The Death Sentence

Chapter One

I woke with the words “help me” on my lips and was lying in a pool of sweat. I have had that dream on the same night every year for as long as I have been able to remember but yet every time, I’m scared and act like I don’t know what will happen to me. My family, or what is left of it, is gathered around me. My dad, wearing a worried yet knowing look, asked me if anyone had been in here, and slowly, almost scared to answer I shook my head and responded,

“No, I just had a bad dream.”

My little sister, Abby, was holding my hand and looking at me with her huge eyes. At five, she seemed to understand so much in this world that she should have been protected from for a long time. It’s so sad for me to see this young girl looking like she knew what I was going through, it killed me one the inside. Even Maggie in Dad’s arms was awake and looking at curiously. The fact that she didn’t have a very good idea of what was going on was slightly comforting. Slightly.

“I’m fine,” I told them, trying to sound convincing, but barely making myself believe it “it was just a bad dream. Go back to sleep, tomorrows going to be a long and busy day.”

Dad led Abby and Maggie out of my room and got them into bed, and hopefully asleep. I ran my hand angrily through my hair, I have to get control of myself! Their so young and yet they’re witnessing me, their older sister who is supposed to protect them from all of this, and here I am being afraid of the stupidest things! I can’t believe myself. I am so weak. I am the worst person for this job, I’m too scared and vulnerable. Dad came back in and tried to comfort me.

“Was it the same dream?” he asked me.

“Yeah, it scares me that this always happens the night before…..”

He nods and I know that he understands what I’m going through.

“Get some sleep now so that you will be ready for tomorrow.”

I nod and turn over and close my eyes until I’m sure that he’s back in his room. I know that I need to sleep, but there are too many memories running through my head. Most of them are about Mom. Just thinking about her makes me want to cry.

My mom died last year. Tomorrow will mark one year. She had given birth to Maggie one year ago today. Maggie is the closest thing I have to my mom, her and the necklace that Mom gave me the morning before she died. I never took it off. Never. My mom had been shot four times before she died, she had always been the toughest person I knew.

I had thought too much. As much as I tried, I couldn’t hold back the tears anymore. They poured down my face and I watched as they cascaded onto my pillow. I buried my face in my pillow to muffle my sobs. After I cried to my heart’s content, my vision was slightly foggy and I had a headache that I knew would only get worse. I finally closed my eyes and fell into a borderline sleep, aware of everything, but at the same time I wasn’t.