Chapter 1:

                   My birthday

June 14th 2008,

Johnny woke up that morning looking forward to a day filled with fun and excitement.  It was his birthday and just like all his rich friends, he wanted to fly to Florida and visit Disney land. His father however, not rich enough, showed no signs of doing something great for his son’s birthday. Poor Johnny, just seven years old and already his dreams began tumbling down. He showed signs of a character that would come to face a harsh reality, a reality that he was less fortunate than all his friends at his school. He went to a private school you see. His father had no trust in the public school system and struggled to make ends meet just so his son could have and expensive education, go to the best colleges and get a good job to support his family, all the things that the man had missed out on in his own life. Johnny, too young to understand, cursed his fate. He had begun to resent his father who worked so tirelessly for a better future for his son.

“Why can’t I go to Disney land like my friends?” Johnny thought to himself. “Why can’t he just take me there?!” his anger grew.

Johnny quickly climbed out of his bed to beg his father once more, “Can we please go to Disney land for my birthday father?” However, he would soon discover the nightmare that awaited him downstairs. Johnny went looking for his dad but he was nowhere to be found. He searched room by room but still no luck. “Where has father gone?” asked Johnny with a worried look on his face. He came downstairs, and just as he reached a kitchen he fell to the floor screaming and crying, “Dad! Daddy! Get up!” The man lay face down on the floor, unconscious with blood flowing out of his chest. A few minutes passed as Johnny cried and screaming, begging his father to get up, for what could a seven year old have done? Then all of a sudden someone began to knock on the door and with no reply from the inside the knocks became louder and eventually the person barged through the door. It was the neighbor who had heard Johnny screaming and crying and had rushed over when the cries failed to halt. She had lived next door to Johnny and his father for a few years now and had babysat Johnny quite often when his father worked late shifts at work. She stood there, in sheer shock for a moment, the hurried over and pulled Johnny away from the lifeless body. She had worked part time as a life guard at the beach and had first aid training. She knew immediately that the man was dead. She called the police and reported a murder. How did she know? You may ask. I can tell you now that she is not the one who took the life of poor Johnny’s father. She knew it was murder as the man laid there with a stab wound in his chest but no bloody knife in sight.