Chapter 1

Katherine's POV

The air was particularly gloomy this morning. It rained earlier so the weather still had this mixture of rain soaked sand that feels nice but also smells like it could suffocate you at the same time. 

There was a nearby church bell ringing somewhere not too far away… it sounded like something terrible had just happened, like it was announcing the dreadful passing away of special people. 

The town was especially quiet, like everyone felt like any noise they made would be considered an abomination. Everything seemed like it was in black and white. Even the little children could not be heard kicking their balls, making up songs and stories or whatever kept them jolly. 

Everything was on stand still, especially for Katherine Paul, who laid on her little bed and wished for this day to just pass her by. I thought the worse had come and gone, until days like this reminded me that I would never be the same again, that there was no way that I could be okay. 

I could hear my little brother, Freddie, shuffling his feet around the house. He was probably trying to help aunt Gladys get things ready, everyone knows she needed all the help she could get! Since I wasn't giving her any…. In her words. 

She was a handful, that aunt Gladys, but she was also the one making things happen, making sure that my parents got a decent funeral. We had no money, so decent was the best that we could do. 

Mum and dad had lived from hand to mouth, barely managing to take care of themselves talkless of the family. I still clearly remember the taunts I got in high school whenever I showed up in old worn out hand me down clothes and shoes that sometimes had holes in them. The only property we had was this house that was already going under and it was something that dad inherited from his family.  

I have always lived a hard life, even in college and now I just could not fathom how harder that life was about to become. I had nothing! I was already deep in student loans that I feared if I took more now I might have to pay them off till I die. My parents did the little they could to support me and now I had no clue what I would do without them. 

I had no rich family relative to bail me out, definitely no godparent to run to. It was just me and my brother now and we were in it deep. 

Gosh! I did not want to leave this bed. I did not want to wear that awful black dress and attend that funeral. I wanted everything to be the way it was before, I need them back. 

I tried closing my eyes, maybe this is all just a nightmare. Yes, this must be a nightmare. I counted to 20, then 50… okay maybe 200 would be better. I took a deep breath in and out.

Time to wake up now.

I opened my eyes, I was still in bed. That black dress that I wanted to shred to pieces was still right in front of me. I could still hear aunt Gladys calling for Freddie. 

This was not a dream, it was reality and it was too cruel to be acceptable. Fresh hot tears freely rolled down each side of my face and landed on my pillow. It was the type that came from a deep feeling of utter hopelessness and frustration. 

The tears came silently, I had already lost my voice from screaming and wailing after I heard the terrible news of my parents death. I thought I had no more tears to cry, but I was only kidding myself.  

"Go get your sister Freddie," aunt Gladys groaned at Freddie. 

I could hear his footsteps lazily walking towards my room. He at least understood that I needed to be alone, even if it was not what was best for me. 

Grieving for my parents was hard enough without thinking about all of the responsibilities that have suddenly been dumped on me. I wanted to be strong for Freddie, for myself, for everyone, but I was only human after all, a completely broken human. 

Freddie announced his presence by knocking lightly on the door and opening it just the slightest as he put his head in first. 

I didn't move, I didn't even bother to clean the tears off my face. I just laid there and stared at the ceiling like that was my last mission on earth. 

He didn't say a word as he got into the room and sat down beside me. He was already wearing his white long sleeve packet shirt, black pants and a black tie. I knew his black jacket was somewhere in the living room. 

I on the other hand had not even taken a shower. I sincerely could not remember the last time I even bothered about things like that. 

Gently he lifted his hands and wiped the tears off my skin. It was comforting to know that he didn't want to pry or ask me redundant questions. To an extent he understood how I felt, he has just lost his parents too after all, but it wasn't the same for him. 

He was still in a public high school, whereas I, as the first born, suddenly had to bear the responsibility of the house. I had to take care of him before myself and I would make sure I didn't fail him, I was just not sure how I would go about providing for the both of us with so much debts crumbling my very existence.  

I was in a mess, a very deep mess, and I had no hope of getting out of it anytime soon. 

Aunt Gladys could not help me even though I knew she would want to, but she just could not. She had a large family with 6 kids that she was struggling to feed and provide for. It was foolhardy of me to expect her to add two hungry mouths to her minute resources. 

I had to take responsibility here, this was my burden to bear. 

"We have to get going Katty," He said to me as he squeezed my hand gently. 

"I don't want to, I don't want to say goodbye," I told him. 

