kindred

Chapter 32 : Blanket of death

"Joey, you're not going to die, you'll get help" Addie said in denial, insisting he would live. 

"In my left shoe there's a knife, I need it" He gasped out, blood specking his words. Addie crawled to his remaining leg, thankful the knife was stashed in that one so she didn't have to look for his other leg. She gently pulled the blade out and handed it to him. 

"I need you to go baby" He whispered, bringing his hand to her cheek, his blood leaving an everlasting impression. 

"I can't"  'Leave you too die' She didn't add on the end. 

"I don't want you to see this" He gestured the knife, bringing it up higher to his neck. 

"NO, Joe. You are going to live, you'll get help" She insisted, gently trying to pull the knife away from him. "Please" Her voice cracked out. 

"I won't." He insisted, them both knowing he was speaking the truth. "And it hurts, I want it to be quick. You have to let me do this baby" He groaned again in pure, unbridled agony. 

Defeatedly Addie let go of the knife, allowing her brother to take control of it. She clung to his side, not able to rip her eyes away from his face, blocking out the noise of the still crackling fire. 

Joe struggled to lift the knife to his neck, not being able to find the strength. His eyes were portraying agony and a pleadingness, but he would never ask her the question. 

Addie shut her eyes tightly, silent sobs wracking her body, making her entire self shake. Tears ran down her neck as she placed her hand over his. She couldn't believe he was doing this. 

The wailing sobs overtook her muscles as she drew the knife nearer to his neck, she quivered just before it. 

Her hand gently pushed his hand and the knife into his neck, feeling the slight resistance of his skin. The thick red liquid rushed out faster as she withdrew the knife. 

What had she done? She had just mercy killed her brother.

"Thank you darling" He muttered. 

"Oh god, what have I done" She asked, collapsing from her knees onto her side. 

"When I first held you baby... I kne... I knew I had too... too protect you" He slurred out, blood bubbling his speech. His voice was trembling and Addie could see every word was spoke with agonising pain. 

She moved even closer to him and held his hand tightly. "I used to sing.... sing this song... to you ever-.... every night.." Adeline's heart pounded as her brothers words were more and more feeble.

Oh how she wished she was back in that tunnel. Anything was better than this. 

"Sleep little darling, rest your head" Joe gaasped out.

"Close your eyes and lye upon your bed" 

His words began to fade, mashing into one. 

"Whilst your world so fast asleep" Addie began to fill in the words that he couldn't say anymore. Her's barely more legible. 

"We'll scare the monsters that make you weep"

"While the moon drifts in the skies

We'll look upon your big blue eyes"

As Addie sung she felt her brother lean his head towards hers, planting a delicately soft kiss on the side of her temple.

"Goodbye Adeline, I will always love you" 

"Whilst your dreams play in your head, 

We'll keep you safe and warm in your bed

Go to sleep, don't be afraid

My beloved little girl, we'll, we'll keep your fears at bay

Go to sleep my Addie now, 

for when you wake, we'll still be here."

As she felt his arms go limp and his chest stopped moving she continued the song, her high voice breaking through the silence of the dark forest, overpowering the noise of the crackling fire.

Addie pushed to herself to her knees, desperately trying to find a flicker of soul and life inside of her brother. She was met with nothing.

"I love you too Joseph, always and forever" She told his body. "Rest now" She told him, smoothing his hair back.

His glassy eyes were staring at the place she had been lying, the last thing he saw before he died was the beautiful eyes of his sister. He wasn't alone as he slipped away, he was staring into the eyes of his baby sister and thus the eyes of all his brothers.

Addie collapsed onto him, despair stuffing into her body, she pulled his arms around her and buried her head in his bloodied chest, not caring about the clotted blood that was gently streaming, all the time continuing the singing.

"Sleep little darling, rest your head, 

Close your eyes and lye upon your bed. 

Whilst your world is so fast asleep, 

we'll scare the monsters that make you weep.

While the moon drifts in the skies, 

we'll look upon your big blue eyes.

Whilst your dreams play in your head,

we'll keep you safe and warm in your bed. 

Go to sleep, don't be afraid, 

my beloved little girl,  we'll keep your fears at bay. 

Go to sleep my Addie now,

for when you wake, we'll still be here"

By the last sentence Addies voice was full of cracks and sobs of despair. When sung to a child in a nursery, it has a different meaning. But Addie wasn't sending a child to sleep for them to wake up tomorrow. She was sending her brother to sleep, the brother that wouldn't wake up tomorrow.

It was haunting, the way she lay next to her brother on the charred floor, surrounded by debris and smoking ruins of cars. The smell of charred flesh lingered in the air and the face of death would torment her forever.

Anyone who would arrive now would be horrified, a soot covered child was wrapped in her older brothers embrace, singing a creepy nursery rhyme. His blood had mingled onto her clothes and she refused to let go off the dead. She was wrapped in a blanket of death. 

A/N: You guys are so amazing, we are at 100K reads!!!! Thats so amazing. In just 8 months, this book has been read over 100,000 times! 

And I just want to apologise for killing off a brother, sorrryyyyy :)