piece of shhhhhhh

Nathan sat looking into the fire wondering how a life that started out privileged could end so badly. His brother had been dead a week and the mystery surrounding not only his death, but also his life had not lessened. When word of his brother’s death had reached him, he had gotten the first flight to the United States. He identified his brother’s body in New York and flew back with it to England. The funeral had been today. His mother was not able to attend. Her grief was terrible.

John had been her favorite. Her baby. Nathan knew that she loved him as well. He was her son too, but John had always been her baby. While Nathan grew and looked to his responsibilities and settled into his life working alongside their father at the company, John had chosen a different path. Not a bad one necessarily, just an unknown one. Questions directed to him regarding his life always went unanswered. He would disappear for months at a time. Only reappearing, because he knew Mother would be worried.

This went on for years until about three years ago he stopped reappearing. Mother became worried as she always does. Months turned into a year and then the rest of us grew worried. I used the company’s contacts around the world to try to find his whereabouts, but I was always one step behind. Finally, a week ago I finally tracked him down. I tracked his body to a morgue in New York City.

Nathan looked deeper into the fire. He wondered which he felt more: relieved, angry, or curious. He was relieved that they could all stop worrying, especially his mother. He was angry that his brother would put them all through this. Their mother was all but bedridden with grief. Above all though, he was curious. There were still so many questions about his brother that needed answering. How did he really live his life? Did he have any friends or maybe even a family? How did he die? Nathan got up from the chair still looking into the fire. One thing he certainly was going to find out was who had his brother running for his life.