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Previous Challenge Entry (Level 4 – Masters)
Topic: Write for the SUSPENSE and/or THRILLER Genre (10/23/14)
Julie had not shown up for school the past few days, and she didn’t answer her phone when friends called. The group of teenagers who went searching for her were horrified at what they finally found. The experience formed a picture in their minds that would never fade.

There she was, lying in bed, with two bullet wounds in her forehead. The body of her father lay across the foot of her bed. Both were dead from gunshot injuries. The bodies had been there for two days.

The first person to see Julie was her boyfriend, Buddy, and the sight of her would haunt him for the rest of his life. “I’ve never forgotten the gore and the odor. They are embedded in my mind, and I still have nightmares.” Buddy stated last year.

17 year-old Julie, and her father, 45 year-old Irving, had a close, loving, relationship. The young people surmised that someone had come into their small apartment and shot them. Never in a million years could they have guessed the truth.

This tragedy took place in the spring of 1967 in Hapeville, Georgia, a little town just east of Atlanta. The newscasters had a field day with the incident. This type of thing was unheard of in that quiet community. Julie’s many friends gasped at the reporting. What in the world had taken place? This just couldn't be possible!

The funeral brought people in hordes. Most were friends she went to school with, and of course there were some curiosity seekers. Everyone wanted to know the story of how this horror came to be.

Julie was a beautiful young woman. Born to a Jewish father and an Italian mother, the combination resulted in a most attractive daughter. Her mother had died when Julie was three years old, but she must have been a beauty. Julie certainly was. Her dark hair, flawless complexion, and big, brown eyes that danced when she spoke, made her a sight to behold.

Friends loved her vivacious personality and sense of humor. She could make one smile by simply walking into a room. People wanted to be close to her, and her passion for life was contagious.

When told the news of her death and the circumstances surrounding it, I could not speak. Julie had been my best friend, and I couldn’t imagine life without her. My mind became numb with disbelief. When I saw her in her casket that night at the funeral home, she spoke to me.

I wasn’t ready to die!

“Oh, no! No! No!” I screamed, over and over. I had to be led from the room by friends who came to my side. I was out of my mind with grief.

I was even more traumatized when the police deemed the entire incident a murder/suicide. They concluded that Mr. Gelb, the gentle and jovial man I had come to love as a father, took a 22 caliber pistol and shot the person he loved most in this world, and then turned the gun on himself.

Why? To this day, no one knows for certain. There was speculation that Mr. Gelb had become depressed over losing his job, and that Julie had gotten a little unruly. She had started skipping school, and was suspended more than once. Even so, there has never been a definitive answer as to why this horrible act took place.

Mr. Gelb liked his bourbon, but this was the 1960’s, and many parents consumed alcohol in that decade. I just never gave it a second thought. However, in retrospect, I wonder if he might have had too much to drink one night, and while in a depressed state of mind acted on his thoughts of no longer wanting to live and not leaving his beloved daughter behind.

The gun and silencer were purchased months before the tragedy took place, so it might have been planned to some degree. I only wish I knew what went through Mr. Gelb’s mind as he pulled that trigger twice and murdered his own daughter.

Whatever the reason, Julie’s death still haunts me to this day. After 47 years, I have dreams about her. In these dreams, Julie tells me she did not die, but simply moved away. This tells me I have never accepted her death. If I just knew why, maybe I could put my best friend to rest.

One day I hope to be able to say, “Rest in peace, Julie, my friend. Rest in peace."


*True story.
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This article has been read 867 times
Member Comments
Member
Date
C D Swanson 
10/30/14
Oh my gosh, what a tragedy. I'm so sorry to have learned that this was a true story. This type of "unresolved" parting always makes it difficult for those left behind to decipher the reason "why." That little word looms large in the heads of those struck by tragedy of this magnitude, "why?"

Your friend is with God and one day...you'll see her and perhaps learn what really happened that horrific and life altering day.

Your story packed a wallop to the heart and gut, and was written with an expert hand that truly comes from having "lived through" the account in which you write.

Peace to you my sister that your mind will cease to trouble you, and your heart rest assured that she is indeed in peace...forever more.

Thank you for sharing your heart with us.

God bless you~
C D Swanson 
10/30/14
Also, despite the harrowing and overwhelming circumstances, you've managed to bring this story together in a powerful and moving way. Excellent writing.

I pray this does well for your sake, and for the memory of your childhood friend.

God bless~
Tracy Nunes 
10/30/14
Truth is stranger than fiction, they say. Your story exemplifies
that in every way. Very sad but well written and ends with hope.
Nancy Sullivan 
11/01/14
I'm so sorry for your tragic loss. The reality of suicide affects everyone left behind, and surely the struggle to understand never ends. You did an excellent job of sharing this heartache. Your writing has the potential of saving other lives. God Bless.
Verna Cole Mitchell 
11/01/14
I'm sorry that this very chilling story was actually a true story. You told it very well.
Toni Babcock 
11/01/14
Very well written, compelling and tragic. We feel the writer's anguish over this sad event.
Shelley Ledfors
11/01/14
This story would have been a powerful one, no matter what. That power is amplified since it is true. I'm sorry for the loss of your friend.
Ellen Carr 
11/02/14
What a very sad story and even more so because it's true. Thanks for sharing this in such a well-told manner.
Judith Gayle Smith-Owens Vitouswykegardinerclark
11/06/14
When I first read this, before the brick toss, my heart told me this was your story about your beautiful friend. I grieve your emptiness, and my heart is hugging yours.
Hugs, Judi
1 Timothy 3:16 KJV
Robert Douglas Brown
11/07/14
I thought that I had already commented on your article. I am sorry for not doing this. I did read it back when you told me the title of your article.

I am surprised that it did not place in the top 5.

Your writing is top notch, and light years beyond where I will ever hope to be.

God has given you a rare gift that is priceless beyond my comprehension.

One day you will be a well known and well paid writer!

I am at a bad point with my writing, and do not feel confident enough to do much of it at the present. I know though that God's grace is more than enough to get me back in the game when he sees fit for me to do so.

However, your writing brings a bit of happiness each and every week. I am your biggest fan for sure!

God Bless!

Robert B.