The Darkness in the Light

Chapter One

That night I lay in my bed, staring up at my ceiling and listening to my parents and sister. The blankets hugged me protectively, their warmth chokingly tight. I kicked them off as the voices outside reached a new pitch. Swinging my legs over the bed I returned to the window. Below me was a police officer in his shining hat and royal blue uniform. Behind him was a man in white, and behind him a man in black. Onlookers lurked nearbye. They would be the ones to spread the rumour that another child had been taken, . They might even manage to pass on exactly who was taken; there was only one option as to who in the house was outside.

I watched as the three men came in, blue followed by white followed by black. The onlookers stepped forward, pressing and smiling and offering false reassurances. The light from the doorway disappeared almost instantly as my father shut the door in their faces. He may be a good man, but not today. Not after that; never after that. The three shadowy silhouettes attached themselves to the door. After barely a moment, they gave up and continued on, parting in their attempts to avoid the drains. They were gone.

Then all I could see was the sickly face and the gaping eyes, looking straight up at me in my safety. I pressed my forehead to the glass, the cold seeping through my body. I could hear the humming that emanated from the drain, the constant reminder that there was something otherworldly down there, just beyond sight. Anything scary was scary for a reason, or so my father used to say. Now his voice was nothing but wobbly emotion and cracking lips. Now he was a man left scarred and alone, the only one to protect the three defenceless females kept hidden from the cruel world behind locked doors and arching windows.

Do you want your brother? He's right here, waiting for you. All you need to do is walk out the door. Walk out the door and into the street and you'll have him, safe and sound in your arms. Just walk out, and he'll be back again. Your family can heal, your life can continue. You just need to step outside for an instant.

The voice whispered through the wind. A breeze blew through my bedroom and I shivered,

wondering where the draft was coming from. Then I stared down at the gaping eyes. They blinked; once, twice, three times. I stared, waiting to see if it was an illusion. There was no one there, no one for them to grab with their dark tendrils and whipping arms. They'd only every blinked right as they took their victim. Yet there they went again, and again, and again. They shut for a moment, and I watched them, not daring to blink should I miss it. When they blinked again I leapt up. I couldn't remain there at the window.

I walked over to the door and froze, my hand on the knob. This was against everything I had grown up knowing. Never leave the house, stay away from the doors. Let the men do all the work. Let them risk themselves so you can stay safe. Stay caged away from the world, an precious, rare animal safe behind bars. Do whatever you want inside, just never, ever leave the house.

My hand turned. The latch clicked. The door swung open and the light from the hallway shone into my bedroom. I looked back to see my shadow fall across the arched window. My window, a place I had always considered safe. Then I turned away and walked quietly down the stairs. The voices grew louder and I heard they were all in the kitchen, talking and yelling and crying and whispering. Their sadness and their hurt radiated through the walls like a physical force, pushing me away.

I wouldn't be like them. I wouldn't sit and cry and ruin my life over my brother's disappearance. Yet I wouldn't just forget him and go back to living a life of locked doors and safe windows. I would honour him, even if it meant following him to his grave. Hours had passed by the window, and outside I could feel the promise of a sun about to rise. Maybe today it would break through the clouds and shine down upon the street. Maybe it too would break free of its prison. Or maybe it wouldn't. Maybe it'll remain trapped forever.

The door swung open of its own accord, my hand just a ghost of a girl. This was the edge of my life.

After this, I would never be the same. After this, there was no turning back. There were fourteen people out on the street. Fourteen people unaware of the act I was about to perform out of love for my brother. I watched for a second, taking a breath, just as he had taken a breath. The men slid past the drain in front of me. Another breath. Then I stepped out onto the cobblestone.

Immediately everyone's gaze wandered to me. They seemed frozen as they realised I was a woman, a female, stepping outside. My instincts kicked in, my fast thinking saving me from any of them that might try to stop me. Any hesitation and I wouldn't have been able to make it.

It was their duty to protect me and any other women that was in danger. It was more than a duty; it was a basic need, a necessity beyond words. As they blinked their shock out of their eyes, I strode over, head held high, and stopped dead on top of the drain.

A scream from the doorway told me my mother and sister had finally realized I wasn't in my room. I heard running footsteps behind me, but they stopped on the edge of the grime. I stood tall, feeling the cold metal drain beneath my feet. It didn't budge.

"Goodweather, what are you doing?" my father's soothing voice called from the edge of the grime. I turned to him, my chin high and my back straight.

"I'm doing what every man here is too scared to attempt," I declared, anger probably affecting my judgement, but I didn't care.

"It's alright dear, I think you're dreaming. Come back inside so that you can help your brother get ready for school," Dad said calmly, the slightest shake in his voice.

"I'm not an idiot dad, I didn't just dream this up. If you want me to move, then come and get me."

My father froze, and I knew he wouldn't do it. He looked at my mother and my other sister, who both stood inside the doorway, the shadows of their prison falling upon their faces. Before anyone else could move I jumped, my feet coming down on the drain with a thud. Every single figured flinched. Then a miracle happened.

Some of the men watching began to smile and laugh. They laughed and I didn't know why. Then I saw what they saw, a girl of seventeen going into their biggest fears and walking out unscathed. I had defied everything they believed in. I turned away from my father and strode between the two drains. I paused there and the look on my face silenced those around me. Then I opened my voice and sung my decree.

I sang for my brothers return. I sang of his duty to protect my mother and my sister and I sang of his innocence and youth. I sang of fear and of duty and of surprise. As my voice sang the last verse, someone joined me, whistling in turn as he leant against a wall nearby. His whistle echoed on as my last note died out.

"I propose a trade!" I yelled as I took three large steps back and landed on the second drain. Almost instantly the darkness surrounded me. The eye blinking open in front of me as it swallowed me whole.

Your brother has been returned. He is safe and unharmed.

The voice echoed around me, bodiless, as I fell into the darkness.