Novels2Search
A Family Affair
Chapter 5 [Lily]

Chapter 5 [Lily]

I

With revenge firmly implanted in her mind, Lily packed her things away in the backpack. She still felt weak from being sick, but she was ready to get moving. To find Jake, she racked her brain as to where she should look. For a few minutes, Lily was perplexed, but she finally realized that she would need a computer to check online; but where would she find a computer? The library!

To use the computer at the library, she would need a library card. However, she was dead as far as anyone knew. Lily needed an address as well, but that didn’t really matter too much. She knew that she could make one up if she had to, and at least the computer would be available right away.

Lily walked all morning towards where she knew the town to be. She had no idea where the library was, and as soon as she reached the center of town, she made it her goal to ask. A middle-aged man walked down the sidewalk next to her. She turned to him.

“Excuse me.” She started. “Could you please direct me to the library?”

The man turned to her.

“Just go down two blocks,” the man replies, “and take a left. The library is on the right.”

She followed his instructions and found herself in front of the Kirby J. Donaldson Library. Lily pushed the glass door open and walked in. The library smelled of slowly yellowing paper and plastic.

She walked to the front desk and questioned the librarian about getting a library card. The librarian told Lily that she had to simply fill out a form and get her card on the spot. She filled out the form quickly, putting Johnny’s address on the form. Within fifteen minutes, she had a plastic card with her name and Johnny’s address on it.

She walked up the stairs to the right of the counter up to the second floor. At the top of the stairs, a room filled with rows and rows of books greeted Lily. On a few consoles in the center of the room, there were a few computers that were used for both book searches and for research. Lily walked over to one of them and sat down. The computer prompted her for her library card number and her birth date. Within moments she was on the computer and on the Internet.

Her first order of business was to search the social networking sites using her brothers’ names. Nothing came up. Searching for the next few hours yielded only an old article of the two brothers, then 18 and 22, telling the story of hardship and achievement that they both had endured before being accepted into one of the best schools in the nation.

Lily was disgusted by her find. How could her brothers have been so perfect and yet killed her love? Rage filled her to the top. She couldn’t search any more that day, and so she left the library for the next day.

II

Lily returned to the library around noon the next day. She sat down at the computer and began her search. She had the same problem she had the previous day. Where in the world was he? Johnny’s town was about two hundred miles from where she’d grown up. The records here only covered the immediate area.

Where would Lily need to look after this? Her hometown? It was beginning to look as if Jake was not living here. She would need to try somewhere else, and she would need to find that place quickly.

Starting tomorrow, she would head to her hometown to look for her brother. At least she might have a shot there. Lily got up from the computer and headed back towards her campsite. She made sure to erase her tracks and moved to a new camp just a mile from the train station.

III

The next morning, Lily got up early and packed her belongings away. She hiked the mile to the train station and paid for a ticket to her hometown. The ticket was expensive, and it left her nearly broke. She would have enough money for food for another few days, but no more. Lily had the gun taken apart and stowed in the backpack. At least no one would see it when she was travelling.

She sat down on a bench next to the tracks and waited for the train. It pulled up about half an hour later, and she boarded. The two hundred mile journey would take at least three or four hours with all the stops in between.

Lily had never been on a train before, and she was a bit nervous. She put her bag on the rack above her and sat down in her seat. After about a stop, the conductor came by and asked her for her ticket. The conductor made small talk with Lily for a moment to figure out where she was going. The ticket told him, of course, but he was probably just bored at his job. That’s what she thought anyway.

The train rattled down the track slowing down about every half hour to pick up more passengers. The car Lily was in filled and emptied like a big lung at every stop.

There was a lunch car in the train, and Lily made her way back to it. Tables lined the edge of the car by the windows. She sat herself down at one of them; and soon enough, a waiter came over to give her a menu. She looked up and down the menu before ordering a cheeseburger. The burger wasn’t the cheapest thing on the menu, but it was the best bang for her buck.

The food filled Lily up, and she figured that she could not handle the rest of the journey in peace. She headed back to her seat and gazed out the window. The rolling hills she had seen when she left the station before had become steeper and higher. The forest was thicker than it had been as well. Tall pines covered the mountains like the world’s largest lawn.

Lily still had another two hours before she would reach her destination. She didn’t have much to do aside from twiddling her thumbs. She gazed out the window and spaced out to pass the hours away. Only her thoughts of revenge kept her company through the journey.

