Chapter 1

Why

Why was the only question anyone hadn't asked yet? And probably wouldn't, simply for the fact that there was not any question as to why but more as to how. How could this happen? How could they do this? How could he have done this? How?

"In the morning fog at about six am a small child of whom we are assuming is a friend of the Vice's daughter, came to the Vice's home to see her. She knocked on the door three times. From what we believe we think she must have heard someone say something from inside and entered the home."

"She looked about the home trying to find her friend when she heard a sound coming from the Vice's teenager's room that was attending a party at her friend's house and had not come home yet. She entered the room to find her little friend in the corner…her head bashed in with a lacrosse poll."

"The little girls screamed and ran from the room but in her fear she became lost in the house she turned the corner, rushed to the kitchen and found Mr. Vice lingering over his wife's dead body. He had slit her throat."

"He turned to the child and in his panic killed the child. Then he took the 45' that had been hidden in his dresser (He did not have a permit.) and shot himself in the head."

"We have not been able to locate the Vice's daughter yet but we are doing everything we can to make sure he comes in safely and securely. Thank you and no more questions."

It had been quite clear to Officer Briggs what had happened to Mr. Vice. He himself could understand why the man had snapped. His wife had been having several affairs. Not only that but she was keeping a rather large amount of money away from him. Though he could understand that many men often decide to kill their wife's in such situations he however could not understand why the man had taken the lives of his child and someone else's. The crime scene had shown that Lydia the child had had her life taken first then his wife then the little girl. It was awful but he could see that the man was obviously waiting for his son Kyle to come home to kill him as well, then take his life. I was a scary thought to have as a parent. To imagine his own daughter saying she was leaving to a friend's house…only to get a call that she had been killed by the people you were supposed to trust most.

The man had taken two babies lives in a matter of hours. He had destroyed lives all because of his own wife's stupidity. His wife's selfish sin that was just as common as marriage these days. God the man was in awe. How could a father do this? How? He couldn't understand. Couldn't grasp and DOWNRIGHT REFUSED to understand how a man could harm children.

He himself was the father of three beautiful girls of whom he loved very much. Just the thought of someone hurting them sent him into a burning rage. He could not even fathom the thought of losing earthier of them. Let alone hurt them himself.

He thought of Sara his youngest. She was such a little thing that could not defend her own self if her life depended on it, or Amy his middle sweet and intelligent.

Then in a rush he thought of young Mia. His oldest daughter had to be in the same grade as the Vice's son. They both had just finished their ninth year. It was sad to think of how much Mia needed him at this point. The point in her life where growing up has never been so scary and exciting. She was to receive her permit to drive in the fall. Boys were beginning to flirt with her and she too flirted back. Her body had gone through its biggest changes and she was so beautiful. Much like her mother was at that age.

He was now so thankful for his wife. After thirty year's he was proud to say he was a faithful man and she was as well. He wanted to go home and make passionate love to her. They hadn't in a long time and it was pleasing to think that that woman could still get him going.

He had such a beautiful family. They were perfect in his eyes and he was thanking God a whole lot more than he had been. He had to go home to his wife. But first he had to find the Vice girl and tell her the news. The thought had his gut doing all kinds of flips and turns. God help him. He prayed all the way to the Rodgers family home, where the girl was playing a game of tag with her friends. He immediately saw the resemblance with her mother. But she was questioning whether the girl on the lawn of the Rodgers home was kin to Mr. Vice at all.

There was no indication that that was Mr. Vice's daughter. Her skin tone was a light golden color. She had dark blonde hair that was cut short and looked rather silly. Her body even though she was only fifteen had the curves of a woman breast were plan there and it was obvious that she was a natural bloomer. He saw that she had light brown eyes. They reminded him of Mrs. Vice. She looked so free. She was young and beautiful. And Mr. Vice, his father was a short chunky dark skinned man with oily black hair and dark brown eyes.

