Big Brother's Little Sister

by Mike Bursell

  An Enforcer van was waiting outside, back door gaping open, engine running, at the far end of the car park, by the gates. The Enforcers let me go and then just stood behind me, I saw, looking over one shoulder then the other. "Get in the van, little girl," said the man with the balaclava. It was only 20 metres away. I looked behind me again. There were lots of people looking out of the windows from the classrooms. "Come on, little girl, get moving." I looked back again, and tried to be brave. I took one small footstep. Then another. And heard a sound I'd heard in too many films. A "snick-snick-snick". It was the sound of guns being cocked, ready to fire.

  I stopped. There was nothing more to hear. Just the sound of the engine of the van, and, in the background, some stupid bird singing loudly in a tree. It occurred to me how sad I would be if I died without knowing what that bird was.

  They can't shoot me. Not in front of all these people. They couldn't: even if they think I'm the head of Floyd, they'd have to question me, surely? They can't shoot me. I can be sure of that.

  But I couldn't be sure. Maybe they want to make an example of me. I needed to show everybody at the windows that I could be brave, even if it was the last thing I did. But it's not everybody, really. I want to show Mo. So he'll believe, and tell people, and know that I was brave to the last. For him.

  So I put one foot in front of the other. And then again, and again, and again. My vision was misting over as tears appeared in my eyes. I had a weird thought, realising that I hadn't told Mum how much I loved her. And then I was nearly at the back of the van, just a couple of steps away from some sort of safety.

  And then, a sharp noise, just as something hit me hard in the back of my neck.

  The ground came towards me as I fell forward and the world went black.

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