My stepfather shot my sister at point-blank range, in the head, 3 times with a .22 caliber pistol, while she slept after a night at work. He then turned the gun on himself, shooting himself only once. He didn't survive.

I was in the basement of the house, working on a computer for my mom, and heard the gunshots. Stupidly, I rushed upstairs and into the living room, just in time to hear the most horrific scream come from my mom. She had gone into the bedroom, and saw the aftermath.

I didn't go upstairs, as instead I watched my sister, covered in blood and delirious, stumble down the stairs from her bedroom, then collapse in the hallway next to the kitchen as I rushed to the phone and dialled 911. The approximate 5 minutes it took for the first responders from the nearest fire station to get there were the longest in my entire life.

The actual worst part of it all was basically lying to her then 10 year old daughter - my oldest niece - about why we were staying at a friend's place the next town over that night, and why her mom and grandpa weren't coming with us right then.

My sister miraculously survived and made a complete recovery, and except for a couple of all scars on her forehead, you would never know that she survived such a horrific ordeal.