She was from what he saw the most assertive girl out there. She had from what it seemed a curtain resilience about her you could see right away. It was indeed very funny to watch as the she would catch the ball run it down the yard. Score and then trash talk like no other. Her language was awful but it was entertaining. The father of the Rodgers boy was watching from the porch seeming to get as much enjoyment as Officer Briggs himself was.

Suddenly he realized that this girl's life was literally altered to the point of no return. That the smiling trash talking kid across the street was about to hit an ugly curb and everything was going to come crashing down. And she didn't even know it. She had no clue that he had just lost everything she held dear to her.

Officer Briggs decided it be best he speak with Mr. Rodgers first. He stepped from his car and the cool summer breeze met him. The sun was beginning to get hot and he was regretting his all black uniform already. He walked slowly and patiently trying to by his time to find out just what the hell he was to say to this man. His gut was about to give way.

Yes he had told families that a death had happened before. He was a town deputy for Christ sakes but this was way more than he had ever done. He was about to tell a man of whom had no connection to this young lady that he knew if that the girl had been orphaned at around five o'clock this morning and he needed to take her with him. A simple task you'd think. But it was told that this man's son was Lilly Vice's best friend. And that meant he knew this her well. And no matter who he was, he was a parent and this was an awful situation to be put in for both him and Officer Briggs.

The man seemed to notice his appearance and stood from the porch step. He sat his coffee mug casually on the railing and crossed his arms across his chest. He was a built man but he looked to be all business. He was much bigger than Officer Briggs and obviously an athlete of some sort. Officer Briggs sighed and noticed the children had slowed their game and looked to him as well. There were others there. All of them had to be from the area.

He sighed at the sky and said, "Are you Kin Rodgers?" Mr. Rodgers face seemed to change from a casual form to a sudden nervous glace. He seemed to be wondering just what the hell Officer Briggs could possibly want. He nodded and took a deep breath.

Officer Briggs motioned to the house and fallowed the man inside a very large yet empty house that looked simple and neat. He could already tell that no women lived here. And he was right because Mr. Rodgers was a single man. He sat down and Mr. Rodgers joined him.

"OK so I came here to talk to you about Lilly Vice." Officer Briggs said. The man nodded to the window where you could see her laughing with a boy. Officer Briggs nodded back. "This is a rather delicate matter at hand and I would like to please as you Mr. Rodgers to stay calm, I have my orders." The man shifted awkwardly trying to brace himself.

"Mr. Vice had an episode this morning at around five o'clock. He found out his wife was having an affair…" "Ok and how does that have anything to do with me or Lilly?" he said coldly. It was interesting to Mr. Briggs at how he had said "Me and..." a statement that seemed to have a fairly deep meaning. Mr. Briggs waved the comment away and continued.

"He seemed to have had a moment of insanity and ended up killing both his wife and his daughter… and a young girl who just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong…Mr. Rogers?" Mr. Rodgers had doubled over and began to cry. The sudden outburst left the tiny area suddenly very uncomfortable and cramped. He waited for him to gain his composer.

"What happened?" he asked over and over. He was hurting and Briggs did not know what to do. He had no desire to reach out and hold the man like he did often with mourning wives or mothers. But he had a feeling even if he did the man would not like that very much anyways. Finally he gained control and looked to the window.

"I have to tell her." he stated as simple as he had sat his coffee mug down earlier. It was stated as casually as any statement which was his way of saying that Officer Briggs was to not be present during that time; and that was not going to be easy considering that he had direct orders to bring Lilly back with him. But after several minutes of discussion they decided the best way to approach the situation.

