The sun was barely up when I arrived at Elizabeth Villa. I had a cake and a bottle of wine in hand that I ordered to celebrate Vinnie's birthday. Though I hadn’t seen him in weeks, and I thought a surprise visit might be a good way to reconnect.
What surprised me, though, was that the gate wasn’t locked. Vinnie was meticulous about security. I paused for a moment, I looked around the area, but everything seemed normal enough. I pushed their gate open, I walked up to the front door, which, to my surprise, was also slightly ajar.
This was strange to me, but I walked ahead as I stepped inside.
Everywhere was silent. No voices, no television, there was no sound. Something felt off.
“Vinnie? You here?” I called out my brother's name, but there was no response.
I put the cake and wine down
