The House Where My Demons Live

chapter eight

Saint Petersburg, Russia, 1999

          The rats squeaked at the end of the dark alleyway, their shadows from behind making them look like larger, scarier creatures, but that's not what Iosif was afraid of. He flinched from the sound of bottles breaking and people yelling and he huddled closer to the corner, hoping he won't be found. The bitter cold snow biting off his skin from being out too long, the little boy clutched tighter on his hood, wishing that it will all end soon. 

He heard footsteps patter on the puddles and he tightly shut his eyes, trying his best not to scream, the bruises on his knees still aching. "Iosif?" he heard Yuliya call his name.

Iosif shot his eyes open and his hands reached out for her. "Sister!" he cried out.

Yuliya spot her little brother hiding and she ran to him with a relieved expression, she was in her evening gown but wore her coat. Her knees dropped down on the snow and hugged him tightly. She shushed him soothing words. "It's okay. They won't find us. It'll be okay."

Iosif couldn't help but cry and grab hold of her tighter. Yuliya snapped her head to the direction of multiple shadows running and she stood up and pulled Iosif to stand. "We can't stay here."

The teenage girl ran with him away from the adults, she pressed her back against the wall and waited for them to pass. Her eyes widened when she saw the whole neighborhood was in chaos. People were throwing molotovs and everything was in fire, even with the snow, she could feel the heat from here, all these angry people. Now of all times they decided to purge and riot. Yuliya held Iosif's hand and ran to the opposite direction from all the pandemonium.

"We can't go back home."

Iosif wiped his tears with his gloved hand. "What about Papa?"

Yuliya stopped on her tracks and so did he, she dropped down to his level and she tried her best not to cry. "Pa... is gone." she blinked away her tears. "He knows the people here can't be saved."

She slowly took out a holy cross from her jacket and tucked it in his pocket. "We have to escape, we have to live." she muttered, reassuring him but he refused.

Iosif furiously shook his head. "No! Papa can't be dead, he's the best hunter we know. Papa is-- Pa, can't be!"

"The demons killed him! I saw him being taken away." Yuliya exclaimed, not wanting to let her brother take all the harsh reality in but she had to and let a tear drop down. "We can't stop them, they're too strong." Iosif was crying again but she wiped his tears. "You be strong too, we can't let them win."

Iosif sniffed and nodded. Yuliya stood up and they were about to resume escaping but then they stopped when they see a group of men holding weapons on their hands and they all looked angry. They were thrashing and destroying government items and the glass splattered all over the pavement. One of them noticed the two children and he licked his lips, dirtily eyeing Yuliya with her lesser clothing. He pointed at her with his barbed wire wrapped baseball bat.

"I knew today was gonna be a good day." the other guys let out wolf whistles.

Yuliya pulled her brother to her back and covered him. "Stay behind me. Run when I tell you to. Don't look back."

"But--!" Iosif was cut off when they stopped whacking the objects and started to come after them both.

"Run!"

Iosif let go of her hand and ran out of fear. His fear doubled and his heart was heavy, he didn't want to lose all his family in one day. But as an 8 year old boy, what could he do? He felt so helpless, he wanted to help his family. His head turned back to Yuliya and she was fighting them off with what their father had trained her, but he could see she was bleeding from their weapons. It's unfair. The world is unfair, the boy thought. He was just so angry that he is powerless and all he could do is run.