Mr. Rodgers called everyone in and Mr. Briggs sat down in the kitchen. Lilly entered with her friend's and they all sat. They were all boys. This surprised Briggs. His girls really only talked to other girls. "Bryan I want you to go to your room and I want the rest of you to go home. Lilly stays here so we can talk." he looked sternly at all. The boys seemed to notice the tension and quickly left. Lilly's friend Bryan lingered but left at his father's hard glance. Mr. Briggs noticed that the boy didn't completely disappear but lingered in the hallway. He listened, "Lilly sweetheart I'm sorry but…" the next words fell like water and crumpled everything beneath it. Lilly was quite for several seconds and Mr. Briggs could hear the Bryan breathing quickly behind the wall. Then it all came undone and Lilly screamed. She began to cry and actually lash out at Mr. Rodgers. The insults came out like daggers in between every sentence of calling him a Fucking liar! And don't touch me! It was awful to watch but it looked as if Lilly was coming on a little stronger than Mr. Rodgers had planned for and Mr. Briggs had to step in to stop her before she got to out of hand.

It was much like grabbing hold of a wild horse. She was strong and took a lot to hold on to. She was outraged and hurt but the men in the room couldn't fix it. There was just no help and the little girl did this for what seemed like hours. Eventually she settled and all that was left was the destroyed kitchen and four crying people. At some point Bryan had joined to calm his friend but the he seemed to be in shock and began crying just as hard as Lilly. It was this scene that sent Briggs into his own batch of tears and Mr. Rodgers had already been crying for a good hour.

They finally got her down and Briggs had him pinned to his chest. His arms rapped firmly around her chest in a very hard grip of which he was sure to leave her little body with some bruises. Mr. Rodgers had her legs pinned and Bryan was sitting far away where his father had told him to go when Lilly actually began to throw things and hit people. She seemed to be in shock now. Trying to grab hold of her breathing and began to calm her quite shaking. Briggs could feel her heart against him. Fast and insanely off beat. It was the beat of a broken heart. A child with absolutely nothing left. It was horrible and terrifying and Mr. Briggs was on the verge of breaking. Finally they got her to the police station where she was forced to identify the bodies of her mother, her father and her three year old sister. The mother of the other child was there and watched she snapped all over again. She rushed to hold her and they both screamed together in such agony that the people around them cried. The world seemed like a black hole that day and everyone had been swallowed by it. Reporters came like bugs to a light bulb at night and it just seemed to never end. How? How seemed like a fucking joke at this point.

After several months of hard work and tons of paperwork, Lilly's case went before a judge and in the end it was decided that Lilly would be put under state custody but be put in the care of Mr. Rodgers. He was not put in school right away, and was given therapists, a sociologist, doctor and a very high prescription for PTSD. She had major signs of depression and an increased temper and nightmares. And her condition kept getting worse.

Officer Briggs was given the position as Sherriff and is worked daily but still managed to check in on her every once in a while. Lilly was always trying to forget. But the town remembers well and will not let her forget.

"Dad what the heck does this mean!'' he laughed and picked up the thin piece of paper that contains the content of Mia's homework. He laughed heartedly, suddenly feeling very proud of his A+ in his algebra classes. He had always done well in high school. He smiled at this.

He explained quickly knowing that Mia would have no troubles with this. It was exciting how her little green eyes lit up once she realized how it worked. He felt like a cool dad. "So how is little Chloe doing?" he asked as they sat for dinner.

"She's ok. They are letting her go home tomorrow. But she can't come to school for a while. The painkillers she's on won't be a good idea in gym. So she's staying home for another week or so. Why Daddy?" she looked at her father in a blunt motion. Her face went blank.

He knew she was hiding something. But he did not want to become involved. This was the third time this year that Mia's best friend Chloe has been in the hospital for serious injury. He had met her mother and father.

They were both seemingly strange people. Tom Chad a stern, quite and harsh man with big bulging eyes and a rotted smile. Then there was Martha Chad his wife a rather ugly thin woman who was timid and never spoke. She often always stared at her feet and hissed silently to her children.

These people reflected nothing on their children. Chloe was a very sweet girl who was a very pretty girl. She was often soft spoken and smiled all the time. And their son Michael was a small hyper boy who laughed at everything.

