The silence that followed was deafening. The scene before her eyes was unforgettable. The headache that came after that night was unbearable.
She stood there in her quarter soaked white cotton nightgown with her hair up and trembling hands by her side, with a slowly soaking table cloth and a broken glass with water trying to run away. Her mother, kneeled with splayed legs on the wooden floor with the back of her cotton tshirt spotted with water with her neck leaking blood and her right hand gripping what seems like a glaring silver blade that was bloodied on her green and yellow plaid covered thighs. And further away, was the man that the both of them had been worried over, well at least he looks like him.
She wasn't sure about anything anymore.
"Mom, answer please. Why does he look like my Daddy?" There was a tremble in her voice like she was scared that there was some form of reality in the question. Her mother had tears running down her face which she couldn't see. She could only hear the sobs escaping her closed mouth and see her shaking shoulder.
"Because he was your Daddy Celicia. He was my husband. He was the love of my life." The tears came down faster and her mother sobbed harder as her voice broke. Her hands let go of the knife that clanked on the floor went up to her eyes as she tried to dry her face but that only caused bloody smears to appear across her face. "But now... he's no more." Celicia broke down, but through the tears she saw her mother fall to the side. Fainting due to blood loss.
She hurriedly tried to clear her eyes with difficulty as she went to get the first aid kit from the bathroom without looking at her appearance. Heading back to the living room, she hurriedly went to her mom and put her properly on the side so she could work on the gruesome bite mark left behind that still had blood rushing out of it. Quickly getting to work she cleaned it hurriedly and started stitching up the wound with her limited medical experience then placing a bandage on it. She was sniffing all throughout the process and wiping her eyes and trying to keep her hands steady. It took an extreme toll on her.
Three days passed and a few things changed, but some things remained the same. She had moved her mother to her bedroom and changed her clothes and looked after her, but the body in the living room was still in the exact same spot. Not even a hair was misplaced. The good thing about that is that the body didn't smell. Her mother woke up after that time. She first drank some water then asked the question that was on her mind.
"Where is the body?" She croaked out.
Shyly, Ceci answered in a small voice. "It's still downstairs. It's been three days now." Before her mother could say anything she continued. "I didn't know what to do with the body, plus every time I saw it i cried so i just got what would last us for a few days in your room so I wouldn't have to go back in there and cry my eyes out." Her mother looked at her with sad eyes. "Mommy. I'm scared. I'm so scared that I don't know what's going to happen in the future. I'm scared because I'm feeling all alone. I'm scared because I don't know what to do. What should we do mom? Can you tell me?" Tears started running down her face for the third time since the day has started.
Her mother grabbed her head and rested it on her chest. She rubbed her daughter's hair and patted her back. "What have you told them that happened why you weren't at school for the past few days?"
"I only spoke to Auri. I told her that we went on an impromptu trip to the mountains and that we wont have any signal so she won't get through to us and that she shouldn't call. And I asked her to pass on the message to the school." Her mother patted her head.
"My dear daughter, it's just you and me now. You've been through so much. You haven't been taking care of yourself. You look so haggard. And I guess those first aid training has paid off since in still alive and not in the hospital or six feet under."
"Stop talking now mom, you sound like you're on the edge."
"Give mommy till tomorrow, she'll make everything go away. You should take a shower though, you smell like you haven't showered in these past three days."
Celicia cracked a smile for the first time since that night. "I haven't. Would you like some ramen? I brought the microwave in here as well as a kettle and some bottles of water."
"Yes, thank you."
And like that the next day arrived. Late in the night around eleven thirty PM, Kelly McPhee now Kelly Peterson woke up her daughter to get things done. She had been up all day getting things ready for what they were to do.
"Celicia, wake up honey. It's time." She shook her daughter by the shoulders waking her up.
"Hey, mom. It's time already?"
"Yes sweetie, it is." Kelly said with a sigh. "I know you're tired but we have to get this done now. Get changed, put on a pair of jeans and sneakers and let's go. I'll give you fifteen minutes."
Fifteen minutes later, Ceci was seen walking down the stairs rubbing her eyes and suppressing a yawn. Kelly looked at her ripped black jeans and the tshirt with holes and the white sneakers.
"Are you sure you don't want those jeans anymore? They look pretty good to me."
"Hm, yes I don't want them anymore." Ceci's eyes moved to the body beside her mother wrapped in garbage bags and tried hard to hold back her tears. Kelly saw this and a frown made it's way to her face. The blood and all the glass pieces were all cleaned up.
"Remember what we talked about. No tears until after. We have to get this done." Ceci wiped her tears and nodded her head.
"Yeah, mom." Kelly pursed her lips and nodded.
"Ok, come. Help me with the body."
Both ladies struggled to move the body from the living room through to the kitchen and then to back yard. When they finally reached Kelly went for a bottle filled with gasoline and dowsed the body in it. She then lit a match and lit it. Both mother and daughter watched as the body burned to nothing but ash. Ceci couldn't hold it in anymore and bawled her eyes out. She only stopped when her mother started talking.
"Strip, let's get this over with." Her mother was already in her undergarments only and her clothes were placed in the garden. Ceci followed the instructions and then placed her clothes and shoes and same area as her mother's. Kelly then used the remainder of the fuel on both the clothes and garden and moved the ashes from the body to that same area. She then lit it up and made sure the clothes were in ashes before they both went inside to put on fresh clothes then called the fire department to report it.
By the time the department came all evidence of their involvement had been removed.