IV

Lily arrived at her destination thoroughly bored and antsy. She grabbed her bed and walked quickly onto the platform. She knew the land well from her childhood, but some of it had changed since she was last here. The train station used to be on the edge of town, but now buildings surrounded it. The landmarks she knew were gone.

Lily left the station in the direction she remembered the library to be. She had spent much of her childhood there, which got her thinking. She could be recognized there, and that would be problematic. She couldn’t use her name, her address, or her looks. Something would have to change.

Near the library was a bar. Lily had her dresses, one of which was still unworn just in case. She went into a restaurant in town that wasn’t very expensive. She ordered a bit of food and then went to the bathroom with her bag. The lingerie and dress went onto her body, and she was ready for the fun later tonight.

V

Lily spent the next few hours preparing camp for two days in the future. A simple lean-to with a fire pit out front would be sufficient for now. She could always improve her conditions later, but for now, she had one goal: kill her two brothers.

Nighttime had fallen before Lily walked into the bar. She made sure to sit alone at the bar and show off as much of her body as possible without being indecent in the extreme. She pretended not to see the men looking at her, staring at her. Lily kept sipping her drink and showing more skin until finally one of the men got the guts to come up to her.

He was a smooth talking young man that she guessed was in his late twenties. He talked to her for a few minutes, small talk mostly. The man then put his arm around her and led her out of the bar to his car. Lily could tell that he was either engaged or married by the gold ring on his finger. That was even better since there might be the possibility of having two meals.

The man lived in a medium-sized house near the center of town. He led her inside and into the bedroom on the first floor. The room was dark, even when the man turned the lights on. Odd instruments covered the walls and the bed. One of the objects was bolted to the wall and looked like an “X.” Red stains covered the object in places that looked like wrist and foot holds.

Unlike the time before, Lily was a bit scared. This man was someone that had to be dealt with sooner rather than later. She would have to make her move now before he got control of the situation. She did. Lily attempted to yank her hand from the man’s grasp, but it only pulled him a little off balance.

This works I guess. She thought.

She stepped towards the man and punched hard with her other hand. The blow hit home and the effect was immediate. The man dropped to his knees groaning in pain. He let go of her hand and clutched his groin. Lily faced the man and kicked him in the face as hard as she could, hoping to knock him out before getting to work. The man did not, but he grabbed at her legs and fought back. Lily ran out of the room with the man staggering behind her

The kitchen was by the front door. She grabbed the largest knife she could find and waited for the man to come into the room. He rounded the corner in a scary rage. Lily charged at him with the knife and dug it into him between his ribs. She took it out and stabbed him again. Again. Again. Again. Blood poured from the man as he slumped to the ground, dead.

Before Lily could admire her handiwork, a scream echoed off the walls. The wife or fiancé was standing in the archway to the kitchen. Lily was there covered in blood completely with the knife in her hands. She couldn’t risk being discovered before she’d killed her brothers. As much as she didn’t want to, this woman just had to die.

Lily covered the ground between her and the woman in a flash, imbedding the knife into her all the way to the hilt. There was no scream, no sound except for the dull thud of the dead body hitting the ground. The slow drip, drip, of the blood sounded like a leaky faucet.

By now, it was too late for Lily to go to the library for research. She would have to spend the night here, among the dead bodies. First though, she would need to find whatever money there was. Before that though, a shower was in order.

VI

Lily woke up the next morning relaxed and well rested. She had slept in the couple’s bedroom after taking a long hot shower. She was naked in bed——her clothes were still wet in the washing machine. She got out of bed and put on some of the wife’s clothes she found in the closet. The clothes weren’t her size, but they sure kept her warm for the time it took to dry the clothes.

Instead of getting out of what she was wearing, Lily decided to search the house for things she could use. She started with the bedroom and then worked her way through the rest of the house systematically. In one of the drawers of the bedroom, she found a small handgun. That would be much easier than the rifle to kill her brothers——much more up close and personal. Aside from some spare change around the house, the place was devoid of money. The only place she had left to look was the bodies.

Lily turned the wife over and pulled her handbag off of her arm. The outside was covered in dried blood. When she opened it, she saw a wallet. Inside the wallet, Lily saw a thick stack of cash. That would help for a while at least, but maybe the man had more. She checked his body for the wallet, but there wasn’t much in there. She guessed he spent it all at the bar anyways.