Chloe and he seemed very close, a lot closer than they should be. He knew it was not inbred by blood or law considering they were not brother and sister and their parents weren't married but it was still strange. They were like brother and sister but he had seen them kiss and touch in such a manner that was not appropriate at all. Though he kept silent about Chloe most of the time he was very worried about her and hoped that he would not have to intervene. It seemed now with the way it was going he had no choice. There was something very wrong with that situation and Chloe was not safe. It was time he did his job and got it under control.

He would not bring it up at the dinner table but he was going to do it. It needed to be addressed and as Sherriff he had no choice. He smiled at his happy little girls all around him. He was dreading that the conversation with Mia was going to go very bad. Deep down he truly did not want to know what was going on. He hated dealing with those cases. He had a tendency to become too involved and that always got to his better judgment. It was just different with kids.

He looked at his wife in his thoughts. Suddenly lost in her big blue eyes as she glanced up and he winked. She blushed and went to help her daughter with cutting her meat.

He loved that woman. How the hell he got her. He had no idea but she was his and he loved her. There was honestly no one else in the world for him. How could his marriage still have desire in it? He did not see how it was strange that he enjoyed sleeping with his wife. He was only thirty-nine and believed he still had some good years left in him. In fact he wanted more children. And making love with his women was just the amazing part of his marriage. He winked at her again and she shook her head but nodded. He felt like a teenager all over again. Excitement hit him and he couldn't wait till the girls went to bed.

After a very long shower he found his wife lying on the bed. She was already naked and waiting. He laughed jumped to the bed. She giggled as he landed nearly throwing her off the bed.

"Still as sexy as I was in high school honey." he teased as he removed his boxers. She laughed gently and pulled his shirt off.

"No you are sexier. I don't know if I want a teenager again. They make me feel old as it is. I like my man. He's a man not a boy. Besides I dig the chest hair. I remember when you shaved it but of course that's when you worked out. Ha-ha!" she rolled and bared herself.

He looked at his chest. It wasn't that bad but the belly made him frown. He had gotten chunky sense high school. Their used to be abs there and now it was a big keg. It was bulging out as if he were six months along in pregnancy. He frowned.

"I blame this on your cooking." he said and shook his fat. She bit her lip and shook her head.

"I'm sorry love would you like me to stop cooking for you. I can stop cooking you breakfast dinner if you like."

"No but you better enjoy this cause it's going downhill from here." but instead of laughing she looked up at him with total adoration and love. She lay down and waited. He nodded and enveloped her.

"I love you Sherriff Briggs. I love you so much." she wrapped her legs around his waist as he brushed her blonde curls from her cheekbones. She was right he loved her more now than ever. He really didn't want to be a teenager again. She was so beautiful now. He said nothing but kissed her passionately. Now knowing that forever needed to be a whole lot longer.

Chapter 2

The call came at around five in the afternoon…It was loud demanding. Lilly woke up with a bad feeling in her stomach. It was her mother asking her if she was alright. She said of course. Her best friend slept loudly in the corner. He had always snored. Her mom had an alarmed sound in her voice. She sounded scared. Lilly asked her if she was ok. She said she was fine and asked if she wanted to stay the night again. Lilly said yes. Of course! She laughed and told Lilly she loved her. She said she loved her no matter what and that she was the most beautiful girl in the world. She said that she was a strong woman already and I was going to be a wonderful mom. Then she said your father…then the phone clicked.

The way she said was not normal. She could hear her little sister crying in the background. Feeling oddly awkward in the silence of the bedroom she went to the living room. It was not empty. Her friend's dad was sitting in his chair. He looked up as soon as she came in.

"Hey punk what are you doing up so early?" he said lighting a smoke and taking a long drag. She laughed at this. Lilly thought he was the coolest person in the world. He had the best sense of humor in the world and she could talk to him about anything. She often wished her dad was more like Kim. He was so open and fun. He had an eye for sports and found humor in things that her father would never.

