Page 265 of Sin Bin

“If you go to the police, I’ll deny it,” her aunt said vehemently.

A wave of nausea swept through Meadow. “Why?” she asked faintly. “Why did you kill him?”

“I had to!” her aunt shrilled.

“Why?”

“Because he was sick and dangerous! And he was coming after you!”

Cold fear slithered down Meadow’s spine. “W-What do you mean he was coming after me?”

“He saw the pictures of you and that hockey player. He started talking about how you’d come up in the world, landed yourself a rich baller. He found out where you lived and he was coming to extort money from you. And I don’t think he would have stopped there.”

“Dear God,” Meadow whispered sickly. She remembered the strange phone call she’d received from an unknown number. It must have been her uncle.

“I couldn’t let him ruin your life. Not again!”

Meadow’s blood ran ice cold. “What do you mean ‘not again’?”

Her aunt began sobbing once more.

“What did he do?” Meadow croaked.

Her aunt just kept sobbing.

“Tell me.”

“I’m so sorry—”

“Tell me!” Meadow yelled.

“He killed your parents!”

Meadow slid down the wall to the floor, trying to process her aunt’s shocking outburst. “I-I don’t understand,” she whispered through bloodless lips. “My parents…they…they were killed in a robbery.”

Her aunt wept louder. “It wasn’t a robbery, baby.”

“I don’t believe you. You’re lying!”

“I wish I was—”

“No!” Meadow felt herself starting to hyperventilate. “Please God, nooo!”

The missing fragments of her memory slammed back into her brain with a sickening jolt that knocked the breath from her lungs. Suddenly she was plunged into the darkness of the past, harrowing visions from that fateful night hitting her full force. Violence. Blood. Death…

She was wearing pajamas when her parents came to pick her up from her aunt and uncle’s house. They’d been away at a teacher conference. She’d missed them and couldn’t wait to see them again.

But something was wrong.

Her daddy and uncle were shouting at each other. Her mommy was yelling at them to stop, but they weren’t listening. They were really mad. Suddenly her father punched her uncle. When her uncle punched Daddy back, Meadow screamed.

As the two men started fighting, her mother scooped Meadow up and ran out of the room.

“Why are they fighting, Mommy?” she whimpered.

“Your uncle borrowed money from Daddy and won’t pay it back.” Her mother’s eyes were frenzied as she ran into the laundry room. She opened the utility closet door, shoved Meadow inside and knelt in front of her, peering urgently into her eyes. “Don’t make a sound! Okay, baby? Pretend you’re invisible!”

Meadow’s chin wobbled, tears falling down her face. “Don’t go, Mommy,” she begged.

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