This time the life that he relived was his own. He saw himself as a boy being held down by his brother while he beat
him. Victor never spoke about his brother and in fact most of his family scarcely mentioned the long lost Kodlac first
born. Marcus had been destined to inherit the family fortune and that made Victor his target for derision. Of course
it did not help that their father saw more of himself in his second born. Being five years younger always left Victor on the
losing side of their scuffles, which were more like beatings in his opinion. But that all changed one day in December.
Their
father had insisted they go ice fishing as a publicity thing for a charity
fundraiser. The old man was certainly not going
to sit on the cold ice but he was more than happy to send his two boys. Victor was 10 at the time and still a year or two
away from his growth spurt. Marcus was a strapping young lad of 15. The day had been long cold and boring. Marcus amused
himself by pushing his younger brother around and flirting with a few of the girls. Victor was making the best he could of
the day but it was sheer misery. His brother had threatened to drop him down the foot-wide hole cut in the ice if he
dared scare the fish away. He couldn't really remember what happened but by the end of the day Victor was seriously worried
about being dropped down the fishless hole. He had managed to keep out of his way until the sun was setting and everyone was
packing up. Marcus was determined to catch a fish to impress father. Victor didn't dare complain even though he was freezing.
His mitts were tucked under Marcus's seat because he said he needed them and Victor was in no position to complain. Finally
a tug on the line and Marcus was reeling is a big one.
Victor forgot how numb his fingers were and how frozen his toes
were. He
scrambled to get the net as Marcus barked out orders. When the fish jumped out
of the hole Victor could only
watch in awe. He had never seen anything so beautiful. It fought against the pull of the line bending Marcus's rod.
"You
idiot don't just stand there gawking, get the net." Marcus cried.
Victor fumbled the net with frozen fingers, the metal
biting into his flesh. By the time he got a grip on the handle the fish had nearly fought its way free. Victor scooped
it up in one motion but was not prepared for the weight. The lure tore out of its mouth and it's weight crashed into
the net. Victor's numb fingers struggled to grasp the handle tightly as it fell from his hands. His body just would not cooperate.
He was so cold and tired. He watched in horror as the struggling fish drove itself and the net back into the hole and
the blackish icy water. His breath left his lungs when he looked up at his older brother. He knew that look and he knew he
had to run.
Marcus was hot on Victor's heels and he dashed across the frozen lake. He wasn't sure where he was
going and he knew that he could not out run his older brother. But he could not just sit there and take another
beating. When he passed over some ice he felt it give way under his weight but he kept going until he heard Marcus curse.
Turning around he saw his brother sink into the ice. Marcus flailed and called out to him for help. Victor knew that crossing
over the ice again would be dangerous so he got down on his stomach and slowly crawled towards his brother. Marcus struggled
to gain a hold of the ice that kept breaking beneath him all the while yelling at Victor. As Victor neared his spiteful brother
he reached out his hand to help him back onto the ice but stopped just short.
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