He was more like her then her own dad was. Her father would not ever hug her. He seldom patted her and he was quite, withdrawn and cold as stone. Kim would actually cuddle with Lilly. Witch she thought she was too big for that now but it was nice as a kid. He held her as they watched TV. She would lie on his shoulder and he would always have his arm over her neck. It was a good feeling. Her father had a phobia of touching her. So she felt that any emotion being shown from men or boys was wrong. It was not allowed to cry or touch or hug another boy or man. Kim had thoroughly argued with this. He stated that men were allowed to hug young girls and even a kiss them. Showing affection teaches them how to control their emotions better. Her father eventually said nothing.

Kim had a large impact on the Vice family. He was always there and she saw him all the time. She never quite understood why but she never fought with this. Kim's presence was just part of her life and her best friend was his son. She had never thought to put two and two together never truly wanted to. She had often noticed the resemblance. their looks were almost alike. They had the same tone of skin and eye color. they both had naturally deep voices and I had some of the same facial structure. She was just as athletic and even had a similar personality. But she never came to such a conclusion as to think that Kim was her father.

The closeness he had to her was through Bryan. She had known them sense she was a baby. she was born seven months before Bryan. It made no sense. His mother died giving birth to him how she could be Bryan's sister. My mother was married to Mr. Vice before she was born…wasn't she.

In the end it was not Kim who told Lilly. The truth was discovered through the court; without even realizing it. It was just assumed that Lilly was aware that the reason Kim had such a say in her life was because he was Bryans dad. She did not know the name written on her birth card was his. He was even there the night in the hospital when she was born. It had been him all along. And it was just a reading of her birth certificate that gave this away.

"It is the right decision by the court that custody of Lillian Mitchell Vice will be placed in custody of her biological father Kim Bourn Rodgers until she is eighteen years of age. His former guardianship will placed with all care such as medical billing, schooling, and provider to Lillian. He will have all rights to legally ask for complete guardianship with a DNA test and if he pleases so all custody will placed from the courts to Mr. Kim. Do we have any question before we begin with our next case?"

It was a very cold hard storm that took over the quite little sanctuary in the court that morning. Kim sat across the table. His eyes seemed blank as he stared at his daughter. He knew just as well as she did what had just happened. The truth had come out. The truth that for some reasons everyone was trying to keep from her. Why? He didn't know anymore. Kim had a say from the start. He was on her birth certificate. Why hadn't they told her? The entire world was nothing but her and him. Did Bryan know too? No. Was she truly his daughter? Yes she was and he had known the whole time. Her mom knew and her so called father knew! Everyone knew and they lied to her… The car ride was a quiet and uncomfortable one. He sat trying to figure out just what the hell to say to her. He looked at her every few seconds. She didn't look back. He wasn't sure if I should be angry or happy or what. She simply watched to grass blend with the pavement as they sped down the highway. It was so bright outside and deep down he wished it would rain. It felt like they were the only sad people in the world. They were so alone.

Don't cry, don't you dare cry. She said to herself over and over. Holding on to the last little bit that was her life. No emotion, no emotion. Remember what dad said. But he wasn't my dad! He was just another man my mom was fucking. Some guy who killed my whole family. There was no blood there and she now suddenly understood why he didn't buy her things and hug her like he did Lydia. She wasn't even his kid. I was just a lie and he knew it. Do not cry! "Lilly…" Kim said reaching out to her, to hold her. The car was stopped in front of the house and Bryan was inside. I can't do this. She pulled back hard. The glass hit her head. Kim jumped in fear that she was hurt. But she pulled back. She was going to fight him.

