I'm numb. I am finally numb, but I know it is just an illusion. As I open my eyes and look around at my aunt's apartment, everything comes rushing back. The raised voices, the blood everywhere, the fact that for the first time in my life I was frozen and couldn't move. I couldn't help the one person that meant everything to me.

I came home from school early because we only had a half day and I knew mom would be home today and I wanted to surprise her and maybe take her out for lunch since he wouldn't be there. I open the door and heard arguing. This wasn't new. Mom and he argued all the time, but something seemed different. He was never a kind man; in fact, he was always downright cruel with his little lessons. Mom tried to protect me, but somehow he held something over her and we couldn't leave. A reason I have only just found out about. As I approach the kitchen planning on intervening and helping mom I heard him yell, "I'M DONE PLAYING HOUSE WITH A WHORE AND HER LITTLE BASTARD, THIS ENDS NOW!" Something about his tone made me stop and peer around the side of the wall separating the hall from the kitchen. He was facing away from me and mom saw me immediately. She threw her ring towards the sink, and as he turned his head to watch it fly, she motioned me to go to the pantry, so I flew to it and went inside as quietly as possible. Slowly he turned his head back and said in an almost eerie calm, "You're done." He lunged at her with a knife I hadn't seen and stabbed her. Here is where I froze. Has he used knives before? Yes, but he has never used them on Mom or directly in the stomach as he just did with her.

Mom's eyes go wide and she swings her arm to punch him which connects and pulls the knife from her stomach. She looks at it a moment before shifting her gaze back to him as he gets up and lunges again. My body is frozen as I watch the struggle and finally seeing him on top of her trying to get him off am I able to move a little. Somehow I am able to move my arm and pull my phone out and dial 911. I hear the operator ask me questions and I quietly, robotically answer as I still cannot tear my sight from what I am seeing before me. Mom isn't making any noise, she isn't moving. He stands up throws the knife in the trash, grabs a washcloth and wiping his face. He starts to look around and stops at the pantry I am. The door is closed and it is dark where I am so I have no idea why is focused on my location. Whatever it is he starts to slowly almost curiously come towards me. He is about halfway through the kitchen when sirens can be heard. He stops and rushes to the front of the house to peer out the window. Sirens grow louder and I can heard him curse rushed to the bookcase and take something out and rush out the back door into the backyard, over the fence, into the next yard and continues. I am finally able to will my body to move as I break out of my hiding place and go over to my mom. As I round the table I once again freeze.

She is covered in blood which is still flowing from her. Everything starts to fast forward for me and all I can remember is grabbing towels, holding it to her wound to try and stop the bleeding. Still pleading for her to wake up I am vaguely aware of the fact there are people in the room with me. Noise and codes being spoken that I don't understand. I can't understand why mom is going in and out of focus until someone pulls me from here and I scream and thrash trying to be back to her. I had to help her. Please let me get to her, I just can't fail her. More people flood the kitchen and I see EMTs trying to save her and I calm some. She is getting help. She will be alright. People start talking to me asking me what happened. All I can get out is "he stabbed her," "I couldn't help her." This is apparently all they need to put some of the situation together. A policeman gets me on my feet and begin to move away from the kitchen I hear it. I hear my world fall away. As I pass where I was hiding into the hall I hear one of the EMTs say, "She's gone."

Blackness quickly surrounded me.