The Protector

VI

To be honest, I thought it was going to take a long time to clear up the mess we made downstairs, but once Luke made a few calls, everything was moving on swiftly. Ten minutes ago, after he put his phone down, three men appeared at the door and have been speaking in hushed voices with the other two lads ever since, keeping me out of the conversation as much as possible. I'm assuming it's their way of keeping me safe, something they have always done.

I've been getting increasingly impatient while waiting at the bottom of the stairs. Tuning in out of the conversation as much as possible, I repeatedly pick up on 'burn' and 'delete'. I may not be the smartest teen out there, but even I can figure out what they are talking about. There's a reason I say that the boy's dropped off the face of the world, there's no record of them.

It still pisses me off that they aren't straight up telling me the plans they are making when I am the only person living here currently. I'm no longer a delicate baby sister, I'm technically an adult. The fragile child never existed, and the young aspect vanished years ago.

"Luce, you should probably head upstairs to pack the things you want to take with you?" Jake leans against the bannister, hands in his pockets. He's bracing for me to blow up about being pushed aside, he's definitely noticed me scowling when they all ignore my presence. Yet, I can't be arsed. There has been enough yelling for one day and I really just want to sleep. "Sure, what do I need?"

"Essentials I guess. We can provide the shower stuff but clothes, bed sheets or anything else you need or want." Giving a single nod, I start climbing the stairs. He smiles, stepping away to help drag the stinking corpses into the back garden where I can already smell the burning emitting from. I hope the neighbours haven't been in today.

My feet almost slam through each wooden step as I ascend, planning out what I need in my head, even though I'm coming up blank. I have no clue what classes as 'essentials' since they're going to give me some stuff when we get there. The only times I've ever packed was when we went on random holidays together as children. Even then Mother would do most of it for me as I would demand to take things I didn't need.

Dragging a large duffel bag out from under the bed, I'm reminded that I need to message the girls. They should know that I'm not going to be around anymore, I doubt I'll be coming back here at all.

The bag was a gift from Layla a few years ago. It was her brother's before he moved away and lost contact with the family due to personal reasons. She and Lola had seen me eye it multiple times when I'd been over, and finally decided to give it to me as it wasn't to either of their styles with the skulls embroidered onto the straps.

Emptying out most of my underwear draw onto the bed, I scour through to pick out the boxers and bras with the best quality. Rolling them into a sausage, I push them into the bottom corner of the compartment. I have to try remembering to leave room for other things, my organising skills are shit.

I then move over to my wardrobe. Cautiously wiggling my hand through the tiny gap of the doors to prevent anything from falling out. My fingers search over the many materials, scouting for the things I'm trying to find. I haven't sorted through any of my stuff since I was nine. I've always just thrown the clean items into the cupboard until needed. I remember at one point I had to drill the back of the furniture into the wall as it fell over and caused a dent.

I was too afraid to tell Mum in case she made me get rid of something. She was constantly telling me to clear things out and to tidy up. Like a smart fifteen year old, I covered the dint with a rug and secured the timber into the brick work so it couldn't attempt suicide again. Maybe she knew, I can't be sure.

As soon as I try to carefully remove the limb, the door springs open and all of the contents spill out around my feet, leaving a mound of darkly coloured outfits that takes over half of my floor. I admit, I am a slob in many ways, and have reminded people countless times not to mention my laziness because it is a waste of everyone's time when I am highly aware of it.