Red_Roses_and_Black_Dahlias_-_Macy_T

14
BATTLE
SOFIA
I knew it was a bad idea.
It was past four in the afternoon when we finished prepping the tostada,
and Valentina all but begged me to go out. Other than for school and the
occasional pancake run on Sunday mornings with Maddox, we haven’t gone
out into the real world without a police escort since the night of the murders.
I knew Valentina was getting restless, she loved the outdoors. Before
everything happened, we had a huge backyard, and she’d spend hours there
when she was home and I was in class. She loved making up stories about
elves and fairies in the woods behind the house, loved chasing butterflies and
ladybugs.
And now when she wasn’t at school, she was at home with me, watching
movies or playing with dolls. She liked it and never really complained but I
could tell she was getting restless.
That’s mostly why I agreed to take her to the park, because I knew my
sister, her feelings were mine and I could sense she needed to go out.
Everything was fine at first, we both dressed warmly because the weather
was getting chilly in Lakestone. We said hi to Osman, the doorman, on our
way out of the building and started walking down the street to the park I had
located when we first moved in with Maddox.
Valentina was humming and skipping on the way there, her hand firmly
clutched in mine. Occasionally, she would look up at me and just smile,
warming my heart and filling me with happiness.
It was crazy how such a small being could have such a huge impact on my
life. I suffered when she did, was happy when she was, my emotions were so
intricately woven with hers that sometimes it felt like we were one person. It