“STOP!” The word came out like a strangled cry. It didn’t even seem to belong to me. My baby sister was in my arms, and Mom was nowhere to be seen. She must still be in the garage. Didn’t she hear me scream? “I said leave her alone! You can’t grab her like that!” I tried as best as possible to make my voice firm, but its wavering gave me no power over Richard, who was potato bagging my other sister—Kristine, on his shoulder. I saw his gigantic hands on Kris’s thighs. They dug into her skin, and I knew those would leave bruise marks later. I was sure about it. My new little sister, Gabby, was a crying mess in my arms. Nothing seemed to soothe her. I snuggled her close to my body, trying to shelter her from the screaming, thrashing, and banging. My stepfather kept climbing the stairs, and I never left his heels. Richard looked like a demon. His face was contorted as if in pain and fury. His eyes almost bulged, and a slight vein near his temple looked like a worm wriggling underneath
Present day—Fifteen years later I looked at my watch and hurried along the crosswalk. The main street was busy today, so I was careful not to get hit by a passing car as I crossed. Once on the other side, I picked up speed so I wouldn’t be late for my appointment. My cell phone rang, and I had to fight through everything I had in my purse to grab it. I smiled when I saw the caller ID and quickly swiped the screen to answer. “Hey, you! Are you at the airport already?” My best friend Lena was travelling across the country to meet her boyfriend. Chuck had nabbed a job as a graphic designer, but if he wanted it, he had to uproot and move to the other coast. Lena had been on the fence about moving. She had never left this town, and I knew it was hard for her to drop everything she knew behind. Her life was here. “The fucking plane was delayed! I’m stuck here for another four hours. Come pick me up and never let me do something stupid like this again.” Lena pleaded on the other side of
“The rent is how much for you?” Shouted Lena on the phone. “That’s three months’ worth of rent at our old place! Are you out of your mind?” I had placed the phone on my new bed in the house on Queen Street and was opening boxes while talking to Lena, who had finally joined her boyfriend on the other side of the country. “No. I’m not.” “Yes, you are. The Olivia I know would never have gone on the upper side and lived like a snobby-rich girl. You’re down to earth and go with the flow. And you’re not frivolous. I bought you fucking new underwear because I was sick of seeing holes in yours every time I did the goddamn laundry. Where did that money come from?” Stop trying to test me, Lena…. “I’ve always had it. And for the record, I never asked you to buy me those, and they are still in the package. I refuse to wear granny panties. You just bought them to have a good laugh and to make a point.” “I still want to know why you made us live in a crappy apartment when we could have had som
Thursday arrived, and I got ready for my shift at the pub. I had seen little of Kat, and I certainly didn’t have time to tell her all about my encounter with her brother. I had to hand it to Dominic; I thought it was sweet to have his sister’s back the way he did, but it also insulted me he didn’t trust her more—or me, for that matter. It made me wonder if something had happened in the past to warrant such protectiveness toward Kat. I took a quick shower, then put on my Crowns uniform, which consisted of a green, low-cut T-shirt, an embroidered crown on my left breast, and tight black pants. I pulled my hair into a ponytail and put some mascara on. As much as I hated it, the more makeup I wore, the better my tips were. The same went for the amount of cleavage I showed, which meant I needed to buy good bras that showed the girls off—not that I needed any because I was naturally busty. But when in Rome, right? I went into the kitchen to grab a bite to eat and came face to face with a
I hadn’t seen Dominic since my shift at the pub, and I was thankful for it. Instead, I got to know his sister a little more. I had lived with Kat for over a week and spent only a few hours with her daily. She had a busy lifestyle, which suited me because it gave me time to think about what I wanted to write during the day. But we had a great time talking about nothing and everything when we were together in the evenings. It was late afternoon Monday, and I had prepared a surf and turf dish that I hoped Kat would like. She returned from work, and I called her from the kitchen to tell her I was there. Kat almost hovered off the ground, following the smell of our dinner, and I laughed when I saw how cheery she was. “Well, you look like you had a good day.” Kat sat on a bar stool and leaned over the kitchen island, grinning from ear to ear. “More like I had good news.” She said as she drummed her fingers over the marble countertop. “Is that so?” “Yes, but first… Wine!” Kat shouted w
The first snowflakes fell over the city and covered the ground with a light blanket of cold dust. The Christmas season would be upon us soon, and I loathed that time of year. Thanksgiving was only a few short weeks away, and I wondered what I would do. Had it been possible, I would have liked to fall asleep now and only wake up after the first of January. Missing that time of year would be less painful, as it brought so much anger, sadness, and regret. My life would be better if I could skip it entirely each year. There was a knock on my bedroom door. It opened, and Kat slipped her head in the crack. “Hey, Liv, do you have any plans for today?” Yes. Banging my head against my desk until words bleed out from me. “Not particularly. I’ve been sitting in front of my computer and waiting for words to appear magically on the screen.” I pouted. “Missing inspiration?” “I’m not sure if we can even call it that. I don’t understand. I have an idea, an outline, but it’s just not coming to me
I had successfully dodged Lena’s questions during the last few hours, but she was getting on my nerves. She kept calling and pestering me, even from the other side of the country. I groaned and closed my computer when I saw her caller ID on my phone. I had finally found some inspiration for my book, but the main male character I had initially drafted had changed from a blond-haired, green-eyed man to a tall, broad-shouldered man with brown locks and deep, piercing blue eyes. The more I wrote, the more I thought my character looked like Dominic, and I hated it. He was constantly in my mind. “Alright. I’ll tell you.” I instantly said to Lena when I swiped to answer. Might as well pull the band-aid immediately. Lena squealed. Then I heard her apologize to Chuck, who was probably working in the background. “The last two times you asked me to call and pretend something horrible happened was to get you out of a bad date—although ‘date’ is a big word since you don’t really date guys. So,
The girls from the pub usually went out for drinks and a late-night snack after work. I had never gone with them since I used to live on the other side of town, so they were ecstatic when I asked to tag along. We ended our shift and left to get a cup of coffee. Then I wondered if I could spend the night at Jody’s, and she was happy to lend me her couch when I mentioned it was a little too late for me to walk home alone. I texted Kat to let her know I was sleeping over at my friend’s house just so she wouldn’t worry. When morning came, I got up, had breakfast with Jody, and then walked home in dread. My legs were heavy coming up the few steps to the house, and I closed my eyes when I entered, thinking Dominic would come charging in. But it was silent, so I quickly closed the door and hurried through the hallway. Kat was on a sofa in the sitting room. She lifted her eyes from the book and frowned at me. “What happened last night?” She called, jumping from her seat. “Dominic came ove