“This is a great catch! Mom’s going to love these!” Sarah rejoices as she holds up the bag of presents.

She swings her leather backpack off one shoulder and fits them into her bag.  

We started walking back home, going from the north side of the central part of town down to the south side. The 12th day of Spring’s air is cool but the warmth of the sun keeps the weather pleasant. As long as another furious gust of wind doesn’t come by, the jackets we’re wearing would be enough. 

As we walk we come to the bridge that connects the southside to the central part of the main city. My sister dazzles at the sight of it. It’s a main roadway that's only a two hundred foot cable-stayed bridge but it’s pretty high up with a ravine underneath. Four tall support columns hold the bridge up with wires. People usually come here in the evenings and mornings to see the sunrise in the east and the sunset in the west. A perfect sight to see in the distance between two halves of the city. 

“So how’d ya come up with these gifts, golden-eye?”

“I remembered mama-Mary saying something about the shoes when she was watching the shopping network. They’re supposed to be comfortable and she can use them everyday which is practical. As for the necklace, you said it yourself— she likes the color orange. The citrine gem is a brilliant orange color that I think she’ll love.”

“Seeeee! I knew the detective would come up with sumthin’!”

“Yeahyeah~ And it only took about three hours for you to finally accept one of my ideas.”

“Come on! We got them didn’t we!”

I give her a look of partial annoyance. 

“Fine, I’ll make it up to ya!”

“Oh really…?”

“I’ll buy you a cupcake when we go past that bakery you love so much!”

“Alright, but no take backs, I’ve always wanted to try the Grand Royal.” I smile mischievously.

Sarah stops in her tracks as her eyes go wide as if she’s about to cry, “Bu-but that’s 5 Silver pieces! And we've already used 3! Papa only gave us enough for the presents and some tavern food...”

“Guess you’ll have to use that hard earned allowance.” I say as I continue walking without looking back. 

“AAAAly!”

I stop and turn around, “Hey look, you offered!” 

That should be enough torture for her today. Let's call it revenge for saying “no” for 2 hours. 

She pouts and sticks out her lower lip like a puppy whining for mercy. I come over and pat her head, “Okay, okay, I’m just joking. One strawberry double decker cupcake for me.”

She smiles and I turn to continue our trek towards the bridge. Suddenly she hops onto my back, nearly knocking us both to the ground, and commands me to, “Go forth noble steed.”

“Why? Do I. Put up with you?” I grumble.

“Because you luvv your little sister.”

“Do I now…? Your weight says nothing little about you.” That last remark rewards me with a firm fist in my back. I think real hard about just dropping her.

Sarah was always the pretty girly-girly type. Meanwhile I was always more casual. My simple jeans with a classic but stylish bomber jacket say all the more. On the other hand, my little sister's floral skirt and short jacket say plenty about her. 

I carry us forward onto the bridge. 

“You did good today, Aly,” she says suddenly.

Thinking she’s still talking about the presents, “You already said as much.”

She wiggles her legs so I put her down. She looks off to the great divide between the cities. The clear sky and high hanging sun mesmerizes the scene of murky greenish water beneath us. 

“No. Good job saving that kid today,” she tells me without looking. 

Feigning ignorance, “I don’t know what you mean…”

“Aly, I’ve been watching you for a long time, everything is starting to add up.”

“Are you a stalker or something?”

She strikes my arm with a surprising amount of force. She might be less girlish than I originally thought.  

“Ya know, I think you have it in you to be the world’s greatest detective. Like that guy… John Locke was it? To think, you’ve been saving people all this time…”

Not wanting to spill any of my secrets to her, I simply wait for her to elaborate while I remain silent.

As she still stares at the sight of the city, she says, “You once stopped to argue with a complete stranger on a sidewalk, just to hold him in place for a few seconds. You then immediately apologized and went on your way. Little did the guy, or us for that matter, know that if he hadn’t stopped he would’ve been crushed from some debris that had fallen off a rooftop.”

I don’t budge on saying anything.

Urging me to tell her something, she turns to me and says, “You once crashed Papa’s brand new HotRod into another vehicle while at a stoplight. Little did Papa know that you purposely crashed his car because the other driver was drunk and didn’t see the stoplight or the family that was crossing the street that night.”

I feel the warmth in my cheeks bloom.

She slides closer to me, “And today, you saved a child by throwing a rock at a car that didn’t see him running into the street.” She pokes me with her finger to relay the point, “You saved those people. It all makes sense now… all those strange happenings around you. You affect fate.”

I look at my sister, joyfully surprised that she found out one of my secrets. I smile and regain my composure, “So you really are a stalker.”

I flinch when she makes a fist but instead of pain I feel her warm embrace. She hugs me, “It makes me happy you’re in my family! You’re like a superhero!”

I hug her back and when we release each other she looks back at the scenery, almost nervously.

“Say, I know you tell me you never like to talk about this, but… since you want to be a detective and all, do you think you wanna find your real parents?”

I place a loving hand on her shoulder, “Actually Sarah, I don’t want to find them.”

She hasn’t really asked me about this in a while. Sarah has always treated me as her real sister. My mother— my biological mother, had disappeared 10 years prior. I was only 7 when she left. I don’t remember her saying anything, she just up and vanished. Meanwhile, my dad… I don’t really like to think about him much.

A tinge of memories sprawl across my eyes. Little moments. Only ones that a 7-year-old could remember. 

Sadness and fear crawl around in my mind from the resulting year in an orphanage and from the curiosity and depression of the last 5 years of seeing the shadows of Death. 

I wouldn’t even know what I’d do if I met them.

Perhaps I’ll make them pay for my college…?

Or give them a piece of my mind?

Or… 

or…

Who am I kidding? 

I honestly don’t think I care enough to do those things. 

They don’t owe me anything. Nor do I owe them.

If I do find my dad I’ll punch him right in the jaw. Like, who leaves a child in a house by themselves! I mean, at least he called child protective services but man was that uncalled for! And my mother! Just wait until I get my hands on her. Maybe I’ll hug her to death.

You’re probably wondering why their treatment would be so different. To me, they are both getting the same treatment: Absolvement.

Out of all the things I could remember about them. My last moment with each of them always stuck with me. Both of them had the look of guilt so heavy that it could have squashed them.

They…

`|| …I’m so sorry Had…  I can’t do this anymore… ||

…probably had it much worse than I did…

We owe each other nothing. 

Not even some answers. 

Though, I am thankful to them. I would never have been able to be in Sarah’s awesome family if they never abandoned me. I wouldn't have an over caring mother in mama-Mary or a doting father in papa-Barry. 

Maybe I still would, but I wouldn’t trade what I have right now for some chance at whatever kind of family we could’ve had. 

“I have everything I need right here,” I tell Sarah.

We continue our walk past the middle of the bridge while I think back to today's debacle, there were 2 shadows, not just one. 

How come only the kid seemed to be in imminent danger?

Just as I thought today would go on without any further problems, my heart skips a beat. 

I slow down to walk just a step behind my sister and look around so as to not alert her to anything.

Immediately, I regret it. 

The bridge is 4 lanes wide with pedestrian sidewalks on both sides. The pedestrian walkway is surrounded by metal railings on the inside and concrete guards on the outer edge, keeping people safe from the traffic and the edge of the bridge.

That being said, why…?

1… 2….

3…

7… 11..

15…

20…

Why are there 23 shadows on this bridge?