Singing Assassin || Michael Gray

Photograph

"I changed my name to Victoria Hugh when I moved to Coventry to get away from the" I paused trying to think of a word for what I was doing "um business and war at home."Another lie "I happen to live on the same street as Henry and Anna, I was 14 at the time. I instantly connected with Anna, we were best friends, more like sisters actually. When I turned 15, me and Henry... well I mean Michael had a thing" I giggled at the memory "we would sneak out just to go to park or go stargazing in the field next to our home or sit up talking sometimes we would bring Annie, my pet name for Anna. I remember her telling me she saw me and Michael having a future together, I always told it would never happen even though I wanted it to. I loved him at the time. I would go down to that stupid well in the village, wasting coins wishing to have a bright future with him" I chuckled at how pathetic and naive I was. "One day me and Annie..." I cleared my throat, feeling a lump in my throat "we were at the local pub, we always went there after work if we finished early, the three of us. We were pretty well known there, 'the golden trio'. The bartenders and locals almost always expected us to be there if not they were almost worried. It was a calm day at the bar. Too calm. This was the same week the Great War was announced and men in England were already getting conscripted.  All of a sudden there was shouting and a fight broke out. We figured it was probably someone trying to get arrested or prove themselves mentally unstable so they wouldn't have to go off and fight. Anna being the peacemaker she was, tried to make her way to the crowd pushing though everyone to get to those fighting to make it stop because she knew one of the guys from school and was quite friendly with him. Me and Henry used to joke with her calling her a gyspy because of her always trying to make peace of things yet she was tough at the same time.  By the time...By the time she realised it was too serious to solve or help. It was too late and she was pushed further towards the fight by the crowd, I tried to run towards her by Michael held me back by my waist trying to stop me from possibly making it worse. I struggled a while until I stopped suddenly feeling sick. Annie let out a scream. I used all my strength to push away from Michael...to see that there was a knife in her stomach. The place cleared out either in respect of Anna or the fear of the coppers would start showing up and arresting everyone there. Michael held her body as she was slowly leaving us".

I paused the story reflecting on the events, feeling like i was in that bar again. "No, no, no! Hold on Annie, you need to hold on". "I love you two, you two need each other" she said gasping between each between each word.
I returned back to the story. "Me and Henry or Michael weren't the same after, we couldn't speak to each other without reliving Annie's last moments in our head." What if I ran faster towards her? "After the funeral, thinking I could leave tonight or live, die this way. Wallowing in my grief and sorrow. I alway blamed myself for her death; if I wasn't paying all my attention to Michael I would've seen her looking towards the argument and tell her not to bother with them and say "they must be looking for trouble or the insanity pass out of the war or something"; if I didn't ask them to the bar she would've be there; if I was standing at her side it would've been me. She could've grew up with Michael, meet her real mother, meet the man of her dreams get married and have the perfect fairy tale ending she deserved. God I need to talk to Polly". I held the tears back too long now I let it out. Grief is not always as heavy as guilt, but it takes more away from you. "You just don't stop living because you lose someone" Isaiah said. I fell asleep after exhausting myself crying, I hoped the nightmare would pass me today.

I woke up with Polly beside me staring at the chimney. "Isaiah said you have something to tell me". I told her everything, from the moment I moved to England onwards avoiding parts I was not ready to tell the Shelby's, mostly about my childhood and my I actually left. It turns out she didn't know the most of the gruesome details of Anna's death. "You have to tell Michael, Rose. He has to know. Tell him before the wedding or else I will". I showed her the photo of me and Anna and I also had a photo of Anna when she was 15 years old showing it to Polly made the guilt on my shoulders feel heavier as she hadn't seen Anna in 16 years.

I had the teddy bear hidden in my suitcase so Michael wouldn't be able to recognise it. I ran upstairs to grab it and came downstairs to Polly again. "Take it, it was Anna's she always said she never knew where it came from but she had brought it everywhere up until she was 8". Polly laughed sorrowfully "this was mine and it was the only thing she had of me" holding it against her chest crying, I rocked Polly as if she was a child. "You know I hated you when I first seen you. I looked at you and thought this girl is going to take my son away from me and ruin his chances of taking after the business. But I'm glad it was you" she said. She was grateful for it as she held my hand still sobbing I silently cried along with her. Michael came through the door looking confusingly between me and Polly, I looked up at him with tears streaks on my face, he understood he was interrupting something and left.