Their Little Princess Novel – The police move swiftly through the living room as the paramedics do stuff inside. I’m sitting on the stone wall beside my house, dazing. “Alright, I’ve worked it out,” I jump as a voice startles me out of my thoughts. I meet a woman’s stare. “Your family has decided to take you in. Your oldest brother is sending a private jet to come pick you up later today to go stay with them” “Family?” I cut in. “Yes, your family. You have 6 brothers. They live in New York and have agreed to let you stay with them.” I stay quiet. I don’t feel very lucky considering my guardians, as bad as they were just died.
MADDIE After school, I walk home and pause at the door. Mom and my stepfather Daniel aren’t busting outside to drag me in and punish me. I open the door and immediately realize it’s eerily quiet. “Mom?” I know I’m taking a risk calling her name. She doesn’t answer. I walk cautiously into the living room and I go cold. My throat collapses in on itself. Daniel is laid out on the couch beside my mother. Both of them are dead. A knife is wedged into Daniel’s stomach and there’s a shot through my mother’s left eye. I can’t let out any sound as my eyes stay glued to the sight in front of me, ensuring the sight is forever etched into my mind. They’re dead.
The police move swiftly through the living room as the paramedics do stuff inside. I’m sitting on the stone wall beside my house, dazing. “Alright, I’ve worked it out,” I jump as a voice startles me out of my thoughts. I meet a woman’s stare. “Your family has decided to take you in. Your oldest brother is sending a private jet to come pick you up later today to go stay with them” “Family?” I cut in. It’s the first thing I’ve managed to say in hours “Yes, your family. You have 6 brothers. They live in New York and have agreed to let you stay with them.” I stay quiet. I don’t feel very lucky considering my guardians, as bad as they were just died.
“I’m Diane, your social worker. Head in and change and pack your things in this bag. We’ll head down to the landing and you’ll be off to New York. We’re on a bit of a schedule here so I’ll need you to hurry.” I swallow and nod, turning and walking inside the house. My entire body is shaking as I walk into the basement I’ve called a room for as long as I can remember. I empty my few things into the suitcase Diane gave me: A couple of sweatshirts and tights, a t-shirt, and the few Christmas gifts I’ve gotten from my friends Chase and Jessica over the years and hidden from Mom and Daniel. I pull off my t-shirt and catch sight of myself in the dusty floor-mirror.
My arm seems to be turning a pretty shade of red, my ribs and stomach are silver-y purple, the bruises get black as they crawl to my back, the red marks crawling up my chest are almost artistic. I quickly cover them up, cautiously sliding on a turtleneck and a sweatshirt over it. I zip my bag up and drag it out to Diane’s car where she’s already sitting in the driver’s seat. The moment I climb into the backseat and shut the door, she pulls off toward the airport. “Here, this has your family’s names and such. So you don’t walk in there clueless.” She hands me a light folder, keeping her eyes on the road, ” One of them has a doctorate,” She jokes trying to lighten the mood. I grab it from her and open it, looking at all the files.
LORENZO ROSSI – Father; Dead ELENA ACOSTA – Mother; 47 Years Old ALESSANDRO ROSSI – Brother; 24 Years Old ELIJAH ROSSI – Brother; 23 Years Old EMILIO ROSSI – Brother; 21 Years Old FRANCESCO ROSSI – Brother; 20 Years Old XANDER ROSSI – Brother; 17 Years Old CARLO ROSSI – Brother; 17 Years Old “Alright, we’re here. Follow Diego, that man in the black suit, and he’ll guide you into that jet and it’ll take you to New York. One of your brothers will pick you up from the airport and drive you to where you’ll be living from now on. Your family should have my number should anything arise where they need to contact your social worker.” A private jet? A chauffeur? Are they rich? My heart is beating rapidly, and I haven’t even met them yet.
I step off the luxurious jet and onto the ground below me. I see a young man standing by a sleek black car, he’s leaning against the side of the car and he’s staring intensely at his screen, typing every few moments. He’s tall, like, insanely tall. This is my brother. Suddenly, he looks up and his eyes meet mine. I’m stressed, on the fly here I didn’t know what to expect. He slides his phone into his pocket and walks over with a grin, arms outstretched for a hug, I take a step back, “Hello,” Is all I manage. “Madison, right?” He says. “Just Maddie is fine.” “I can take your bags?” He offers, but doesn’t wait for me to answer, instead just grabbing my suitcase and sliding it into the trunk.
I tighten my hands on my bookbag, hoping he doesn’t try to take it, and thankfully he doesn’t. This bookbag has my valued possessions in it. The snowglobe I got from Jess, the Junior Varsity hoodie I got from Chase, my battered phone and my mom’s necklace. He opens the passenger door for me but I climb into the back of the expensive looking car. “You can sit up front,” He offers. I shake my head slightly, “No thank you.” He climbs into the drivers’ seat and watches through the mirror waiting for me to buckle in before pulling off. “Comfy back there?” He asks, messing around with the dial for the A/C. I nod my head, but quickly verbalize, “Yes.”