Blood for Blood
The Body

If Aurora was meeting someone last night, it would have been at the park. She likes the open space even if most people in town are asleep by that time of night. There are lights that turn on automatically about a half hour before sunset. That’s my first destination.

Turns out, it is a good call. Her abandoned car is parked out along the street. I peek in her windows and see her purse set on her passenger side seat. A knot forms in my throat. This is not a good thing.

I grab my phone and dial John. He picks up before the first ring ends.

“Justin, did you find something?” The hope in his voice doesn’t make this any easier. I don’t know if I have the heart to do this to him. I don’t know if I have good news or bad… All I know is her car is here. Even with this heavy feeling in my chest, I still don’t have any knowledge of where she is, or what happened. That isn’t my job right now. My job is to tell her dad what I found.

“I found her car parked out on the road by the park. You might want to call the cops. Her purse is still inside, but I haven’t found Aurora,” I inform him. “I don’t see her. She could be kidnapped, or she could be hurt somewhere. But right now, this is all I know. I’m going to look around, and I will call you if I find anything,” I promise.

“Right! Good luck!”

I take off through the park at a quick jog. No one is here. It’s still pretty early, and the morning sun is still low in the sky. There is a chill in the air. The brisk breeze wipes the cold sweat that’s steadily dripping down my back. Hopefully we will find her before lunch and everything will be fine. We can grab some burgers, she’ll probably be hungry by then.

Now… If I were trying to get Aurora alone, I would take her…

I full on run to our little bench out in the trees and my blood freezes. I can't breathe. All I can see is red… Literally! There is red everywhere.

I grab my phone and redial John, who picks up immediately.

I’m silent for about ten seconds. I can’t speak. I can’t think. Everything has shut down and I am now on auto pilot. Tears leak down my face unchecked, and my breathing is coming out in ragged pants. The air is strangling my lungs and not making its way to my brain.

“Justin?” John calls out my name in confusion.

All the air rushes out of me in a rush, leaving my chest caved in on itself.

“John… I’ve found her…” My voice is rough and deep with despair.

“What happened?” John asks urgently.

“John… she… her body…” I choke on the last word.

“Her body what?!?” John explodes.

“You really don’t want to know… Just get the cops here asap,” I say and hang up the phone.

And fall to my knees.

Someone has wrenched my heart from my body and pounded it into oblivion. My body has gone cold and numb. But it still hurts! How can I hurt so much if I’ve just died? Because I am sure I must be dead. I’ve died and ended up in Hell.

Before me is a massacre. Aurora’s face is frozen in shock. Her eyes are wide open, with a milky film covering her fading blue irises. There are two puncture wounds at the base of her neck, where I’ve kissed her a thousand times. But she hadn’t been drained. There is too much blood everywhere. This is too messy! Her left arm is completely severed from her body. There is a gash across her belly from a knife wound, and a knife dropped right by her body. Whether it was an accident or premeditated, it doesn’t matter… I’m pretty sure it was the knife that killed her. There are scratch marks on her face and neck. Her shirt has been ripped and her jeans are completely pulled off her body.

A glimmer of rage lit my reasoning in my brain. Some dead man walking was going to rape my baby… But they killed her while she was trying to get away instead.

Blood spatters litter her body and her beautiful golden hair. The blood has dried on the grass, trees and our little bench.

“NOOOO!” I let out an anguished cry. Everything escapes my lips in a cry of insufferable pain, and rips through the air, scattering the birds.

Fury leaks from my every pore as I scream my rage. I pound my fist into the ground and expel every bit of energy I have into the blood soaked earth.

I want to touch her. I want to grab the knife and crush it with my bare fists. I want to hold her and kiss her and bring her back to life just like in all the fairy tales… Only this isn’t a fairy tale. It’s a horror story.

I sob my pain and anguish into the air. I ran my fingers through my hair and held my head as my body wracked with grief.

I vaguely hear the cops coming up behind me. I hear John and Meg who are wailing in the background. But I can’t understand what anyone is saying to me. My whole world doesn't make sense to me right now. Nothing seems to exist.

My world has gone black.

Someone stole my Sunshine.

But I swear on my life, I will find out who did this to Aurora and make them pay!

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