DESCENDED

FAMILY

I stayed in a mental institution for months before I was released to a group home. My aunt and uncle on my mother's side fought hard to adopt me. They contacted my social worker. And after a year of going to court they were finally granted custody.

Now I sit in a strange Mercedes being driven away from the group home I'd come to call home. With my aunt Sarah and her husband Cliff taking me home to live with them. And I'm afraid. I don't know them. I've never even met them before. Nor do I know what to expect from them. But for the most part they look nice. I guess.

They have two children.

A daughter named Anna and a son named Alex.

Twins.

"Angelique, I hope you're happy to know you're getting your own room," Aunt Sarah smiles warmly at me. She reminds me of the television personality Sandra Dee. You know... the Susie-Homemaker type whose house and appearance is always tidy. She has a killer fashion sense too.

"I heard you're like some weird freaky genius kid," Alex chimes in.

Shrugging, I reply, "Um... I guess so."

"Is it true that you tried to kill someone?" He asked.

I would never in a million years try to kill someone. But none of that matters. All that matters is Emily told people I did.

"I didn't try to kill anyone. I don't know why she told them that," I stare out the car window to avoid eye contact.

"Alex!" Aunt Sarah yells at him. Reaching into the back seat to smack him across the leg.

Alex shrugs and laughs.

"What? If we're going to be living together, I need to make sure she's not going to try to snuff me out in the middle of the night."

I was always embarrassed whenever the subject of me being a murderer came up. It's a very sensitive subject. Because the truth is, I didn't know why Emily chose to say what she said. I don't know why she did this to me. She wouldn't talk to me after what happened. And she turned the whole town against me.

I don't understand it.

"Ignore Alex," Anna waves him off. "He was dropped on his head as a baby."

"Enough," Uncle Cliff shuts the conversation down.

This might have been a funny family moment if they weren't complete strangers to me. But I don't see any resemblance between them and me. Sarah is olive toned with jet-black raven hair that falls to the middle of her back, and dark brown eyes.

The twins look exactly like her.

Uncle Cliff is tall with milk chocolate skin. And he reminds me of Michael Jordan in a way. I don't know my birth parents, so I wasn't sure what they would look like. I knew I was mixed with something as my classmates used to love to point out. But I wasn't black enough for the black kids or white enough for the white ones.

It isn't until now that I've even gotten a glimpse into where and who I came from. And thanks to my aunt Sarah, I now know my parent's names were Charles and Annabelle Savant.

"You'll be starting at Emerald Academy tomorrow with Anna and Alex," Aunt Sarah smiles at me.

"Emerald Academy?" I frown.

"High School," Anna clarifies for me.

"Oh..."

School...