Blood covered Lily’s body from dealing with the bodies. She needed another shower before she got dressed back into her clothes. She made sure to clean all the places that the blood had stuck to. Lily dressed in her favorite dress. She made sure to disguise her appearance with makeup that she found in the bathroom. She put the money into her pocket and walked out the door. The house was only about half of a mile from the library.

When she got to the library, Lily completed the same steps to get a card that she had before at the other library. The disguise worked, because she recognized one of the women working there, but the woman did not recognize her. She took the laminate card and found the computer section for her research.

Though she spent most of the day searching, Lily found no results that satisfied her criteria. Neither Ed nor Jake could be found here. It was another dead end. She couldn’t do anything about it today, but maybe she could find results somewhere else, but where?

That question bugged Lily on her way home. When she got to her camp, she lit the fire and warmed herself. She had a bit of food left, and it filled her up just nicely. By the time she planned to sleep, it was late. The question still dogged her, and made sleep very difficult for her. Sleep did come at last.

VII

Within moments of starting her troubled sleep, Lily slipped into a dream. It wasn’t so much a dream as it was an old memory. She saw Jake standing in the kitchen next Ed. They were much younger in this scene with Jake about five and Ed about nine. They were talking about their dreams for the future.

“I’d like to be a pilot,” Ed was telling Jake, “that way I can zoom in and save the day!”

Ed was obviously excited. He always acted first and asked questions later, especially when he was younger. He probably would have been a good pilot if he hadn’t decided to become a hunter. He won’t be able to fly away from her wrath. He would die along with Jake. Lily flicked her attention back to the conversation at hand.

“I’m gonna be an artist.” Jake said simply.

“Are you going to have a pen name or something?” Ed asked.

“Yeah.”

“What name?”

“Lee W. James.”

That’s a good name for you Jake. She remembered herself thinking back then.

A good name my ass. Came the retort from now.

Lily slipped back into her deep sleep. The memory flashed out of her mind as soon as it had entered.

VIII

By the time Lily woke up the next morning, she had forgotten the dream from the night before. She started packing all of her things into her backpack. She would go back to the library one last time to figure out where she would go. There was nothing else to do.

The walk to the library was pleasant but cold. It was almost the beginning of November now. Most of the trees had shed their leaves, but it was still a beautiful sight. Lily made her way to the computers and started looking for a place to go.

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Something in the back of her head was trying to get out. What was it? Pictures came back to her in bits and pieces. Two people in a kitchen talking, one laughing and then the other, what was going on?

After a few moments, it hit her. The two in the room were Ed and Jake. The memories flooded back to her. Ed hadn’t said anything useful, but Jake? He gave her an idea. He had said he would like to use a pseudonym as an artist. What was it again? Jake had said ‘Lee W. James,’ and that would be good enough to go on, or so she hoped.

Lily typed the name into the computer to look up that name instead. Within moments, the results came back. There was a hit! She clicked on it, and the picture of her brother was there, albeit a much older brother than she remembered from childhood.

His address was nearby, but still would be a day or two ‘till she got there. Once she was done with Jake, she would have to find Ed. He was probably going to be harder to find, but she would keep trying until he died!

Lily left the library immediately. She made sure that she had his address in her backpack when she left. The hours of walking went by quickly because her anger pushed her onwards. The fate of two people would combine in a very short while, just as Lily wanted.

Before long, she found his address. She decided to set up her camp in the woods just above Jake’s house. She would stake out the house to see how she wanted to finally get even, but that would have to wait for the next day. It was getting late now, and Lily was tired from walking all day. She climbed into her small hut, looking out one last time. The moon was low on the horizon, but there was an obvious halo around it.

Rain. She thought. It’ll rain in a few days. I have to make sure that the hut is waterproof tomorrow.

With that thought, Lily nodded off to sleep.

IX

The next morning came late——low-lying clouds blocked the sun for over an hour past its rise. Lily roused herself on the first sign of light; but by then, the car in the driveway had left. Her brother was already gone. This gave her ample time to do some investigating of the house.

The house was one story, shaped kind-of like a box. There were two doors, one on the side, and one at the front. The front door had one concrete step leading up to it, but the side door had none. The roof was steeply pitched with the eves hanging far past the walls. The back of the place housed a large pile of wood for the fireplace connected to the brick chimney. Lily gazed in the various windows to see what was inside. The end of the right side of the house was the main bedroom. It wasn’t very big, but big enough for two people to sleep comfortably. The end on the left side housed a small den with a television. Next to that room was the bathroom, and in the front on the left side, there was the kitchen. The rest of the right side was a large living room with a piano at one end and the fireplace at the other.

