Chapter Text
Prologue: Oscar
Grant Residence
June 19, 1992
12:49am
Wales of pain and thundering gunshots from downstairs shoved me out of my twin-sized bed, turning the chilled metallic handle on my door, and slipped into the hallway. The pitter-patter feet on the cold hardwood floor was unrecognizable. Turning the corner that followed down the staircase. Blood spatter on the bottom marble steps was all that came into view. Ice glazed steps that kept me on the edge of my childhood. Adrenaline kicking in, being mere steps away from reaching the first step with blood, I froze. Buzzing voices in my house, and not one from my parents, had me paralyzed. The warm metallic aroma of blood filled my lungs, intoxicating me, churning my stomach. My eyes stung with threatening tears. Ever so slightly, I tried to step around the blood on the stairs. With tears blocking my vision, my feet find their way into the puddles of blood on the steps. With the voices getting louder, I try my best to push the gut wrenching sensation out of mind. I quickly turned my head towards the dining room area to find my father with a bullet between his eyes, my mother on the kitchen floor in a pool of her own blood, and my Saint Bernard brutally beaten to death beside her. At that moment, my body trembled as if I witnessed the entire scene, as if I died along with them. I stood crippled, trying my best to imagine the pain they went through, wishing I went along with them. Breaking from the trance, I trudged towards the front door with bitter vile surfacing in my throat. This subtle ringing filled my ears, this empty feeling had come over me. Turning the sterling silver handle of the front door, I realized that with all my strength the door would not budge. The handle felt as if it were made of stone, as if it had been welded shut. From pounding on the door in frustration to pulling outwards on the handle, nothing worked. “Why won´t this move, it´s like someone locked in from the outside” I mumbled dryly under my breath. As I was about to turn towards the garage door, heavy footsteps began echoing in my direction. Quickly I bustled behind one of the kitchen cabinets clutching my mouth, as two shallow voices were getting closer.
“Did you get everything Nate?” a dominant voice protruded
“Um boss it's NAT, the E is silent.” Nate boldly commented
“Well then NAT, did you get everything?” the vulgar voice repeated
“Yeah, Boss it’s clear.”
“The upstairs perimeter too?”
“U-um well…. I...uh”
“So, you're telling me that in a two-story house, you didn’t think of looking upstairs?”
“Yeah…so?”
“Why are you acting so proud of yourself you moron, GET YOUR ASS UPSTAIRS NOW!”
“U-um Boss..”
“WHAT”
“There’s um…...footprints here. Are they yours?”
“Does it LOOK like I’m moving?”
“I thought those bloody footprints were yours.”
“I’m wearing boots, you moron.”
“Then if they aren’t yours….whose are they?”
“Hmmm…let’s see, which one of us is barefoot?”
“Sir I dunno if you noticed but the whole team is wearing uniforms Chief picked out, along with these shiny squeaky boots.”
“First of all, they are leather. LEA-THER. Second of all, no shit sherlock. You probably left someone alive.”
Thoughtlessly I budged to check my feet along with sliding them against the wood floor, creating a horrible screeching. The instant feeling of fear washed over me and I knew I had to act fast. I stood up with a look of murder in my eyes, trying to seem intimidating.
“Who the fuck is this?!?”
“It’s their kid”
“Oh”
“GET HIM!!”
“W-WAIT WHAT-I DON'T EVEN HAVE MY GUN!¨
“You prat, I’ll do it myself.”
I stumbled backward as I saw the ‘Boss’ come towards me, my hand searching behind me for something to defend myself. As much as it pained me, there was my mother’s favorite china vase that she always used for her Wild Bluebells. All I had to defend myself was that, as the ‘Boss’ got close, I threw it at him, instinctively at the head. While he fell in pain, I ran towards ‘Nate’. When he was about to reach his arms around me, I quickly dropped my body down to the floor and pushed myself through the arch on his quaking legs. With no time to waste, I grabbed a handful of cherry Kiplings by my father’s corpse and threw it at the guy Nate.
“Boss, help me he’s attacking!” Nate yelped
When his Boss got up, I ran straight towards the living room.
“You fucking moron.”
“Huh?”
“He threw fucking Kiplings at you.¨ The Boss screeched as he picked up what was left of the treats and smashed them against Nate’s face. “If you don’t get that kid right now. You won’t even live to tell the fucking tale.”
While I pushed everything down in my path, making it harder for them to follow the path of where I hide. Then looping around and hid in the broken dumbwaiter in the laundry room. I ever so silently pushed the old door up and hopped inside. Please let them leave, please don’t let them find me. I prayed to myself in silence.
“Boss..”
“What do you want? Did you find the kid?”
“No, but- I think it’s time to call the others.”
“Well then, GET TO IT!”
“R-right...”
The rumbles and creaks that filled the house once 5 pairs of feet were roaming around it felt like a nightmare lasting an eternity. Everything from my ankle joints to my shoulders was in pure aching agony. Once the drowsiness kicked in, I felt like that was the end. I know my mother always said that children should never die before parents do, that it just isn't how life works. With my whole family dead, it must be my turn. There's no way for me to get out of here. This is the day I die. The thoughts nestled in my mind and I dozed off in silence.
“I can’t believe you guys lost the kid.” a masculine but unknown voice muffled in the distance
“It was probably goldie’s fault.” unknown man 2
“Bet it was.” unknown man 3
“Your right, fucking Nate, or as he likes to be called “Nat”, forgot to check upstairs.” The ‘Boss’ added.
“Hey how about we make this a competition? Whoever finds AND kills the kid first gets to take the lout, deal?” unknown man 3 suggested
“You are on buddy” unknown man 2 responded
“Count me in” the First guy
“Damn fucking right. I’m in too.” added the ‘Boss’
“I’ll join to-“ Nate added
”NO” Everybody
”Goldie, you messed up the moment you walked in the house, we can’t have any more mess-ups… and you know what, Mr. “Babysitter” will do the honors.” unknown man 2 announced while handing the ’Boss’ a gun.
One loud gunshot and a thump echoed through the house and startled me. The hand that was holding my head comfortably against the wooden confinement on the dumbwaiter fell out from under my chin purely from being numb. The sound it made would have been heard through the entire house, with the sudden silence that fell presumably from someone dying.
“Did you hear that?” The first guy croaked out
All of a sudden the sound of the dumbwaiter door was slowly being pushed up and bright white shining lights came flooding in, blinding me.
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“Commissioner? Commissioner? Sir, wake up! Are you okay sir?” Bethany my receptionist called out
“What the...what’s going on?” I questioned with the struggle to even comprehend where I was
“Sir, I believe you dozed off, I just came by to drop off the latest cases, these are the homicides. I’ll bring the rest later.” Bethany stated as she dropped a thick stack of files onto the oak wood desk.
“Thank you, oh and Bethany, what is today's date?”
“Sir it’s April 9th, 2018.”