"Lilly baby please listens to me!" he screaming grabbing her shoulders. He felt tears pour down his cheeks. His chest felt like he had bricks on it. No he thought over and over. He was crying to. He was trying to hold her. Trying to fix what was already fucked up and wrong. He was already losing. "No! Let me go! I hate you, I hate you so much. You lied to me. You bastard! Don't touch me! STOP…" he continued as she tried to unlock the car door. He was getting more force behind his grab and she was getting angry. She fumbled with the lock but it wouldn't budge. He suddenly felt a rush of air she turned and punched him right in his nose. The blood gushed and he jerked. She then pulled the lock. The ground appeared beneath her as she fell from the seat. Kim jolted up and bolted. But she was already there. She started running inside the house and up the stairs. He yanked her down to the grown with hard force. He felt suddenly guilty knowing he'd just physically hurt her. She turned to him on her back in utter rage as his legs placed themselves on top of her. Hoping she would not hit him again.

"How long has this been going on? How long have you been fucking my mother? It must have been nice. You must have loved knowing that you got away with it. Did you really…think that I wouldn't have found out? Did you think that I would have never seen my own birth certificate? I can't believe this. Who would have thought that you were such a coward as to pretend you loved me but lie to me. Fuck get off of me now!

"It must have been so shameful to know that you cheated on your wife and then abandoned your baby to have a kid with her instead. So how did it happen? HUH? Did you just decide that you would make a better father to your wife's kid than my mom's? Huh?"

"I loved your mother!" "No you didn't and you didn't love me!" "No Lilly I do. Listen to me!" "No it must have been so embarrassing to know that you had a baby with the biggest whore in town! That's why you lied to me. Isn't it? You didn't want me. I was just a kid you saw that had to deal with in some way. You just wanted Bryan huh? I was nothing to you! Just the offspring of a mistake you made with the town slut!"

"Fuck you Kim! I am not your kid no matter what that test says. I'm nobody's kid. I was just a fuck up! So fuck you, fuck her and fuck him! In fact fuck everyone my mom had ever spread her legs for…" Bam, bam! It was extremely painful. Her blows were like being hit by a truck. She punched him several times. He was shocked at her power behind those blows but even more by how much it hurt him on the inside. There was no fixing this.

"Get off me!" but he didn't so she just hit him again. He knew that he could not give into this tantrum no matter how much he felt for her. He was a grown man and could not take this abuse from her. She was still a child and he was the adult.

Finally she gave in. In fear that he would break her body he rose slowly. She closed her eyes and her mouth beginning to calm her breathing. He realized it was over and picked her up. She did not weigh too much.

She felt like a limp doll. He sat her on the couch but she did not move. She just curled up. He hoped to disappear into the dirt. Fare away into the dirt. Utterly beneath the muck and slimy worm's. Into the rock and insects. Deep into decaying earth. Where she belonged resting with rotting baby sister and whore of a mother.

Kim was breathing heavy and he continued standing over her. He stood looking down at his daughter. He stood thinking about her words. What was she thinking? What did she see? His little reject child that he was stuck with now. It was now his daughter who lay helpless and hated him for that. But he did not yell or scream. He did not ground her actions. That deep down he did not seem to be strong enough to do.

His arms were suddenly around her. Pulling her to his chest where she could hear the loud thumping of his heart. It was loud and pumped the same blood that ran through her veins. He pulled her into his lap like a baby and held her there. It was uncomfortable and she was much too big to be in his lap but he held her there. He smelled like sweat and blood. She tried to pull away but he locked her to his chest and she could feel his sobs and shakes. Then other arms came around her and she felt smothered. She knew it was Bryan and she could already feel him shaking. Bryan had not known but he was just as hurt as she and they needed each other. It wasn't his fault and she didn't want to take it out on him. She wanted to leave. Lilly wanted to go home. She began to scream. Trying to fight but she couldn't move. Her tantrum was over now all that was left is the odd sense of love. But this was love she did not want to accept. She could not end this awful nightmare. "I hate you…" she kept repeating. There was nothing she could say. She wanted to hurt him worse than he had hurt her. she needed him to understand what he had stolen from her but no other words then I hate you existed. Even if they really weren't true… "I'm sorry. I'm sorry guys I love you so much. Bryan I'm sorry." This is all he said to them. It was all he could say. He couldn't fix it. I'm sorry wasn't enough but that's all there was in the end.

