing him in.

I could see the protest in his eyes, but the sound of another crash from the living room had him curling up into a tiny ball in the corner. I quietly shut the closet door and went over to the nightstand. Opening the cabinet underneath revealed a safe that I made quick work of the code. Inside laid various important documents with a handgun sitting on top. Mom had been training me on what to do in this situation for a while. Now that it was happening, I was terrified.

My hands were shaking as I picked up the gun and undid the safety. I crept to the door and opened it just enough to see a little. I counted three men. One of the men was keeping watch at the front door. Another of the men was walking the perimeter of the room. The third man was yelling at my mother in the middle of the room. The yelling was in French, and despite knowing the language my brain was too frazzled to translate for me. I inched the door open a little more, but it was too much. The man walking the perimeter saw and started walking to the door with his own gun at the ready. Everything was moving too quickly, so I did the only thing I could think of and fired just as he did the same.

The first thing I realized was that there was now a man bleeding out on the floor in front of me. Mom had never liked the beige carpet that much, and now it was marred with a pool of blood. The second thing I registered was a burning in my arm, but I didn't have long to process it. Because the third thing my brain registered was that everyone was now looking in my direction, and the men didn't look too happy. The fourth, and final thing, my brain cataloged was a little hand tugging at my shirt. So much for staying in the closet.

The next few things seemed to happen in slow motion while also being all at the same time. The man at the door charged to us and grabbed Declan before I could react. Declan's screaming is what cleared the fog as I acted on pure instinct and swung around clocking the man in the temple with the butt of the gun. I then grabbed Declan into my arms, who started sobbing into my shirt. There was a crash followed by a thud behind us and I turned around to see the third man on the ground next to a broken vase.

Mom made her way to us with a smile that anyone but a scarred five year old would have known was fake. She wrapped her hands around my shaking ones. "Give me the gun, sweetie, and take your brother into the bathroom. Go ahead and get the first aid kit from the cabinet."

I blinked a few times as my brain caught up, then did as she told me. Declan was still crying, and the burning in my arm was intensifying. The moment I looked into the bathroom I gasped, well that explained the pain. My pajama sleeve had blood where a butterfly design had once been. It wasn't a concerning amount, but more blood then should have been coming out of my arm. There was a gunshot sound from the bedroom, causing me to jump despite having expected it. Declan's sobs got louder, and looking into his eyes I saw pure terror. "It's going to be okay," I said, trying to convince myself too. 

I used my good arm to open the cabinet and pull the first aid kit down. There was another shot, and another jump, before Mom entered the bathroom. "Are you okay?"