In her head, Lily began to formulate a plan of action on how to come in for the attack. The front door was easiest because of its distance from the bedroom. The door looked flimsy, probably enough that she could pick the lock. The kitchen would be the perfect place to enter too because it afforded her access to the knives in case she had to use any of them.

With the plan safely in her head, Lily made her way back towards the hut she’d made the night before. It was far enough back in the woods that she couldn’t see the house, far enough that Jake wouldn’t be able to see or hear her. She scrounged around to find something to waterproof the shed with. There really wasn’t much available considering the time of year, but she eventually found a few evergreen trees. The branches provided very good rain protection when used as thatching.

By the time Lily was done, it was starting to get dark. She lit her fire and put some food above it. She would need to get more tomorrow. She walked to the edge of the woods, about a quarter mile away and watched the driveway. After a short time, Jake pulled up in his car. She only knew he pulled in because the sky was obscured with thick clouds. It was going to rain the next day.

Jake got out of the car, and Lily watched as he crossed the yard and opened the front door. Satisfied, she left and went back to her hut to hunker down for the night. Something sparked in her mind as she reached the hut. She grabbed the food from the top of the fire. It was hot but not burned. Lily sat down and ate while thinking about her idea again. She would need to get rope too when she went out shopping, maybe some more things, but it would be an amazing thing that happened the next day. Jake was going to die, and he was going to die in the most spectacular fashion possible!

Lily discarded the tin that had held her food and crawled into the hut. She lay down and looped up at the top of her hut. The flickering light of the fire made the shadows dance like in some arcane ritual. She closed her eyes and smiled. Tomorrow would be a wonderful day. Joy touched every ounce of her person as consciousness slipped away. Her task would be half complete tomorrow. Finally, she would have her revenge.

X

Lily got up relatively early the next morning. Jake’s car was still in the driveway when she snuck along the edge of the forest to stay out of view. Finally, she reached the road and walked towards the center of town. The journey took her nearly two hours, by which time it had started drizzling.

The sky was dark, and it felt as though it wasn’t much past dawn. Despite the feeling, Lily knew it was much later——perhaps around ten in the morning. The center of town was filled with little shops, many of which hadn’t existed when she was here last. The first order of business was to find a hardware store. She could find some of the supplies she needed there.

On Main Street West, there was a small family-run store. It had been there for years. Lily’s disheveled appearance made her unrecognizable as she entered the place. She found what she was looking for quickly, paid for it and left.

The bag was pretty heavy, and she emptied the contents onto the side of the road after some time. She took the rope and tied one end to a bucket she had bought, and then she placed a screwdriver that she had also purchased inside the bucket. Lily slung the rope over her shoulders, which greatly reduced the strain on her body. The rest of the walk to the hut went by rather slowly. It was boring to walk for hours; it made Lily feel lonely and lost. The only thing that kept her sane was the thought of revenge but a few short hours away.

When she returned to Jake’s house, the car was gone. She ran across the yard and into the trees to safety. The hut was dry inside, but she was soaked. The fire had gone out in her absence, but that didn’t matter too much. It might be hard to start another one, but she would be much warmer tonight.

Hours passed in the gloomy afternoon. Lily felt nothing but the seething rage about to boil out.

In time, she kept telling herself, in time…

The dark day seemed only to get darker as the day progressed. Laughter broke Lily’s concentration. She walked out of her hut to the edge of the woods to see what was going on. What she saw shocked her. Jake was walking through the rain carrying suitcases with someone else. She couldn’t make the other person out very well, but it looked to be his woman. That really made her mad. Why should he have a woman after he killed John?!

Lily wanted to go out now, to kill them both where they stood, but she pushed the rage back inside. That wouldn’t happen now. Oh no. She had better plans. She smiled on the way back to her hut. Both of them would die tonight, that was for sure. They would both die in perfect agony.

The next few hours passed quickly. The sun set and darkness fell even thicker around the house. The wind kicked up and the rain started blowing sideways, pelting like tiny dull needles into her skin as Lily basked in the glory of the storm. She calmly walked to Jake’s car with the rope and her backpack. She emptied the bucket of water. It was still attached to the rope. With the screwdriver, Lily punctured the gas tank of his car, and let the contents drain into the bucket.

