Beneath the surface

Bianca

“What are you two whispering about?” Mother’s voice cut through the air like a knife. I was scared, my body trembling uncontrollably. Daniel seemed to notice and held my hand.

“She won’t hurt you,” Daniel whispered. “I won’t allow her to hurt you with me by your side.”

“Mother,” I called, rising to my feet.

“What are you talking about?” she asked once more.

“Nothing, Mother,” I replied.

“You little brat,” she scoffed, her voice dripping with hatred. “Lying to me with that mouth of yours.”

“She isn’t lying,” Daniel added, defending me. “I was only telling her about the training and all.”

“Is that so?” Mother’s eyes bore into us with suspicion.

“Yes, mother. We were not gossiping about you.” He dropped the bomb like a nuclear.

Mother’s eyes widened. She trembled as she attempted to hit him.

“What do you think you are doing, mother?” he asked, stopping her hand in the midway.

“How dare you!” She growled in anger. “You have the guts to stop your mother from hitting you.”

“I won’t allow you to hit me or my sister.”

I gasped as he talked back to her. Years ago, we both trembled at her feet, but now he stood elegantly tall in front of her. Was this my brother, who always begged for his life whenever she hit him?

“DANIEL!” she roared, her voice laced with a warning, as she grabbed the hem of his clothing.

In the blink of an eye, she picked him up and threw him across the room.

“Ahh!” I exclaimed, rushing to his side. He groaned, trying to stand on his feet, but Mother was already there, pressing her feet on his back.

“Please stop, mother,” I begged.

“You don’t tell me what to do,” she screeched, shoving me away.

She knelt in front of him, an evil smile plastered on her face. It was clear she was enjoying his pain as Daniel groaned in discomfort.

She grabbed his cheek before saying, “You think you are something since you have started training, right?” She mocked. “You think you can stand in front of me and talk back to me?”

“Ahh!” Daniel screamed as she repeatedly hit his head against the wall. What kind of monster was she? Doing this to her own children? I couldn’t bear to watch any longer, so I grabbed her by the waist.

“Let go of my brother!” I screamed. “Stop hitting him.”

With one hand, she shoved me away, and I could hear my bones shatter. I tried to crawl away as my mother approached me and picked me up by the tip of my dress.

“I wish you were more like me, but you resemble your foolish father,” she scolded. “I will mold you to be like me, even if it means breaking you, my dear daughter.”

She picked me up and threw me to where my brother was.

“Are you okay?” My brother asked, holding my hand. I couldn’t talk since my body hurt like hell. The pain was just too much for me to bear. “Bianca, are you okay?”

“Hmm. What a beautiful sight!” she grinned wickedly. “You look more like someone I wish to never see again in my life.” She was filled with anger. “Why can’t you look like your father?” She howled, hitting Daniel again. Her eyes were filled with hatred. She spat at him, her voice full of venom. “Why do you have to look like that bitch?”

What was Mother talking about? Who was she calling a bitch?

“Enough,” my voice barely up, but I knew she could hear me clearly. “You will kill him at this rate.” I knew my mother hated us both, but her hatred for Daniel was on another level.

She refused to listen to me. “Are you trying to kill my brother, mother?”

“I don’t care if he is dead or not,” she spat, dropping him on the floor.

She was a terrible woman. She always treated us like this whenever our father was away.

It was my turn to ask if he was okay.

“Brother,” I called, holding him tightly. He was bleeding. “Brother.”

I started crying, seeing my brother this weak. My heart bled. This woman was the reason for our pain. Was she truly our mother?

“Are you done crying?” she asked, taking her seat on my bed. “If yes, you should stand up and clean up.”

“Mother,” I whispered. “Are you truly our mother?”

“What makes you think that I’m not your mother?” She questioned.

“I have every right to question you because of the way you are treating us.”

“Hehe.” She laughed out a horror laugh. “Think whatever you want. By the time you realize that I am doing this for you, you will thank me.”

“I don’t want you to do anything for me, mother. Please, stop torturing us.”

She rose to her feet. “I don’t have time to be exchanging words with you. Clean up and come out for training.”

She pushed the door open before turning around to address me. “Be fast, or else you will receive another punishment from me. Am I clear?”

“Yes,” I replied, focusing back on my brother.

“Can you speak now, brother?”

“Yes,” he replied with a groan. Even a blind person could see that he was in pain.

“Allow me to take you to bed.” I couldn’t carry my brother by myself. All I could do was drag him to the bed. “You should rest, brother. I will be right beside you.”

“You should go for your training,” he advised. “I don’t want her coming here to hit you again.”

“You don’t have to say that,” I responded, lying beside him. “I don’t care if she hits or kills me. I don’t give a fuck about her.”

“But sister—”

“No but, brother. Please rest.”

We stayed there for so long that I didn’t know when I fell asleep. By the time I woke up, my mother’s intense gaze met mine, burning with intensity.