The Fear We Share

For Those I Love

I tilted my head at her.

“In trouble? With who? You’re safe with me. Always.”

Then she smiled, but before she could answer, my phone buzzed. Tay Tay.

Four cars out front. Come unlock the door.

I headed for the door. V gave me a look—like she knew exactly what time it was. Like she knew I was walking into a nightmare.

As I hit the stairs, a whisper brushed past me:

Don’t be scared. It’s a haunted house.

I spun, heart hammering, then told myself it was just the war still living inside me.

At the bottom, two men sat on the couch, drinking. Two men sat on the couch, drinks in hand. I couldn’t tell if they were the ones V mentioned, but the air felt heavy enough to make me believe it.

So I just opened the door for Tay Tay, and the second he stepped inside, chaos hit.

The kids came from hiding, and the men stood up. The one with the scar across his head grabbed a little boy, whose screams slammed into me like a memory I couldn’t escape. That grin… I knew it anywhere. Tay Tay froze, shocked. I stepped closer to the stairs, my eyes locked on them, needing to make sure I wasn’t dreaming.

He looked me in the eyes and smiled, like he knew

me… like he knew him and the other two had haunted me in my dreams since that night. Then he grabbed the little boy and hissed, “Come here, you little shyt.”

He tried to shove the boy into the freezer. The kid kicked and fought back. I stumbled, crashed into some boxes, and started yelling, “It’s him! He’s the one! He did this to us!” My hands shook uncontrollably, my whole body trembling. I couldn’t stop—I was terrified.

“How… how is he alive?” I whispered.

V and Mia came downstairs, asking what was going on. I pointed at him. “It’s him… he did this.” I raised my arm to show the scar, the one I had lied about a while back at her old house.

V frowned. “Baby… what are you talking about?”

The vision flashed in my head. The man sneered, “I knew it was you,” and grinned even wider.

“The little shyt… and his brother—he ruined my head and nose, you tried to kill my mom… and you killed our big brother.”

He put the boy down and locked eyes with Tay Tay, then me, before glaring at his partner. “They killed Gray, our big brother. Get them.”

He charged straight at Tay Tay. Tay Tay ducked outside and came back, elbowing him hard. The guy crumpled to the ground, clutching his face.

Mia whispered, “Damn…”

V screamed—she’d never liked violence, no matter how many times she’d had to fight before.

The other guy lunged at me. V screamed, “Nooo!” I lifted my foot and kicked him back—he flew across the room. I stood up, chest heaving. V looked at me, relief flooding her face, and told me how he had violated her and beaten her a couple of times when she was “in trouble.”

The moment I heard those words, something inside me snapped.

Everything went silent for a heartbeat, and then instinct took over. I drew my two guns, aimed them, and said, “I’m going to make sure you never get a chance to hurt anyone ever again.”

Shots rang out—1… 2… 3… 4… maybe 5… and a final one to the head to make certain. The first man went down, lifeless.

I turned to the guy Tay Tay had knocked down and didn’t hesitate—same method, same precision. The girls screamed. The kids screamed. Tay Tay muttered, “Damn, Tylil… you know how to keep the war alive when it’s for your girl.”

I looked at V, searching for some sign I was still the man she knew, wondering if I could comfort her. She gave me a small nod. Tay Tay gathered the kids, making sure everyone was okay. Mia laughed through the chaos, “V… you sure know how to pick them.”

Then it hit me. I looked at V. “Baby… where’s the woman?”

Her smile dropped. “What are you talking about?”

“There were three last time I was here,” I said. “Two men… one woman. Big.”

“Their mom?” she said.

Tay Tay and I exchanged confused looks.

“What do you mean you’ve been here before?” she asked.

“I didn’t notice it at first,” I said, “but… this is the haunted house.”

It dawned on her then, her eyes widening as the realization hit.

She didn’t question me anymore. She just pointed upstairs. I knew exactly where to go… and I knew exactly who would be there.

She probably found some way to survive. When I opened the door, I saw her in a wheelchair. She slowly turned around and said, “Have you come back to finish the job?”

I just stared. A thick scar ran across her neck, and her legs had been amputated. I asked, “Have you been a part of everything this time?”

She smiled.

I raised my gun and shot her between the eyes, watching her head fall back. I knew, without a doubt… they were all dead this time.

I had training. I wasn’t some immature boy who didn’t know how to handle certain situations anymore—I had become a man.

Somebody had called the police; I could hear the sirens wailing in the distance. I went straight to V, who was still standing on the stairs. I pulled her into a tight hug and whispered that I loved her, that no matter what had happened, we’d figure everything out… together.