Keep It in the Family

by John Marrs

Such a violation of the rules could place me inside the room next time.

No one under this roof believes in compassion. Empathy is an alien emotion here.

‘Look, I can’t say hand on heart that this is going to work out for us. It might be a complete disaster. But we can only give it our best shot and keep our fingers crossed.’ ‘Funny, that’s what I was going to say in my wedding vows,’ she jokes.

For all her faults, I could never be without this woman. She came into my life at a time when I needed someone to be on my side, and she has never left. I would die for her, without hesitation. In fact, if it wasn’t for her, I would probably be dead already.

I think of how fortunate they are to be unaware of this building’s history.

‘He was our life. Without him, the soul was torn from our family.’

There’s only so long you can fight nature.

But I’ve grown to realise that when I don’t have blood on my hands, they are uncomfortably dry.