He nodded. We shared this pain together just as we have shared practically everything. We have always been inseparable, now more than ever. 

"I know, but it will be okay," he reassured me. 

"How Freddie? How can anything ever be okay anymore," I groaned. 

"I don't know sis, I'd be lying if I said I did. Still I'm sure that mum and dad wouldn't want you to live like this. They would want you to get up from this bed and be strong for them." 

Every word he said made sense and I envied his strength, his courage. He has always been a very unique guy and I was proud to have someone like him by my side. 

"I'm sure you're right Freddie. Now get out of here while I get dressed. Tell aunt Gladys that I'll be ready in 5 minutes," I pushed him a little even though I made no attempt to stand up from the bed. 

He obliged, stood up and walked towards the door. He stood for a second there and suddenly turned towards me. 

"I love you sis, always," he said. 

I never knew those were the words that I needed to hear. It gave me hope that I was not alone and I shouldn't act like the world was ending, even if it felt exactly like that.  

"I love you too little brother, forever," I told him. 

After that he was gone. I could hear him relay the message to aunt Gladys and her grunting in discontentment. She probably wanted me out of the room that instant. 

Finally I got up from my bed and began the gruesome act of looking like a decent girl, I mean there was no need for me to look different from how I felt. If I felt completely frustrated then I was bent on looking just like that. 

*** 

The drive to the cemetery felt like a journey to the moon and back, twice. It was the weirdest I have ever felt in a vehicle. Aunt Gladys drove with me in the passenger seat. 

I could tell that there were several moments where she wanted to say something but she chose to be quiet, perfect for the two of us! 

When we got to the cemetery the smell of death and pain was overwhelming. It was an old cemetery. One that practically everyone in this little town could boast of having at least one family member. 

Everything from here was a blur for me. I remember saying some words as tribute and even though it was what I felt, I still found a way to separate myself from everything happening.  

As soon as I left the little podium I grabbed Freddie's hand so hard. It was probably too hard but I needed some form of solace.

"You did good," he whispered to me. 

It was supposed to make me better somehow, to encourage me, but it didn't really help. My heart was completely broken and I was just a vessel there, trying with everything I could to look strong, because I wasn't.  

Just then a black Bentley pulled up close to the cemetery. I was curious, at least here was something that could distract me. 

The car looked expensive, the car was expensive. Maybe someone else was coming to pay respect to a dead family member. Nobody even remotely related to us could be this rich to own a car like this that's for sure.  

My family was poor, the worst kind of poor, the kind that runs throughout the entire family. My own parents were even better off than most of their siblings and that's to tell you how poverty ran in the family. 

Still I was intrigued to see who this person could be. Just then the driver seat door opened, the person was apparently taking his time to get out of the car. First I saw some expensive looking shoes and then I finally saw the man behind the wheels. 

I gasped and internally groaned. Could this day get any worse? Just when I thought I could not feel any more hopeless I had to see the town's billionaire so close. 

Shawn Blackwell looked as handsome as always, with his deep black hair and perfectly chiseled face. He was in a black suit and it suited every inch of his body. 

He was my high school crush. The first boy I ever fell in love with. I wrote a love letter to him but it ended up in the school hallway for everyone to see and suffice to say that I was a pariah till I graduated because of that. All the girls that worshipped him never missed a chance to make my life a living hell. 

What was someone like him doing here right now… Well maybe he came to see his mother. She died when he was very young  and left him with just his father and their billions. 

Mr Blackwell remarried a while later, but I heard that it was never the same for the Blackwells after that happened. Still they manage to continue being powerful and wealthy. 

On second thoughts, my mum did work for them for a while as a househelp, before the new wife sacked her, so we were kind of acquainted. Still it was so long ago and I doubt he still remembers things like that. 

He walked away from the car but he didn't exactly come very close. He stood a distance away from the funeral but he was watching intently. 

Then all of a sudden our eyes met. My heart skipped a bit as emotions came rushing back. He didn't move his eyes away but just stared at me. At last I had to look away and remind myself that he was a horrible person. He didn't even bother to explain to me what happened all those years ago, I guess he didn't really care. I was just another poor girl to him and he was Shawn Blackwell. 

I tugged Freddie's Jacket lightly and whispered to him. 

"Shawn Blackwell is here." 

He looked up for a second and just shrugged. 

"Oh yeah, I invited him," he said nonchalantly. 

Great! Since when did Freddie start dining with the devil?!