Among the Stars Read online

  Mr. Castellanes thought, “They got me, but that worthless bitch is dead. They’re too late.”

  He got on the ground and waited for the officer to arrest him. The officer placed the handcuffs on his hands and pulled him to his feet.

  The officer said, “You’re under arrest for the murder of Sylvia Castellanes.”

  Hearing the word, “murder,” made Mrs. Castellanes fall to the ground. She saw her daughter’s limp body in front of her and she knew she was dead.

  She cried, “I love you, Sylvia. Wake up, wake up.”

  Sylvia didn’t wake up. Everyone believed she was dead.

  The paramedics arrived and took Sylvia in an ambulance to the hospital. She wasn’t alive at the moment, but they hoped to bring her back. People could survive blood loss if they got help quickly enough.

  The next day, Sylvia woke up in a hospital bed. She was battered and bruised, but alive. The hospital staff kept her sedated so she wouldn’t suffer more than necessary. Sylvia remembered dying, but she couldn’t remember the details.

  She thought, “I guess they got me help soon enough that I didn’t die.”

  Dr. Culling walked into the room and introduced himself to Sylvia. She was nervous when she saw a man, but her mind was put at ease when she realized it wasn’t her father.

  He said, “Do you remember what happened?”

  She told him what she remembered, and he took notes of her memories. He took his notes to her mother and compared them to her memory.

  Dr. Culling said, “Your accounts of the events don’t match. Are you sure you were there?”

  Mrs. Castellanes said, “I saw everything. She got hit in the head a few times. I don’t think she’d lie, but her memory isn’t right.”

  Dr. Culling said, “Are you sure that’s what happened?”

  Mrs. Castellanes said, “I’m sure. The head injuries must be affecting her memories.”

  Dr. Culling asked, “I have to ask one more time if you had anything to do with this.”

  Mrs. Castellanes said, “I tried to help her. I didn’t do anything to hurt her.”

  Dr. Culling said, “It just looks really suspicious that your version of events is different from her version.”

  Mrs. Castellanes said, “I know it looks bad, but I tried to help her. I promise.”

  Dr. Culling left the room, and Mrs. Castellanes got very nervous. She decided to ask Sylvia what she remembered. She had to know what Sylvia remembered.

  When her mother came into the room, Sylvia tried to stay awake. She wanted to tell her what happened to her.

  Sylvia said, “Dad almost killed me.”

  Her mother said, “I know. I was there the whole time. I tried to help you, but I wasn’t strong enough.”

  Sylvia said, “No, you left and went to get the police at a neighbor’s house.”

  Her mother said, “No, I called the police from our phone. I had to hide from your father while I was calling the cops. If he knew what I was doing, he would’ve killed me, too.”

  Sylvia said, “But I remember you leaving to go to the neighbor’s house. You got the police and paramedics there just in time. Then you came back.”

  Her mother said, “No, dear. Your memory is wrong. It must be from the injuries. Get some rest. You don’t want to overdo it. You’re still not very strong.”

  Sylvia knew she was remembering exactly as it happened. She didn’t know why her mother would lie, but her version was not the correct version.

  Sylvia thought, “I know what happened. I’m not crazy.”

  The police came to get her statement later that night, but she pretended not to remember what happened. She didn’t want to lie to the police because her memory didn’t match what everyone else said.

  The officer said, “If you don’t tell us what happened, it’s going to be hard to prosecute him.”

  Sylvia replied, “I can’t help that. I don’t remember what happened to me.”

  The officer said, “That’s understandable. He hit you in the head, and there’s a lot of damage to your brain. If you remember anything, give me a call.”

  Sylvia took his card and put it on her chest. She told the officer she was tired, so he left the room.

  Two months later, her father was tried for her beating. He was charged with attempted murder, but the police couldn’t prove that he intended to kill Sylvia. They needed her to testify to prove their case. She didn’t want to testify because she didn’t know why she remembered things differently than everyone else.

