Whispers of the Innocent

16

At that moment, I suddenly wondered, what was the purpose of my brother's existence?

Why did he look like a sheep, why did he return home after years of absence, and why did he always say, "Shouldn't a murderer pay with his life?"

It seemed there was an inescapable fate lurking within.

Father had plastic surgery, but a close look still revealed traces of his old appearance; he corroded his fingerprints, but they would grow back; even if the fingerprints could be erased, DNA was an eternal marker.

As early as 1997, when my father disappeared, my DNA was already in the hands of the police.

If the case remained unsolved, the past would never pass.

Suddenly, I understood everything, the meaning of my brother's existence, and I thought of a way to end it once and for all.

Yes, shouldn't a murderer pay with his life? How could the life of a sheep be enough?

My brother, with those unfathomable sheep eyes, quietly watched me, silently possessing the power to drive one to lose control.

He led me to pick up a rope and walk towards him.

He led me to wrap that rope around his neck.

My brother was not an incarnation of a demon; he was the second scapegoat.