Rain pelted the car window as I stared at the small town surroundings. My family and I were on a trip to Florida to visit Uncle Ellis. Until then, I only see them on holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas. So this is the first time we are actually visiting him. To tell the truth, the main reason we are visiting is just that mom and dad were bored, so I'm too excited. As if reading my mind, Mom said that Uncle Ellis was making his famous poutine to liven the mood. My eyes lit up in response since his poutines were the best. It was very cheesy, and he would include fried chicken scraps inside it as well. It was premium and used Grandma's famous gravy, which was so good. A smile was beaming on my face like a 6-year-old, which was kind of embarrassing.
Since I was 14 years old, my mom hasn't failed to remind me. I ignored the comment and just thought about the poutine as mom and dad discussed some business things. I didn't hear it fully, but it has something to do with Dad's business. "Did you really give the Moore Project to Willem?" my mom exclaimed. Willem was one of my dad's best friends, but it doesn't seem like they can get along anymore. My dad reassures Mom by saying, "he was done with that project," so he was just letting it go. Mom nodded in response as the car ground to a halt. We finally arrived at my uncle's place, which was a decent-sized house with a big backyard. However, the backyard was fully gated apart from the house. Uncle Ellis came out wearing an apron and called us in. I asked Ellis why his backyard was gated, but he just said the river is infested with alligators. His backyard does have a river, but it was hard to see an alligator there as it was raining more heavily now. While we were taking off our shoes, Ellis waved us over to the kitchen. Ellis calls me over and gives me a game. "Here, a good gift from your best uncle," Ellis said energetically. The game in question was Marlon Mansion, a popular game that came out just recently. I thanked Ellis, who said it was no problem and told me to sit down while he went to get the meal. "Bet you guys were hungry from the long drive," Ellis said proudly as he handed us our meals. It was his famous poutine, and it looked fantastic. It was cooked perfectly and was filled with lots of fries and fried chicken. There was a decent amount of cheese, too, as I took a bite of some fries. The fries were crispy, and the gravy made the fries taste even better. As I was enjoying myself, Uncle Ellis decided to ask Dad a question. "So, Dereck, did you really hand over everything?" Ellis asks curiously. Dad only nodded in response, which caused Ellis to ask if he could really trust Willem. The sharp comment caused Dad to jolt a little bit before becoming composed again. "Willem may not be the most reliable person, but he does know the technology well," Dad stated. "The Moores' project also has become unsustainable for me, so it was best to back away from the project and leave it to Willem," Dad continued. "Seems like the project just wasn't for you," Ellis said while Dad nodded in response. Right as Ellis finished that line, I told him I was finished. Ellis told me to put it into the sink and leave, as we were his guests. "There's a console downstairs in the basement so you can go play your new game," Ellis explained. I took Ellis on that offer and went to the basement. But when I did, I noticed the outside was worse. The rain was heavy now, and the wind was definitely strong as the front lawn tree was swaying violently. I just signed and went downstairs. The basement was very tidy and even had a kitchen too. The living room had a nice, comfy red couch and a mahogany table. Then they were the console and a television. I gave my game and inserted it into the console to try it out. I had a blast playing it for an hour before my mom called me. I paused the game console before going upstairs to see what she wanted. "Uncle said there was a nice Chinese bakery here with hotdog buns, so I decided to go check it," Mom exclaimed. Then said if I wanted to come, and I agreed to go. I quickly slipped into my shoes, and we went to our car. As we entered the car, I started to feel weird. A strange feeling like being watched, but I simply discarded it. Right as mom started the car, a glove hand came right out from the back seat and started to choke mom. The man was wearing a completely black suit with goggles. I tried to pry the hands off Mom, but he was too strong. Mom accidentally hit the paddle, causing the car to drive forward, crash through a fence and crash right into the river. The car filled with water very quickly, and when I looked back, the man had already exited the vehicle. Mom told me to open my door and quickly swim back to the house. I nodded and gave the door a strong shove to open it. The door opened, and I quickly left the car as my mom did the same thing. Once we had exited the flooded car, I looked for the man who was already on shore by this point. He was running away, and suddenly his arm was shot by a rifle which my uncle Ellis had brought out. Dad was with him, but sadly, the shot wasn't enough to stop the assailant from escaping. Ellis didn't try to shoot as he saw us and quickly ran towards us. Mom yelled at me to swim quickly to the shore, just as I saw what seemed to be a log in front of me, which I told Mom. Mom's face turned cold as she told me to swim backward slowly. She grabbed my shoulder and pushed me forward as I started swimming forward. Ellis was now in the water while Dad was waiting on shore, with Ellis swimming aggressively towards us. A sudden bone-chilling scream was heard from behind as I looked back to see an alligator's jaws biting down on my mom's shoulders. I froze at the sight of the thrashing behind my mom and the alligator before a hand grabbed me. It was Ellis who shook me to swim to the shore as he tried to help Mom. I managed to make it to the shore as my dad helped me up to my feet. I look forward to seeing Ellis swimming back as I see two more alligators chasing him. Luckily, Ellis made it in time, but Mom wasn't so lucky. That was the last time I ever saw my mom.