  Sylvia thought, “I know he wanted me dead. I’m pretty sure he killed me, but I came back. I want to punish him, but I can’t without matching my memory to everyone else’s.”

  The jury found her father guilty of aggravated assault. He was convicted and sentenced to three years in prison.

  Chapter Three

  Drowning

  Later that year, Sylvia’s grandmother bought a new pool. Sylvia and her cousins were excited to go swimming because it was particularly hot that summer. The pool wasn’t very deep, only five feet, so her parents decided to let her swim with her cousins without supervision.

  There were three cousins, Cameron, Kris, and Will. Cameron was 17, Kris was 16, and Will was 22. Will was drunk when he got in the pool, so he was in no condition to supervise anyone. Sylvia looked up to these cousins because they were so much older than she was.

  Sylvia’s grandmother told everyone, “I don’t want anyone peeing in my pool. If you need to use the bathroom, do it before you get in.”

  Everyone obeyed and went to the bathroom while they changed into their bathing suits. Sylvia’s bathing suit was a one piece because her mother didn’t allow her to wear revealing clothes, even around family.

  She had told Sylvia, “You’re only 12. No one needs to see your body until you’re a lot older. There’s a lot of weirdoes in this world, and I’m not sure your cousins aren’t weirdoes.”

  Sylvia was the last one in the pool. Cameron and Kris were happily playing in the water, while Will was trying to inflate a small raft.

  Kris asked, “What the hell are you going to do with that?”

  Will replied, “I’m going to lie on it in the pool.”

  Kris sarcastically said, “This pool is five feet deep and ten feet across. That raft takes up half the damn pool.”

  Will said, “Maybe I’m worth half the pool.”

  Kris said, “Just put that stupid thing away and get in the water like a normal person.”

  Will said, “Maybe I’m not normal.”

  Kris said, “That’s beside the point.”

  Will gave up trying to inflate the raft. He let the air out of it and put it back in the box. He started to climb into the pool when Sylvia arrived.

  Sylvia asked, “Is there room for one more?”

  Kris said, “Of course, come on in.”

  Will mumbled, “If you have to.”

  Sylvia got in the pool and started treading water. She didn’t know how to swim yet, but she loved being in the water on a hot day.

  Will asked, “Don’t you know how to swim?”

  Sylvia answered, “Not yet. My mom says she’s going to take me to a swimming class, but she hasn’t yet.”

  Will said, “Do you want to learn?”

  He had an evil thought in his head, but Sylvia didn’t recognize his intentions when he asked the question.

  She said, “Sure. That’d be awesome.”

  Will said, “Come on over here.”

  Kris and Cameron watched as Sylvia excitedly treaded through the water to Will’s position. They didn’t exactly trust their brother when he was drunk, so they were on guard in case he did something to hurt Sylvia.

  Will said, “Relax all your muscles as you hold on to the rail. You’ll start to float after a few seconds.”

  Sylvia said, “Okay.”

  She relaxed all the muscles except for the ones holding onto the pool’s railing. She started floating a few seconds later, just as Will told her s
he would.

  She thought, “I can trust him. He’s telling me the truth. I’m going to learn to swim today!”

  Sylvia was excited at the prospect of learning to swim. She wanted to learn for the past few summers, but her mother never had the money or the means to take her to the classes.

  Will said, “Now, you have to get your head wet to get adjusted to the water. You have to go completely under the water.”

  Sylvia said, “Okay. I’m a little scared.”

  Will said, “Don’t be scared. You have to do this if you want to learn to swim.”

  Kris and Cameron weren’t paying attention to Will anymore. They thought he was being honest with Sylvia.

  Sylvia said, “Here goes.”

  She took a deep breath and plunged her head underwater. Will grabbed her head and made sure she didn’t come back to the surface. Sylvia struggled with him for a while.

  She thought, “What the hell are you trying to do? I trust you to teach me how to swim, and you’re trying to kill me?”