From there, Lily walked to the front door and slid the knife from the backpack through the thin slot between the door and the jam. The knife separated the lock from the jam, and the door slid open with a slight creak. Lily slipped in and immediately stripped. Her clothes were soaking and she felt miserable. The backpack had kept her spare clothes dry enough that they wouldn’t bother her. She slipped on some new underwear and a red dress.

Lily walked over to the kitchen counter and looked around. The wooden knife rack was next to the microwave. The time read one fifteen in the morning. Not a sound emanated from any of the rooms. The silence was only broken by the occasional scratching of a mouse in the attic. Lily took a knife from the rack. It was a long serrated bread knife——perfect for ripping and tearing. She put the knife in her left hand, and put the pistol in her right. Just to be safe.

She silently crept down the hall, quietly opening the last door on the right. A nail creaked in its home, scaring Lily. Did they hear? She stopped for a moment. Nothing.

Good, she thought, I haven’t been discovered.

Lily crawled up next to the right side of the bed to see who was there. It was the woman. The lack of light made her features indistinguishable from the background.

It’s a pity, she thought while looking at the woman’s figure, she could have been a beautiful bride for another man.

Lily licked the blade of the knife in anticipation of the bloodbath to follow. She brought it up against the woman’s throat. There was a moment of hesitation, and then she pushed it hard at the same time as she pulled it across. A warm liquid gushed from the wound, along with an odd rasping sound. It only took about ten seconds for the woman to die——a nearly painless death.

Lily didn’t know why she’d killed the woman in such a mundane way, but she supposed that she had a little bit of compassion for the woman. After all, it really wasn’t her fault that Jake had killed John, but dead women don’t tell tales.

Lily turned her attention to the other body in the bed. Jake was still sleeping soundly, despite his woman’s death. She climbed across his body and looked at her brother. He looked like he didn’t have a care in the world, but he also looked attractive in a sadistic sort of way. She brushed his forehead with the tips of her fingers.

Jake moved slightly at the touch. He rubbed his eyes and gave a quizzical look. He moved his left hand and felt the body of his dead woman. The expression on his face changed immediately. His right hand made a motion towards the night table next to the bed. Lily slapped the gun down on his wrist to stop him.

“You’re not going anywhere,” she said.

Taking the gun off of his wrist where she had it pinned, Lily brought the gun up and then swung it down hard onto Jake's head, knocking him out cold. She took the rope and tied his hands and feet to the bed in a spread-eagle position. He wasn’t going anywhere until she was done. And when she was done, the only place he was going was a mortuary. As a final touch, she cut a swatch of fabric from the woman’s clothing and gagged Jake.

Lily left the room. Her hands were soaked in blood. She felt that a shower would be necessary before getting dirty once more. She entered the bathroom and stripped down, careful not to mess up her dress that had miraculously avoided most of the blood. She turned on the shower. The water stung her body for a second when she stood under it. Lily felt as if the hot water was washing away the sins of murder, cleansing her to go back again. She smiled and closed her eyes for a moment.

After about twenty minutes in the shower, she got out and dried her body. Lily felt sleepy and eventually found her way to the couch in the living room. She laid her head down and nodded off.

XI

The faint tendrils of light touched Lily’s face, instantly snapping her awake. The clouds from the night before were gone; the morning sun played across the room with a deep crimson glow. She stood up and walked down the hall. She opened the door and walked into the bedroom. Jake was tied exactly where she had left him earlier.

Lily pulled open the curtains to let in as much light as possible. She left the room to let him wake up while she went to the bathroom. On her return, she found him stirring in the bed. He was awake. His eyes were squinted to see her against the light. Gathering all her rage together, but keeping it under control at the same time, Lily began to speak.

“How many years has it been Jake?” She asked, holding her emotion tightly. “My body hasn’t aged a day, but I have. I’ve experienced things you’d never imagine. There was a time I was even in love, just like you.”

Lily took a deep breath and let her emotions flow outwards.

“You killed my love!” She screamed in his face. “You and Ed will pay for killing my dear John Mackenzie! I started with your girl. You’re next.”

She paused and smiled. With the heat of the emotion gone, her sick plan took its inevitable course.

“Don’t worry, I won’t kill you,” she said in a soft tone. “We’re just going to have a little fun.”

I’m such a bad liar, Lily thought dryly.

