The Violet Hour

Chapter 9 - Tremble for My Beloved

The house looked like a dead violated version of its former self. The first thing I noticed was the window of the great window in the living room which was barely visible from the front door. It was visible enough for me to see that someone smashed in the glass that was now strewn all over the floor of our living room. The cracks and scratches spoke for themselves. That meant that someone had come up on our back porch and smashed the window in from the outside, they must have been very determined. Our couch was lopsided; the footstool was turned over completely on the side.

            I started to walk forward with the pace of the dead. I didn’t want to see anymore, but in a weird way I felt like I had to. I had to embrace it all before I could start coming to terms with it. Walking towards the living room I glanced at Gale’s prized oil painting that had been knocked over and now lay face down in the middle of the hallway. I still tried to step over them, even though they were probably already ruined. Eli walked behind me like a shadow, measuring my every move and trying to find a way to lighten the load.

            Once I reached the living room I turned to the left to look towards the dining room, and felt myself let out a shocked gasp despite my attempt at control. Eli came rushing to my side, thinking that those few feet would somehow make it easier on both of us in some way.

            Each of the dining room table chairs had been strewn to another side of the room. Gale’s decorative flower and fruit decoration centerpiece had been smashed up against the wall, and lay in a crumpled and pathetic little heap on the ground. The kitchen seemed to be mostly intact, of course what were they going to do, rip out the appliances and throw those too?

            My breathing began to slow down and I was able to feel my body returning to me. I could speak.

            “Is this all of it?” I asked Eli in a scarce whisper.

            He looked at me with heavy eyes, he knew what he had to tell me, but didn’t want to be the one to bear it. He didn’t have to be. I could read it in his eyes.

            “Of course it’s not,” I let out a shaky breath. “Where’s the rest of the damage?”

            Hi back stiffened. He actually backed away from me a little bit; I could see his eyes transfer from their soft gray to a hard and merciless black. He was not happy with the answer that he knew but was holding from me. I felt my curiosity spark and my fear soar to unthinkable heights.

            “Eli…” I looked him head on; he had to tell me, it was my right to know. He could not deny me of that much. “Where is the rest of the damage at?” I felt each word come out separately and distinctly, but still dripping with fear.

            He exhaled and closed his eyes, refusing to look at me. “Most of it is in your bedroom,” he answered.

            So much for regaining my steady breathing, I felt it shoot out of me again. Just like it did when I opened the door, just like it did when I was told my father was dead, just like it did when I saw my mother kill herself, just like it did when I first looked into Eli’s eyes. The room around me began to shake, and I had to grab on to the island in the kitchen to steady myself.

            “Live it’s alright,” Eli leapt for me when he thought I was going to faint. “Everything is fine, you’re safe, whoever they were they left; it’s going to be alright.” He tried to soothe me by rubbing my back and setting the pace for deep and even breathing. I refused to follow.

            “No it will not be alright! Yes I may be safe but what about Gale? We don’t even know where the hell she is! And think about it Eli, someone broke in, but they didn’t take anything, that means they weren’t looking for stuff, they were looking for a person. Maybe they didn’t get what they wanted, and that means that they are going to come back, maybe they already got what they wanted, and that was Gale. None of this is safe or alright what don’t you get about that?!” I let my frustration and fear leak out and melt into anger that I then began to fire at Eli. He took it with grace and understanding.