It happened on a Friday night.
My uncle's wife had been invited to some charity event or a gala. She had insisted I come along even though I greatly expressed my displeasure. She said it would be good exposure, that I needed to go out more and see how real women carry themselves. I didn't care for her advice or the way she looked at me like I was a creature she could mold.
Still, I agreed, out of politeness.
But as we stood at the airport and prepared to leave for the weekend event, I felt a sense of unease crawling over my skin. I told her that I felt sick, and that I needed to lie down. Her younger son gave me a smug look as he wrapped his arms around his mother. There was still that weird closeness between them.
He gave me a smug look as I told her I needed to go home. He was probably thrilled that I wasn't coming. My uncle's wife frowned but she didn't argue. She always liked to play the role of a gracious host.
So I left, and made my way back to my uncle's house. The house was dark when I returned, but the front door was open so I let myself in.
I stepped in and called out for my brother but there was no answer. That was when I heard it, someone was crying yet again.
At first, I assumed it was my brother. I thought that maybe he was still feeling emotional from earlier in the week. I made my way to his bedroom but it was empty. The bed was neatly made and the lights were off, then the crying got louder. It was coming from the other end of the hall.
The only room that was at the end of the hall was my uncle's room.
I froze. Something in me that I'd tried to ignore was surfacing. I tiptoed closer to the room as my heart thumped loudly in my chest. The sounds got clearer as I got closer. It wasn't just crying, there were also breathing and moaning sounds.
It sounded like two, no, three people. I stood outside the door and my hands trembled as I reached for the doorknob. I wanted to turn away and ignore everything, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it. My fingers moved and I opened the door.
In the dim yellow glow that the lamp was emitting was my brother. He was bent over, naked and tears were streaming down his face. Behind him was my older cousin, he was gripping his hips and thrusting.
In front of my brother was my uncle who had one hand tangled in my brothers hair and his other hand on himself. None of them noticed me, they were too lost in their sick act.
My mind went blank. I ran to the kitchen and grabbed the sharpest knife that I could find. My heart was pounding so loudly that I thought it would explode. I wasn't thinking, I just moved.
I stormed into the room again and went straight for my uncle, he didn't have time to react. I stabbed him over and over and over again. He screamed loudly each time the knife dug into his skin. He fell and choked on his own blood as he tried to speak but I didn't let him.
I kept stabbing him until a pair of strong hands yanked me away and I was slammed against the wall.
My cousin towered over me, still naked and wide eyed. He had blood on his chest, his father's blood. He didn't say anything, he just looked at me in anger. I charged at him with the knife still in my hand but he knocked the knife out of my hand and pushed me down. I hit the floor and before I could get back up, he was already on me.
He muttered the word,"bitch" over and over again as he punched me and I slowly lost my strength. Then his hands went to my waist, and I knew what he was about to do.
I screamed and started fighting but he was physically stronger than me. He tore off my clothes and forced himself inside me as I lay there frozen and bleeding.
"Just like your brother," he whispered and a single tear escaped my eyes.
Then he gasped and jerked and twitched before he finally collapsed on top of me. He wasn't breathing, he was dead.
My brother stood behind him, holding the same knife I'd brought. He was shaking as he got our cousin off me and continued to stab him. He did this over and over again until there was no part left to stab. Then he got a blanket and covered me with it.
He got dressed while I just lay there ina numb state. He told me everything.
How it started the month we moved in, how our uncle's wife raped him first, how our uncle caught them and wanted in, how she eventually left and our uncle brought our cousin in, how the woman who started it all tried to protect her younger son but never tried to save the boy she ruined.
He spoke like it was a story he'd rehearsed for years. He suggested we run away but I said no. I called the police, they came and we were taken to the hospital.
Scars were found on his body, semen was found in mine. It was proof.
My aunt was arrested overseas, she'd tried to run away. My cousin's body was retrieved and my uncle was taken to the hospital, he was barely alive. My younger cousin was taken to foster care.
And now, here we were, in a courtroom with me testifying against my uncle.
Now that you know everything, Your Honor, are you going to charge my brother with murder or are you going to let us go?"
The end~