  Kris noticed Will holding Sylvia under the water. She swam over to him and knocked his hand off of her head. He fell backward, but charged his sister when he regained his balance. They fought in the pool while Sylvia was still under the water.

  Sylvia thought, “I can’t tell which way is up. I’m going to drown down here before I can even find the top again.”

  She swam underwater, looking for the surface. Survival instincts are too strong to overcome with ignorance. She stayed in motion while her body remained horizontal. She completed five laps while looking for the surface. Then everything went black. She couldn’t hold her breath any longer, and she opened her mouth. Water rushed into her lungs and she sank to the bottom of the pool.

  Kris said, “If she dies, you’re going to die. You’re a murderer.”

  Will said, “Fuck you, you cunt. She was an annoying bitch anyway.”

  Kris said, “She’s your cousin. You’d better hope she lives.”

  Cameron helped pull Sylvia out of the pool. She was limp and unresponsive. They were worried as they tried to get the water out of her lungs.

  Kris yelled, “Don’t die today. I still love you.”

  Cameron was desperately pumping on Sylvia’s chest, hoping to extract water from her lungs. She also pumped Sylvia’s chest to try and get her heart pumping.

  Kris told Will, “You drunk son of a bitch. I’m going to make sure they give you the death penalty if she dies. I can’t believe my brother’s a monster.”

  Sylvia’s grandmother came out of the house to check on the children. When she saw what was happening, she called 911. A few seconds later, Sylvia started breathing.

  Kris yelled at her sister, “You tried to kill her.”

  Kris charged at her and knocked her onto the concrete patio. Cameron’s clothes tore as she hit the ground. Will saw what was happening and rushed to pull Kris off of Cameron.

  Will said, “She’s not worth it. Let the police deal with her.”

  Sylvia remembered Will pushing her under the water. She didn’t understand why Cameron was being blamed, but she was too weak to argue.

  Will asked, “Are you okay?”

  Sylvia shied away from him, because she remembered him attacking her. She didn’t answer because she didn’t trust him and because she was too weak to say anything.

  Kris said, “Leave her alone. She’s had a rough day.”

  Her attention turned to Sylvia.

  She said, “I’ll make sure to tell them everything I saw. Cameron won’t get away with this.”

  Sylvia was thoroughly confused. She thought Cameron was covering for Will, but Kris wouldn’t do that. Kris was the most honest person she knew.

  Sylvia thought, “Why do I keep remembering things wrong when bad things happen to me?”

  The paramedics put her in an ambulance and took her to the hospital. She was placed in the same room she was in when her father beat her.

  Dr. Culling came into the room and asked Sylvia what happened. She told him what she remembered, but it was wrong.

  Dr. Culling asked, “Are you sure that’s what happened?”

  Sylvia replied, “That’s what I remember.”

  Dr. Culling said, “We have two different versions of events. I’m going to recommend that you see a neurologist to see what’s wrong with your memory.”

  Sylvia said, “It’s probably just because I hit my head on the bottom of the pool. It’s hard to remember.”

  Dr. Culling asked, “Are you sure no one is making you say things happened differently?”

  Sylvia said, “I just have trouble remembering right now. I don’t want to see any other doctors right now.”

  Mrs. Castellanes walked into the room and sat in the visitor’s chair. She saw Dr. Culling, but she tried to ignore him.

  Dr. Culling asked, “Were you there when this incident happened?”

  Mrs. Castellanes replied, “No, I was at work. My mother was supervising the kids.”

  Dr. Culling said, “Okay, then I’ll leave you and Sylvia alone.”

  She thought, “Thank God I wasn’t there that time. They can’t blame me again.”

  Chapter Four

  Camp

  In order to avoid drama at home, Sylvia joined a scout troop. When she was with the troop, she could forget about her abusive father. She was free for a moment to just be Sylvia.

  She thought, “I wish I could live in the scout den. I feel safe there. I wish I felt safe at home.”

