It would take me a few days to realize that Robin, Trent and Aunt LeeLee had been murdered. Because nobody wanted to talk about the incident, it would take several months to piece together the pieces. It would take me years to find the entire story once I was old enough for the Internet.
Alabama was a major news source for the murder of a mother and her two children in their home in quiet, small-town Alabama. The story was occasionally mentioned on the news as the investigation was ongoing, and later during the trial, but my parents changed the channel. They couldn’t handle it. It was clear that they wanted us all to forget about it.
But I couldn’t forget. It scared me, but it made me want to know more. This is how I am. For several years I was silent, blocked it out, and finally I had the courage to search the case. The more disturbing the story became, it became clearer.
My mom informed us that someone had broken into their home. “hurt them,”It terrified me in my deepest heart. Like I said, I didn’t know the whole story with all the details until years later, but coming that close to something so awful, so terrifying—it was a turning point for me. It changed everything. I could no longer live in the innocence of a childhood that was unspoiled.