The few months that passed were slow. It seemed as if she where trudging through water and it was just getting higher and higher. It was not a friendly feeling. She began to wonder what it would be like to die. Death didn't sound so bad anymore.

She thought about Lydia. She was her little sister who died for no reason at all. She could remember her face so well. Her hair was little dark and curly. She missed her. Lilly missed holding Lydia in her arms. She missed the way she smelled. Lilly could remember her so well. Their memory haunted her.

"Come on Bee. Swim with me's Bee. No be scared!" the dream was awful. Lydia is running toward the water. Lilly feel's so happy. She was at the beach with her family. The sun is hot and feels nice. Lydia was in the water now. The water splashes around her and Lydia smiles at Lilly. She begins calling Lilly to come to her; to swim with her.

"Bee swim's with me Bee. Swim!" she bounces and squeals in utter delight. The water splashes all around and the sun makes her dark skin glow. Lilly begins to laugh at her. She looks so tiny and innocent. She reminds Lilly of a fragile baby. She's only sixty pounds and maybe three foot nine. She laughs and spins in the water. She calls Lilly.

"I'm coming baby! I'm coming. Just give me some time. I have to do something first and then I'll be there. Just give a few more minutes." Lilly says to her as she turns to grab her float. She was surprised to feel happy at this moment. Her Mom and dad are sitting at the bank kissing. It's gross but she says nothing. No one else is around and they don't spend time together anyways. She grabs her headset and begins to walk to the water.

It is then Lilly realizes that she doesn't see Lydia. She looks to the bank. She turns to see Mr. and Mrs. Vice are fighting. Mr. Vice is yelling. Her mother is crying. She's trying to pull the stuff they had brought from his hands. He's gathering it up into a trash bag. Her father is throwing all their belongings away. Lilly screams to them but no sound comes from her. She cannot hear herself.

They don't hear me. She tries again and nothing. I'm scared and they don't hear me. Mr. Vice is getting louder. He's getting too close to her mom. His eyes they don't look right. He begins to get in her face. She's backing up now. Pleading sobbing! Why is he doing this? Stop!

She wants to scream. Leave her alone. She starts run to them. Her father's hand comes across his wife's face. Suddenly Lilly finds her voice. Stop it! She yells. It rattles across the ocean. The railing on the docks begins to shake. They turn and look at her. They say nothing. Their faces are blank and cold. They stand as a statue. Staring at her with such anger…

Suddenly Lilly hears a scream. Lydia! She runs to the beach but does not see her. Lilly can only hear her screams. She continues to look. She begins hoping that someone will come. Come to help her. The sun begins to get hot. She feels so heavy. I can't find her! Fear eats her alive. She shakes in it. Lydia! Lydia where are you! But all she hears is her cries. I can't find her. Oh God where is Lydia. She runs to her parents. They must be able to help. But they stand still and look at her, only now shaking their heads as if she were the bad child. As if she had done something wrong. She stares at them in awe. I can't find Lydia. Something happened to Lydia! Mom dad help please help me find Lydia. They don't move. They don't speak. Abruptly dad shakes his head and throws the trash bag away. He looks at her mom in disgust. Then he shakes his head at Lilly.
"It was her. It was that little bastard. How did you think that this would ever work if she's here? Did you really think I was going to raise this hyper active little bitch that keeps ruining my life? You killed us. You kept her with us. This is her fault! Now you get your ass in the car or you can stay here and drowned with your fucking kids. It's me or her understand?" then he threw his ring to the floor.