  She went to camp with the scouts every year. She sold boxes of cookies, chocolates, candles, and any other thing she could sell to pay for the trip to camp. It was the only time she could escape for more than a few hours at a time. She especially looked forward to going to camp the summer her father was released from prison.

  She thought, “I really don’t want to be anywhere near my house this summer. He might come and try to finish the job. I know he still wants me dead. I’m so glad mom divorced him.”

  On the bus ride to the camp, everyone in the troop was playing a game. Sylvia tried to join them, but she was too distracted to pay attention to it.

  Her friend, Jenni, asked, “What’s going on?”

  She replied, “My dad got out of prison, and I’m worried he’s going to try to find me.”

  Jenni said, “The camp’s way up in the mountains, and it has security. He’s not going to make that effort to come get you. You’re in a safe place.”

  Sylvia said, “I know that. I’m worried about what happens once camp ends and I have to go back home.”

  Jenni said, “That’s in the future. Why don’t you just enjoy your time at camp, and save tomorrow’s worries for tomorrow.”

  Sylvia said, “I should try and do that. Tomorrow’s not even promised. I could die today, and not even see it coming because I’m worried about the dangers of the future.”

  Jenni said, “Exactly.”

  Sylvia banished her father from her thoughts. She tried to enjoy her time at camp with the troop. They were her favorite people in the world.

  The major outing of the trip was a trail hike along a river. They also had to cross the river and find a flag, but they weren’t given a map. The purpose of the exercise was to figure out how to survive when faced with a difficult situation.

  The troop leader, Linda, said, “We’ll go down the trail together until a half mile from the river. At that point, we’ll break up into groups of three scouts with a leader. The leader’s not there to lead you. He’s there to make sure you stay safe and follow the rules. How you cross the river and find your fellow scouts will be up to your team.”

  After the teams were chosen and assigned leaders, the group started their hike. The river was four miles from the camp. The weather was perfect for a hike, so they were having a great time until they reached the split point.

  Linda said, “This is where we split up. Everyone get with your teams.”

  The scouts obeyed the leader and arranged themselves in t
he five teams they chose earlier.

  Linda said, “We’ll leave in our teams, but not at the same time. Each team will leave five minutes after the team before them. First team, go find your way to the flag.”

  The first team left and started their trek to the flag. The other teams tried to watch where they went, but the forest was too thick after they went about 100 yards. Five minutes later, the second team left.

  Linda said, “If you happen to find the first team, you are allowed to help each other, but you can’t wait for the next team.”

  Sylvia’s team was the third to leave the group. Her leader knew the area better than most of the other leaders, but she wasn’t allowed to help them unless they got in trouble.

  Sylvia said, “We should go straight. The river will be there if we don’t try to get too fancy.”

  Jenni said, “But if we go straight, we might run into steep hills or cliffs.”

  Sylvia said, “Then we can adjust to them if it happens. There’s always a solution. You just have to find it.”

  Her leader, Rebecca, said, “Okay, we have a plan. We’re going straight.”

  They hiked straight ahead for a quarter mile. Then the trail disappeared. They were really on their own, but they had a plan. They continued going straight. A hundred feet from the river, there were no more trees.

  Jenni said, “What happened here?”

  Sylvia said, “It looks like a clearing or something.”

  They continued walking forward. Then they saw the reason for the absence of trees.

  Jenni said, “That’s not a clearing. It’s a cliff face. We’re stuck.”

  Sylvia said, “Not necessarily. We could find a way across.”

  Rebecca had to intervene. She was not allowed to let them do anything dangerous.

  She said, “We can’t try to cross here. It’s too dangerous.”

  Sylvia said, “If we go back in the forest, we might not find the river again.”

  Rebecca said, “But if we try to cross here, you could get hurt.”

  Sylvia said, “I don’t think anything will happen. The cliff is really jagged, so there’s lots of handholds.”