Rats: Shai's Story

Mikko's Plan

Author's Note: Sorry I don't update this story often! Please vote and comment. I'd love to hear your thoughts :)

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The bell for Curfew rang and all of the children were back at their homes. Brodhi made Lynn take a bowl of soup up to their room and he closed the door. Darla was still in the bathroom and Brodhi didn't want her to see when he took her outside. But first he had to dig a grave.

He wasn't supposed to be outside during Curfew, but there was no other time to bury his mother. The children were all at the house during the day and there wasn't enough time to get up early and start digging. Anyways, he needed to get Darla out of the bathroom. The thought of his mother on the cold tiled floor haunted him.

He went outside into their backyard. The large row of houses blocked the view of their small yard from the street. The chain fence had fallen in many years ago, but it still helped conceal him. A small shed sat in the back corner of the yard. Brodhi ran over to it, keeping low to make sure no Officer would see him. He pulled the key out of his pocket and opened up the rusty lock. He opened up the door just a crack so that he didn't make any noise. It would attract attention to his house.

He groped along the wall in the dark. He had trouble seeing, but the cold, sharp metal of the shovel felt familiar to him. He pulled it off the wall and walked back outside. Using the shed to hide him, Brodhi began to dig. The ground was dry and he had to work hard.

Sweat began to break out on his forehead and he could hear the faint sound of Officers talking. He jumped as he heard a gunshot and a scream. He shook his head and continued working, hoping that Lynn didn't hear that and come out to check on him.

After hours of work and many blisters on his hands, he finally had a hole he thought was deep enough to be a grave for Darla. He dropped the shovel on the ground and went back into the house.

He went quickly through the kitchen and up the stairs. The door to his room was closed and he hoped that Lynn was asleep and wouldn't open it anytime soon. He braced himself before he opened the door to the bathroom. He made sure that no one went in all day. He hadn't seen her body since he came home in the morning.

He took a deep breath and opened the door. Darla was still lying on her back. He felt stupid for being shocked that she was lying on the ground in the same position. She couldn't move anymore. The blood was still dried on her face and her grey hair was tangled around her head. Her skin was paler than he had ever seen before.

Getting down onto his knees, Brodhi slipped his arms around his mother and lifted her off the ground. She was frail, but she felt heavier that he expected her to. He hurried down the hallway as quickly as he could, just to make sure Lynn wouldn't see her again. Once he was hurrying, he didn't stop. He carried her out to the hole he had dug and carefully placed her down into her grave.

It was so dark outside that he couldn't see her. A wall of black masked her. It made it easier for him to shovel the dirt back into the hole. He didn't stop and say something about his mother. He didn't talk to that God that was banned a long time ago. He just kept filling the hole knowing that just like his father, he'd never see his mother again.

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Rolling over onto her back, Shai stretched her arms up over her head. She saw Jasper was lying on his stomach and was facing away from her. From his rhythmic breathing she could tell that he was still asleep.