She slowly took off her dress, teasing her brother as much as possible. She would make sure he was uncomfortable before she killed him. In her underwear, Lily climbed onto the bed and crawled up to her brother. He was naked under the covers, and she reached inside. Down his torso she went, lightly touching and feeling everything. When she got to her destination, she saw Jake close his eyes. Lily smiled. The degrading feelings going through Jake’s mind made her glad. Revenge was sweet. She pulled back the covers and lowered her head, knowing what would go through his mind. Lily suddenly pulled the gun from under the covers where she had left it and shot Jake in the chest. The sticky blood ran from his body. She watched as the light left his eyes, her victory complete.

By this point though, Lily was having too much fun. The pain she inflicted aroused her sexually. She wanted sex, and she wanted it now. If she had any morality left, she wouldn’t have considered her brother's body for the reasons that it was her brother and that it was a body, but she had none. She rode that body like a cowboy rides a bronco.

When she finished, she went to the bathroom and cleaned herself up. Lily was tired. The whole ordeal had really drained her mentally and physically. She needed rest, and the couch looked more inviting than ever. It only took a few minutes of her resting her head down for her to slip into unconsciousness for the night.

XII

Lily’s consciousness awoke with a start. She found herself running. She was scared. What was this monster behind her? It only took her a few moments to realize that this was a dream; and since it was a dream, she could defeat any monster.

Lily transformed herself larger into the deadly creature she had years ago in John’s head. She stopped and turned to face this monster. Changing the monster into a tree would have been easy, but that wouldn’t really be any fun. She charged this monster and slashed with her left arm. The blade dug deeply into the monster’s flesh. Blood splashed from the cut like water from a broken dam. Lily wondered if she had overdone it and cut the thing in half.

The moon was blood red. It cast an unearthly light across the dreamscape. Lily’s shadow stretched out from her feet some twenty or thirty feet to one side. The mere sight of her own shadow sent shivers down her spine. The monster lay within her shadow. The view from its eyes would have inspired terror, but it was the view that Lily saw which truly brought terror. The monster wasn’t a monster at all anymore. It was transforming into a human. The human was instantly recognizable. It was Johnny!

Lily couldn’t understand how he was alive still after all she’d done to him. Sure, she didn’t really want to kill him considering he was John’s son, but revenge was first on her mind. In her terror, she brought down her arms over and over. She repeatedly slashed gash after gash into his body. He wouldn’t get up again; he wouldn’t live anymore after this. How could he?

Lily laughed. She didn’t know what else to do. The situation had her confused. She laughed again, hoping that the feelings would go away. To her relief, they did. Lily snuck back into peaceful sleep for the rest of the day.

XIII

Nighttime fell before she finally woke up. Lily rubbed the sleep from her eyes and sat up on the couch.

What time is it? She wondered.

Her stomach rumbled and so she went into the kitchen to scrounge up some food. The clock on the microwave read ten twenty-two at night. Lily yawned loudly at the thought. The day ahead would be long——she would be looking for Ed now. He would meet the same sticky end as his brother: with a bullet in his heart.

The refrigerator yielded nothing but eggs. That would have to do for a late night breakfast. She searched the draws and cabinets for a frying pan. Lily turned on the stove and cut some butter for the pan. Once the butter melted, she cracked two eggs and dropped them in the pan. She watched at the eggs slowly solidified from the heat. The smell of the eggs made her hungrier by the moment.

Finally the eggs were done. Lily sat down at the kitchen table and ate the two eggs. They tasted wonderful to her starving body. Coming to her senses, Lily realized that she would have to get whatever money and food Jake had in the house because she was low on both. Finding Ed would be harder than finding Jake, and she would need all the help she could get. As well, there was a chance that Jake had files that could help her find Ed. The more help she got, the better.

When Lily finished, she got up and grabbed the gun. She held it in her left hand as she walked through the house. The best place to start would be the bedroom, then the car. When she was done looking, she was going to burn this place to the ground——less evidence for the police after all.

Lily entered the bedroom and saw her brother’s body. Strong feelings of disgust and revulsion gripped her stomach. She wanted to throw up, but she held the feeling in. She walked over to the desk, having a hard time concentrating. The smell of the bodies was almost too much to bear.

I’m not going to let you have my body anymore! A voice yelled suddenly in the back of her mind.

With a quick rip, Lily felt her control over the body slipping away. The pain was incredible. After only a second, she found herself like a puppet watching itself being used in a show. The utter loss of control made her lose control of herself for a moment.

She steadied herself and felt herself being forced to watch. Lily could not gain control of the body anymore. She watched the left hand slowly rise up to her head, only it wasn’t her head anymore. Then she heard a click.

No! She screamed. Don’t do this to me!

The only response she got was…

Bang!