Her mother shook her head and fallowed him. WHAT? Where is she going? I still can't find Lydia. Mom! Momma please, Lydia. She didn't care if they wanted her to leave and never come back. She didn't care about them having a divorce or marriage problems. All that mattered was that she found her sister. God please help me find my sister. She was gone and she still hadn't found Lydia. She calls to her mother. She calls Lydia. But she is alone. Alone on the beach! She begins to scream for someone to help. Lydia! God where is my little sister. It all happened very quickly then. The water begins to swell and she sees Lydia. She's in the water and it goes to her waist. It splashes around her and she's turned away from Lilly. She's slapping her hands against the top of the water. In a rush Lilly runs to her in utter joy. I'm not alone anymore. I have Lydia. And now I can take her away and we can go to Kim's. He can help. She feels the water touch her. She cannot help but scream. It's like stepping into needles. It's freezing and she's almost instantly paralyzed from the cold. She realizes now that Lydia is shaking. The water is too cold. Her little body is almost white now and she has stopped splashing. Lydia?

She pushes her body through the water. She Forces herself to go deeper and deeper in to the utter hell. She had to save Lydia. The cold could kill her. It is strange that the water is so cold. When the weather is so warm. She didn't understand.

Finally she gets to her sister. The rocks have cut her feet and she can feel the pain of her unknown wounds. She doesn't have the time to look at them. she needs to get Lydia and get out of the water. Her breast feels as if they might fall off. Lilly picks her up quickly. Gathering her sister and trying to warm her. She turns Lydia to look at her. Red liquid slashes form on to her. She screams in horror. Lydia's face is blown off. The right portion of her little face is gone leaving a large gaping hole. It's dripping with blood and maggots. They crawl all around her little head and some of her brain falls onto Lilly's skin. Lilly's entire body is drenched in blood. All the water around her is red. She is in a river of blood. She looks at her sister. She feels tears. Her rotted little hands grab Lilly's shoulders and she lays her slimy body onto her. She squeezes Lilly in a tightly gripped hug.

"Don't leave Bee. Stay and swim with me. It feels nice huh? You should stay here with me forever. Don't you love me Bee? Don't you? Daddy hurt me…"

Her eyes flashed open, waking up in a cold sweat, and her hair sticking around her face. She has had the same nightmare since that faithful day. It did not take long before Lilly's mind began to go off the deep end. Finally she lost it and swallowed to bottles of bleach. Luckily her biological father was there and got her to the hospital just in time. She had spent the last three months. In God's Hands Hospital that was located only three hours in the middle of nowhere. A community mental hospital held by a catholic church.

She was no closer to God then she was to her new father. Her life was fucked up and crazy and she would rather die than live in it much longer. At school everyone stared at her. Her teachers pitied her. Her brother hated her. She had no one and the memory of her family was none ending. How could the world have done this? This world was hell and this church was her cell. She had no escape. Or did she?

"It's my birthday Sister Marry." Lilly said to her house keep as she walked in. She had received no call. It was sad for Lilly to be in the hospital and not with her friends. It was her sweet sixteen. A girl only turns sixteen once. She was supposed to be driving and throwing a huge party with a pool and a big cake that had her name on it. She didn't have that though. Instead she had a gift card from the former youth ministers and a bag of candy from the staff. They had told her that they weren't going to be singing to her because it made others feel unimportant. She was being forced to share the cake her grandmother had brought her. This made tears fall. The cake was small and she only had a few bites to have of her own cake.

Sister Marry smiled down at her. Her heart shaped face creased. She took deliberate steps to sit on the bed but then stopped shy of the action. She reached out and touched Lilly's hand. It was rough from unknown work and felt like smooth leather. She smiled at Lilly a tear falling. And in the awkward silence that had overtaken the small primitive room she began to sing, "Happy birthday to you. Happy Birthday to you, Happy birthday dear Lilly, happy birthday to you…"

Tears began to fall like rain. Lilly laughed a little. Her singing had been so awful but it lifted her heart. Thank you she mouthed and gripped her into a tight hug. Sister jumped then laughed. She hugged back tightly as well making Lilly feel so special.

"Happy Birthday Lilly, The lord and I love you..."