Falling For The Undercover Detective

A Funeral and Change

"I'm so sorry baby girl.  I wish it wasn't true but it is." My brother Daniel replies.  "But you know they loved you beyond measure and you still have all of us."  I looked at all of my brothers.  They were all staring at me with pain in their eyes.  I know they are hurting just like I am but I can't think past my own feelings.  Then suddenly a burst of guilt grips me.  I cry out "oh God.  It's all my fault.  Mom and Dad are gone and it's all my fault."  Looking at my brothers I cry "can you ever forgive me.  I've been so selfish and now they are dead and it's my fault."  

Amber still hasn't let go of my hand as Larry sits down on a chair next to me and questions me as to why I feel this way.  "I got mad at them because they were going to miss my last concert of the school year.  I made them come home early.  I made them promise they would be home today.  If it wasn't for me they would still be alive."  I burst into tears and tried to leap off the couch so I could run to my room.  But my head was having none of that.  I immediately fell back down on the couch where I was caught by my brother Daniel.  My brother Jeremy speaks up for the first time and tells me "you can't blame yourself.  It's not your fault.  They were coming home because they wanted to not because you made them."

I can't remember much more of the day as my mind went numb.  Hell I can't even remember much of the next several days.  I walked through them on autopilot.  I do remember someone making me eat. Then one morning there was knock on my bedroom door.  It was Amber asking if I needed help getting ready it was almost time for the funeral.  I looked at her with tears in my eyes and told her I was just about ready to go.  She came to me and gave me a hug and told me that she loved me.  Then she wrapped her arms around me and we headed out the door.  

I didn't realize mom and dad knew so many people.  It seemed like there were so many people spilling out of the church.  After the service I can't tell you how many people came up to me to offer their sympathies.  But one person stuck out.  He was sleazy to say the least.  Not that he dressed that way just that he oozed snake.  He gave me the creeps.  He introduced himself as my uncle from my mother's side of the family.  This intrigued me because I had never met anyone from her side of the family.  He complimented me about how beautiful I was and how I looked just like my mother.  He then asked me how old I was and I told him I would be sixteen in about three days.  His face lit up and he told me he hoped to be seeing me again real soon.  I didn't like him.

Later that day I told my brothers all about the meeting with my uncle and they all got very quiet.  Larry came to me and asked me to sit down he had something serious to discuss with me.  I didn't like the sound of that.  That's when he informed me that mom had run away from her tribe to be able to live the life she wanted.  By tribal law now that mom and dad were dead I became a ward of the tribe and by default my uncle.  I just stared at my brother not comprehending what he just said.  "Do you mean I have to leave here?  Why can't I just live with one of you until I'm eighteen?"

A few days later, I along with a bag of my belongings were in Larry's car and we were on our way to what was going to be my new home. "I'm not going! You can't make me!" I yelled at my brothers.  They just shook their heads and informed me they had no choice.  "I tried to keep you here.  I thought that maybe since I was a blood relative they would let me take care of you."  Of course it didn't work that way.  The judge ruled in favor of the tribe.  Since my mom had passed and my brother didn't know any of the tribal ways he couldn't teach me my 'heritage'.  This sucked big time.  I was having to move over a thousand miles away from the home I grew up in.  I didn't want to leave.  "But why do I have to go today? Can't I at least have a few weeks to get used to the idea?  I don't even know this guy." 

It was the truth.  I didn't know him I met him one time and that was at our parents funeral.  Mom never spoke of her side of the family and my brothers seemed terrified to let me go.  It didn't help I didn't want to go either.  "Look we will come and visit every week to make sure everything is ok.  We love you and will do what we can."  "You just don't get it Larry I don't even want to go it's not fair.  I'm sixteen I should get a voice in this but no I have to roll over and eat s**t and take it up the ass."  I realize I wasn't being fair but the situation wasn't fair. Heck the very way I just spoke to my brother spoke volumes as I never said those kinds of things.

He just looked at me and sighed "I know.  We're here."  I didn't even want to look.  We pulled up to a little worn out house.  There stood my uncle along with what I assume was his wife and maybe two boys?  Hell I didn't even know if he had a wife and kids.  The boys looked to be about my age and looked just like their father like little snakes.  I couldn't help but shudder I just knew this was going to be a terrible thing.  I wanted to go home.  Larry hugged me and told me he would be there on the weekend.  He whispered "be good" in my ear and I sighed.  For him and the guys I would do my best.  I loved my brothers.  Hell I loved my parents and now I'm alone without any of them.

My uncle raced forward.  "Sweet Elizabeth I trust your journey was a good one.  I bet you will be tired after the long trip.  Lets get your stuff and get you inside so we can go over the rules."  My mind spun three hundred and sixty degrees with that last statement.  What kind of rules do they think I need?  Hope it's nothing to distressing.  I slowly glanced around what was going to be my new home for a while at least.  It was run down, dusty, depressed looking.  It matched my mood perfectly.  I cried inside.  I wanted my home back along with my parents and my annoying overprotective big brothers.

I walked inside the house and said "well let's get this over with, what are all these rules you say I have?"  That was immediately met with a closed fist that made contact with my left cheek.  It stung and it was the first time I had ever been hit.  I started to cry.  "Shut up little girl or I will give you a damn good reason to cry.  Now rule one you don't ever speak unless you are first spoken to. That's to me or anyone who might come into this house.  Women here aren't allowed to speak. Learn that quickly and you will adapt.  As for the other rules let's go into the living area."