December 2019
Minneapolis
Deep wrinkles were etched in the woman’s ebony face. Her eyes were so warm and welcoming Sofia wanted to hug her instead of just shake her hand.
“Welcome. Please come in and have a seat,” the woman gestured to a wide empty room with a circle of chairs in the middle. “There’s coffee and treats on the table. Please help yourself.”
“Thank you,” Jason said.
Sofia could tell he was nervous. He was biting his inner cheek like he did when he felt uncertain. They lingered at the table, pouring coffee and putting cookies on a plate until a few more people filed in and took seats.
Sofia found two chairs next to a small man in a red plaid coat.
Jason sat beside her. They still weren’t living together. Jason had rented a small studio apartment downtown. But he’d only signed a six-month lease. They were working toward living together again someday. At least that’s what they both told the marriage counselor.
Jason had passed on taking the new job. The thought of a move was too much to think about with what they’d gone through in the past year. And with the status of their marriage up in the air, it would’ve been the death knell for them.
Sofia was relieved. The idea of leaving behind the only home that Kate had ever known was now overwhelming. At first, the memories that filled the house had been too much, but now they comforted Sofia. She was confronted with Kate everywhere she looked. The bathroom filled with Kate singing pop songs in the shower, giggles from the first-time Kate laughed, lying in her crib, looking up at her mother making funny faces, even the echo of her shouts and slamming her bedroom door as a moody teenager. The house contained all of it and Sofia couldn’t leave it behind. At least not right then.
A few people who had sat down spoke in low voices. It seemed like most people already knew one another.
Then the woman who greeted them at the front door cleared her throat.
“If she says something about ‘moving on’ I’m outta here,” Sofia whispered to Jason.
It achieved the desired result: He cracked a tiny smile.
“I’m Glenda Hawkins. Thank you for coming to our meeting tonight. We are the Parents of Murdered Children group. If you accidentally wandered in here–God knows it won’t be the first time—the Finding the Color of Your Aura class is down the hall.”
A few people snickered.
“Our guest speaker today is Cristina Pippa from the Attorney General’s Office.” Hawkins gestured at a pretty woman with long blonde hair and bright blue eyes beside her. “She will speak about the legal rights of crime victims and will walk us through the criminal justice process.”
The woman smiled.
“But first, let’s do introductions,” Glenda said. “As I said, I’m Glenda. My son was killed by his fiancé’s ex-boyfriend.”
One by one each person stood and told why they were there. Some people cried. Others recited details emotionlessly.
Jason and Sofia exchanged looks.
Sofia listened, but she also started to flip through the pamphlet she’d picked up near the coffee. It listed October Anniversaries. Names of children with the date of death underneath.
It also had a section called “Trial, Judicial, and Arrest Updates.”
It listed details of the arrest of a mother who had killed her fourteen-year-old son. It also gave the trial date of a daycare provider who hung a baby.
The last few pages contained letters and essays written by parents to their deceased children. Sofia quickly closed the brochure, tears pricking her eyes.
Then, the man in the plaid coat beside Sofia stood. His son was involved in gangs in North Minneapolis. His son was killed in crossfire two years ago. The entire family was devastated. His wife left him and moved back to Mexico. His sixteen-year-old daughter tried to commit suicide. He got a DUI. He lost his job. They lost their house. But he has been clean and sober for three months. He has a new job at Home Depot. They rent an apartment in a safer neighborhood. His daughter is doing well, getting straight A’s at her new high school.
Sofia stood. It was her turn.
“My name is Sofia Castellucci Kennedy. My seventeen-year-old daughter Kate was murdered by her best friend.”
Jason reached out and squeezed her hand.
She took a deep breath and told her story.