Prompt was: Your brother is not your brother

She couldn’t get her hands to stop shaking
She couldn’t stop shaking
He was always an absolute asshole, an abusive fucking curr. But this time he had taken it too far. His hands around her throat snapped her. The broken pieces of herself came together sharply when she reached behind her, grasping for anything to defend herself. Her searching fingers found the kitchen knife and plunged it into his throat without a moment of hesitation.

He was shocked when she did it
They both were

She had never stood up to him before. She wasn’t even allowed to cry when he had beaten her, put her in sleeperholds, and threatened her. He had learned how to inflict pain from their father. Indoctrinated into a cruelty her mother had fled from but left her behind to drown in. And now he was the one drowning, choking on his own blood.

She didn’t stop there. She plunged the knife into his chest over and over again. Her as a woman, her as a teenager, as a child all pieces exiled returned to her as she stabbed him repeatedly. Tears running down her face and mixing with his blood.

Blood thicker than water coated her hands, hair and clothing.
She couldn’t stop shaking.
The phone trembled in her sticky fingers as she waited for him to pick up.

“Angie?”
“Help me.”
“Where are you?”
“Home. Help me.”
“What happened?”
“Help me.”
“I’m coming”

Even going 80mph it was night before Micheal got there. The door was wide open and aside from the light in the foyer it was dark. He called out for her several times. Before reaching for the baseball bat he knew she kept for protection behind the front door.

He found her in the kitchen curled into a ball on the floor. This wasn’t the first time he had seen her like this. Even though his entry was soundless she knew he was there. She could always tell where he was even in the dark. He went to her, his shoes slipped on the tiles but he caught himself. He knelt in front of her and reached out for her but she recoiled.

“Don’t touch me.”
“What happened Angie? Why is it so dark in here?” He stood reaching over for the light above the kitchen stove. He felt her hand on his pant leg. A gentle tug.

“I killed him Micheal”
“Killed who?” He flipped the switch and looked down. She was covered in blood, her eyes half closed. He dropped back to his knees in an instant trying to find out where she was injured but she only pointed past him and that is when he saw it.

George or rather his body.

“I killed my own brother.” She broke in that moment and became sick. He held her though it.
“You killed a monster”
“He was my brother”
“No he wasn’t, he really really wasn’t.”