The Middle of the End

Chapter one

Originally posted on fanfiction.net, but I wanted to see what the response on here would be. Let me know if you like it!

Chapter One: Happy Birthday, Big Brother

I was barely eight years old when I saw my father stabbed to death by my uncle, his brother. We had gone out to pick up the surprise birthday present for my big brother Shane; Mama sent us on a mission and we had to be back before Shane woke up.

"Daddy, what's the surprise? Can I pick it out?" I'd begged my parents to let me in on the secret but like always they didn't tell me.

"You'll see when we get there. First we have to make a quick run into Uncle Paul's." Daddy drove our minivan up a bumpy hill and I rolled my window down. It was going to be really hot. Hopefully Shane would take me to the lake when he went with his stupid friend Rick.

The minivan slowed to a stop and I unbuckled my seatbelt. "No, you wait here. This won't take long."

"Awww!" I frowned, crossing my arms as I watched Daddy jog to Uncle Paul's secret shed. I was absolutely forbidden to go anywhere near it. A scary man with a pretty green bottle stumbled out onto the porch, and I locked the doors in a hurry. Uncle Paul and Daddy were screaming at each other. This was normal, they always yelled and then made up. Daddy was on his way to the van when Uncle Paul ran up behind him.

They were going to make up!

And that's when Uncle Paul pulled out a knife and stuck it in my Daddy's back. I tried to look away, but it's like something bad on TV that Mama doesn't want me to watch. You can't help but look. Daddy fell to the ground pretty quick, his white shirt painting itself red.

I screamed.

The man with the bottle said something and Uncle Paul stood up. He said something too and walked around in circles before stepping over Daddy and coming towards the van. I wasn't scared of Uncle Paul, just the other man. He had a mean look on his face, one I would learn to fear and hate with every fibre of my being.

"What did you see, Callie?" Uncle Paul asked me through my open window.

"We ain't got time for this, Paul. We need to get gone 'fore anyone comes lookin'." The scary man grumbled, his bottom lip twitching. "Kid saw the whole thing. Grab 'er an' let's go!"

I cried the whole day, eventually falling asleep in the backseat of a car. Shane and Mama were eating cake without me and Daddy all because Uncle Paul got mad and painted Daddy's shirt until he stopped moving.

When I woke up, I was lying on the floor nexxt to a smelly torn-up couch and I got up to find a bathroom. The place looked like a dump, and smelled like one, too. The first door I opened was a small bedroom and someone was asleep on the mattress that lay on the dirty floor.

"Uncle Paul?" I called out after closing the door so I wouldn't wake them up. When no one answered I ran outside. Uncle Paul and that scary man were talking. "Where's Daddy, Uncle Paul?"

"He's dead you stupid brat. Now shut yer trap an' get back inside!" the man yelled at me, and I hurried back to my spot on the floor.

"Who're you?!" I looked up and saw a boy sitting on the couch. His brown hair was a mess, his shirt stained and dirty. I didn't say anything; he was the kind of kid Mama told me to stay away from.

It was nighttime now and my stomach was growling noisily. I hadn't eaten anything since yesterday's breakfast of bacon and waffles and boy was I hungry. I'd heard the man tell Uncle Paul not to give me any food, that he had something else for me. I wasn't allowed to move from my spot unless the man said so.