In the Heart of Forever Read Free Page A

you weren’t old…”
    At that point, I took my chance. Taking a deep breath, I spat in his face.
    His grin warped into a snarl, full of hate. He wiped his face and pulled back his fist to hit me but stopped.
    I flinched.
    “You’re lucky, girl. So very fucking lucky. If it wasn’t for your mother, little girl, you’d be out on the street so fast, your head would spin.”
    I glared at him and crossed my arms under my chest. My cheek stung from where he had hit me a moment before.
    Allan chuckled and headed back into the living room, whistling. Bastard.
     

Chapter 3
    The next morning, I woke up, staring at my ceiling. Allan ended up ordering pizza, saying he didn’t want blood in his food from my cut hand. Like I would contaminate him or something. I rolled my eyes and huffed, wincing from the pain coursing through my head. A monstrous ache pounded inside my skull.
    I pushed myself off of my bed and walked out into the hallway. The sun hadn’t risen yet, so I trudged to the bathroom and felt around on the wall for the light switch. I stood in front of the mirror and gasped.
    My hair was wild, like I stuck my finger in a light socket and my eyes were wide. Scared even. With shaky hands, I touched the red mark on my pale face. It looked like a sunburn or blush. Luckily it didn’t look like a hand print. Or I had hoped it didn’t.
    I grabbed a washcloth, ran it under warm water and went about cleaning my face. My reflection blurred as I scrubbed my skin. Scratching until my skin turned red and ached from the roughness of the cloth. I wanted to wipe away my face. Erase the pain that had been caused for the past couple of years. If I could just scrub harder, I could clean away the guilt. The guilt of not having my mom. The guilt of putting her in the hospital. Mom, I need you.
    I needed her more than anything at this moment. Since not having my mom as a punching bag, Allan had to resort to beating me instead. He didn’t do it often but when he did, I had bruises for days. They would always be in spots that were hidden. He would never hit me hard enough in the face, just slap me around a bit. But the mental abuse was worse…almost.
    I wanted to leave. Needed to. But the thought of leaving my mom while she was lying in a coma made unease curl through my belly. I had to be strong. Especially for her.
    A hard lump forced its way into my throat. I swallowed past it and stripped completely, turning on the shower. The scorching hot spray beat down around me, soaking me, easing the ache temporarily in my heart.
    I began to wash myself, scrubbing until my skin felt raw. As I soaked under the hot water, steam filled the small room, leaving the air thick with condensation.
    “Hurry up. You’re wasting hot water.” A loud bang erupted from the bathroom door.
    I jumped as Allan’s deep voice boomed through the room, making my skin crawl.
    He never touched me in that way before but as I was getting older, he started looking at me differently. He no longer looked at me as the brat he got stuck with because my mom was no longer around. I was seventeen and my small figure started to fill out, making him notice me in a whole new light. He was much bigger than me and if anything like that ever happened, I wouldn’t be able to fight him.
    If the girls who made fun of my drab, boring clothes at school knew the reason behind why I wore them, they might have treated me better. Clothes that were too big for me or with colors that helped me blend in. I didn’t want to be noticed. I didn’t want to be seen, but disappear. It was easier that way.
    I swallowed past the hard lump in my throat and shook my head, stepping out of the shower. Having forgotten my housecoat in my room, I wrapped a towel around myself. An undeniable amount of terror etched in my stomach knowing that I would have to leave the safety net of the bathroom in just a towel.
    Please God, let Allan not be out there.
    With a shaky hand, I slowly opened it and stuck my head