One image, one story

I LIED WITHOUT SAYING I LIED

“Jethro…
Jethro… what have done what came over you to commit sure atrocity?

“What came over you?”...

I froze when I saw the mess Jethro did.
Confused and thrown into chaos, my mind raced. I didn't know I breed someone treacherous, and outrageous.

I am my father's daughter who made a vow to my dying parents on the sick bed, promising to take care of Jethro and raise him till he became a man able to carry on with the family name.

“I promise father”... I said

He, Jethro became the only lineage able to continue, so if anything happens, the entire generation of Jethro James is forgotten.

“Jethro must live, Jethro must live”.

The promise I made to a dying husband and wife whom I knew won't survive the accident.

He became my son, we are siblings but I treated him as a son. Never lacking, everything he needed was provided. Jethro became him the pampered, nurtured and well trained child but, a beast was lurking.

The house seemed quiet than usual. As I walked into the room, it felt creepy.

“Jethro, Jethro, Jethro”...
I didn't get a response.

Ashley…
My voice echoed back, a sudden coldness I felt. What could possibly be wrong?
My house help Ashley comes out daily to welcome me, same as Jethro. So what could possibly go wrong?

As I stepped into the room, I frozed in shock.

Ashley… I screamed as I rushed to her. She laid lifeless with blood gushing down from her side. The blood stains on the bed, and on the floor too didn't add up. I tried screaming, but didn't want to cause a scene. The sensors in my brain tried adding things up but nothing was forth coming.

Turning around, my eyes got locked in with Jethro. He stood close to the door with no remorse as he held a knife closely to his chest with blood dripping from it. A fresh red blood, just like the scene you see when you kill a chicken to celebrate without feeling remorse. He stood, unapologetically I could not phantom the menace that just occurred. But, I drew nigh to him for questioning as her lifeless body laid still.

“Scared”...

I killed her, he said
She has been sleeping with me continuously, I was only trying to defend myself I didn't mean it.

“Defend yourself?”…
Jethro defend yourself with a knife? Now follow me.

Still scared of this monster, I dressed him up hurrily and took him out of the house.
I opened the gate and hurriedly drove out, before neighbors could suspect.

Looking at him using the mirror, he sat comfortably inside the car. I wish I could ruin this monster for this but the promise.

“Not in any case, should anything happen to him, protect him at all cost”. Father said

Shaking my head profusely, while handling the wheels of the car. I parked in and unknown place, brought Jethro out, washed him and burnt the blood stained clothes.

Heading home like nothing happened, I had thrown the keys to my apartment away. On reaching home, we opened the gate and stood there knocking, till it got the attention of passersby who came to check if all is ok.

My door is locked and have been knocking
I left Ashley, my house help at home.
Bang bang bang…
The door came falling to the ground, acting innocent.

“Look, there is a blood stain on the floor”, Uriah chipped in.

Acting surprised, I went closer to take a look, following the trail of blood, we landed in the room with several others who helped me take down my door.

Screams could be heard as some saw what happened, phone the police immediately it was said we did just that. I had thrown the knife away earlier.

Crying, wailing and cursing I promised to get to the root of the matter. Investigations were carried out, and someone mentioned Jethro, my brother had been in the house earlier. The police took him for investigation, with threats he succumbed.

Jethro is charged to court, the trial must begin, in as much as I wanted him to rot in jail, the promise to the dying man in the hospital had taken a whole of me.

Persecuted and tried, he is declared bail and charged innocent and not guilty. Ashley was said to have committed suicide when she went through the last text in her phone that stated her family house had caught fire and all her siblings whom she is working hard for had died while she was on duty. Though not enough to explain a young lady's death strong evidence, money had been used.

I wish there were no dying words to protect Jethro, so he could pay for becoming a monster in the name of protecting himself.

The truth stood fiercely staring and piercing deep into my soul screaming for justice but, I am just a defendant attorney in the court who seeked, and protected my defendant from the life punishment that will disrupt the wish of the dying man, my father. Hence, I stood on the existing truth that wasn't the truth.