Everyone Is A Criminal

Backstories and Questioning

BROOKLYN

The walk back to the officers car is slightly humbling. People point and whisper as we are shoved in handcuffs into the police van. Jude and Dylan remain free though.

The ride back is almost silent. The officers introduce themselves as Finn and Mikayla, though I don't really care. The point is: me and Daniel have finally been caught.

I guess I knew that one day or another, this would happen. But the more I think about it, the more I dread standing in front of a judge. Me and Daniel will probably be sentenced to death. After all, we allegedly killed our family and friends. But the worst part is we will probably both be sentenced to separate high-security prisions. I wont even get to see Daniel anymore.

Me and Daniel are taken to be interviewed together. Jude and Dylan are allowed to stay. I'm not entirely sure what will happen to them, but my best guess is they'll be let free. Jude will go back to Florida for her college, Dylan will go back to repairing cars and selling fake IDs in Arizonia.

We are sat in front of Makayla and Finn again. Finn speaks first.

''Okay. So, four years ago you killed your entire families.''

I decide to interrupt.

''We didn't murder them''

Mikayla looks momentarily surprised.

''So if you didn't murder them, what happened? Hoe did your fingerprints end up on the gun?'' Mikayla asks, clearly doubting us.

I sigh. No one will believe us, but its now or never. At least I will have told my story.

''It was a cold November morning, but also my birthday. The wind was fierce, blowing leaves all over the front lawn of our house. Me and Daniel were going to get married in a few months, but for now it was my birthday. I was turning 20, a huge milestone. I almost had a teachers degree, Daniel was about to get his first marine biology job.

All our friends and family had come over. There was cake and a playlist was on- a heap of pop songs blaring through the TV. My younger cousins- Rose and Sara, were dancing for us, twisting and turning on the living room floor, making up the moves as they went, the hems of their dresses flying out around them. My auntie was standing in front of the TV to make sure nothing got broken. Daniel had given me a beautiful blue dress, and I looked beautiful.

We were all just celebrating everything in our living room. The wedding, my birthday, Julia's new cat. But suddenly, the sound of gunshots could be heard. Loud bangs that pierced through the windows. I could hear glass shattering.

The girls stopped dancing, standing silently in fear. The music didn't stop. It was some song about staying alive, ironically enough. It was blasting through the speakers, a soundtrack to the moment our lives took a turn for the worse.

A masked intruder entered with a gun. Their face was covered, and they were wearing sunglasses so I couldn't see their eyes. I wish I could have wiped the balaclava off their face, but their identity remains unknown to us.

Without hesitation, they shot our families. One by one, they all dropped dead. Rose was only four, and I could see her dead body. The dead body of a beautiful, bright, girl who was going to enter school in just a few months and make friends, now dead, lying on the floor. Her beautiful white dress, the one she had seemed so happy to wear, now splattered with blood.

Daniels family, his mum and dad who were visiting to celebrate, dropped dead as well. None of these people had done anything wrong, just came to our apartment to celebrate.

My uncle Connor tried to defend himself, getting the TV. But the bullet went right through it, shattering the glass onto the carpet, onto Rose and Saras dead bodies.

Out of shock, or maybe fear, the intruder dropped the gun. I picked it up, but I couldn't bring myself to shoot. The intruder tried to lunge at me to get the gun, so I chucked it to Daniel.

Little did I know that was what would make the police suspect us. Our fingerprints were the only ones on the gun, of course we did it. There was no other explanation. Who would even suspect a third person? To make matters worse, we had no CCTV cameras in our house. None of the neighbours saw what happened, only discovered the bodies a few days later.

We tried to call the police, but we realised that we couldn't describe the intruder, whether they had been male or female, their description. And being the smart one here, I realised our fingerprints were on the gun.

Scared for us and our families, we drove as far as we could, going to stay at a friends in Maine, hoping everything could blow over. We didn't tell him what happened, only stayed there for two days, hoping the media would move onto other things.

But it was our house, and we were missing. About a day after the assault, one of our neighbours believed that something was wrong. And with us missing, and all our family dead in our house?

There was no other explanation. It was always us. Our fingerprints on the gun, our house.... another intruder was out of the question.

We quickly realised we needed to run. At the time we weren't fugitives yet, so it was easy to abandon our car in the middle of the night and take a bus past New York.

We saw the first 'HAVE YOU SEEN THESE PEOPLE'' poster in North Carolina, about a day after we had left Maine, and I remember thinking that well, this is my life now. A cat and mouse game until we finally get caught.

For four years, we ran. We celebrated our birthdays, Christmas, and New Years in alleyways avoiding police. In my head, I tried to make it seem like an indefinite sightseeing tour of the US. But it was always going to be us.

We were always murderers.''

Mikayla sighs. ''That can't be true. I'm sorry, but you have no idea what this intruder looked like, and your fingerprints were on that gun. There is no way to prove your story to be correct''

I'm upset that she still thinks I'm guilty, especially as we were once friends, but I guess I can't change her opinion. It's not like she could suddenly turn back time anyway. Even if Mikayla believed me, all of America definitely does not.

I nod, but Finn interjects. ''No, they are telling the truth. I've done enough investigating in my life. They are telling the truth''

That seems to convince Mikayla. She nods. ''Well...there isn't much we can do. I'm sorry. No judge will believe you. And Brook....I'm sorry. I was being petty that day and I'd do anything to turn back time again''

I nod and hug her. We used to be friends, and as much as I don't want to admit it, I've missed her.

But now I have to face a judge. And the judge, whoever they are, won't be as willing to let us go as Mikayla and Finn.

Me and Daniel are officially doomed.