SNATCHED AWAY

My sisters name was Rose. People used to say we were inseparable, we were the best of friends, or as our mum called us ‘two peas in a pod.’ The eighteen years we spent together was the best time of our lives. We would give each other advice, giggle at boys, tell jokes. It was a bond we’d hope would never be broken. But being young, we were naive. We didn’t have a clue about the world and how evil it could be. We only saw beauty and happiness and we both were grateful to be alive. Our mum worked as a nurse and attended to people who were sick or those who were dying, she passed her compassion onto us. Our dad worked as a teacher, he mainly taught children who were disadvantaged or were in financial trouble. Our family was like any other.

When we had spare time Rose and I loved to go bird watching. We saw beauty in nature and birds. We had a favourite spot near our home, usually it would take twenty minutes to walk. There were many trees and a lake with a small pathway surrounding it. We visited often when we wanted some time to ourselves. Rose’s favourite bird was a Striated Pardalote, it was a small, short-tailed bird that was more often heard than seen. We spotted it once on our many adventures, and I will never forget Rose’s face when we spotted it, her face lit up like a christmas tree and her smile was huge. I haven’t spotted one since, but I can hear them chirping every now and then, it brings back memories of Rose and our beautiful adventuring, and our love for nature.

It was a clear, warm summers day. As usual the sun was shinning and the sky had very few fluffy white clouds. Rose and I were having breakfast in the kitchen while mum and dad were getting ready for work. Our school had a day off because it was correction day, the teachers had to go to work but the students had the day off. I remember kissing mum and dad on the cheek and saying “good bye see you tonight, love you both,” Rose kissed them both on the cheek as well and said she loved them too. That day was the last day we would be together as a family. We had no idea what was about to happen.

After mum and dad left for work Rose and I decided to go for a walk down to our favourite spot to watch the birds. As we were walking down we noticed a black van slowly following behind us. We were naive. We thought it might be our neighbors. To our mistake it was two men wearing black masks and black clothes. I will never forget the fear I felt in that moment. The moment my heart was beating so fast it was in my throat pounding. My stomach felt sick, and my first instincts turned to Rose, I had vowed to protect her when she was a baby. The men pulled the van up right next to us, we started sprinting away. Rose was in front of me. We shouted as hard as we could but no one could hear us. Our legs were tired but we kept running, we thought we had lost them at one point but they snuck up behind us and grabbed us both by our clothes. We were shoved into the back of their van. It was almost like a dream, for we were told in school that kidnapping didn’t happen very often and it was very rare where we lived. The men put black bags on top of our heads, they tied rope to our hands and feet. They made us take off our clothes and one by one we were raped. The whole time I was thinking about Rose and what she must be thinking, and our mum and dad. All I felt was pain. I had never encountered anything sexual, in fact I had never kissed a guy before. A man climbed on top of me and forcefully pushed himself onto my body. I was scared. I didn’t know what was happening. I felt sharp pain everywhere, I didn’t expect my first time to be like this, I thought it would be magical and beautiful. I was mistaken. The men continuously raped us for what felt like hours. Finally they stopped. Our innocence was snatched away that day. We were only eighteen.

After they where done they tied us both to poles so we couldn’t escape and left us naked. It was quite cold in the truck. The only thing we could do was pray and talk to each other to cheer one another up. I could hear one man say that they only needed one girl. Then all of a sudden I was thrown out of the vehicle while it was still moving with Rose trapped inside. The pain was horrendous. I lay in the middle of a road with rope around my hands and feet, naked with a black bag around my head. I was in so much shock I didn’t even know what to do. I laid there for a while until a lady found me, she called police and took me to the hospital then back home where my mum and dad were waiting. The guilt and shock had been too much and when the police started to ask questions I didn’t know what to say. I imagined Rose lying in the truck alone and afraid. I wanted to save her I wished that Rose was safe and that I was still in the truck. After the policemen asked me the questions one of them turned to me and said “you are very brave young girl and we will find your sister.” I didn’t say anything. I didn’t feel brave at all. I felt guilty for being the one who had escaped. It was nearly midnight but there was no way I could sleep knowing my sister was out there with those men.

We never found Rose. It had been twenty years since the incident and I can’t stop reliving the haunting memories of what happened. I miss her everyday and I pray that she is okay. Recently I visited our favourite spot, I heard the chirping of a Striated Pardalote but even with the binoculars I couldn’t see it. The chirping reminded me of an invisible Rose pleading for help. I hope one day I will see my sister again. I will never forget what happened to us. It was a day like any other and it broke my family apart. The birds flying around me lived in freedom. Rose did not. I vow that I will find you Rose. I promise I will set you free.