Eye Of The Tiger

Chapter 76

Eye Of The Tiger

We have all heard of the song Eye Of The Tiger Rocky 3 theme song. So at the very moment, this song is playing through my head as I step up and take on my father once more. Mom wasn’t happy about the idea of me getting back into the ring but realized I had a valid point. I was training for mine, my mothers and my brother’s life.  These three people meant more to me than any trophy or prize so, in the end, she was going to support me, even more so when my brother was going home by the end of the school year.

I had let Aaron train with me, except for the fighting aspects. Aaron didn’t have a bike of his own, like my two sisters. It was forbidden by my father to prevent either of us from running away. In some ways, I find that funny considering he uses it as an excuse to blame my disappearance to his advantage. So I had Mom and Dad take Aaron and I down to the bike store in town and bought him one out my own savings. It was just a simple standard kid’s bike nothing special, just something he could ride the neighborhood with and ride back and forth to pool and gym with me, along with Jared and Jason. After all, it was just practice and would free Mom and Dad up to do other things.

Even though I had quit due to some health issues; I was welcomed back with open arms and a round of cheers, and picked up where I had left off. But my main goal wasn’t for the glory or the recognition; it was for me and no one else. I no longer had anything to prove to anyone, neither did I slack off; instead I worked just as hard or harder. My mother was all for it and more than happy to fit the bill, in fact, she insisted on it, even though I could have paid for Aaron's training fees as well as my own. My mother wouldn’t hear of it and sent a cashier check to cover the costs for Aaron's training fees and gear, which was almost 800 dollars in total.

I could just imagine the look on my fathers face when he finds it missing. Like I said before, my mother believes she has money to burn. I knew differently so I coughed it up the biggest share of it out of my own savings and sent most of the money back to her. Telling her we were able to get it at discount family rate of 150.00. Even with a small portion of the bill, my father was going to go through the roof. I am not saying I had money to burn myself, but I felt it was for a good cause and Mom and Dad agreed to it, by purchasing all the gear and clothing Aaron would need, leaving me to pay the reaming balance.

It didn’t matter what I did, I would always be the enemy when came to the three bad boys (Shawn, Danny, Arthur) and friends. I wanted no part of their so-called club and Mom and Dad kept them on a short leash. I had gotten into several fights with them, but I could hold my own. Mom and Dad only interfered when the situation got out of control, which wasn’t often or often enough knowing that if I wasn’t in control I could seriously hurt them, but I had promised Mom and Dad that I wouldn’t maim to cripple or kill them.

Bruising them severally, on the other hand, was allowed or making them unable to fight me by clear knockout was acceptable or missing teeth or a broken nose, if a knockout didn’t take place. Mom and Dad telling them they were lucky that I went easy on them, and would make up for it with their own punishment; earning further hatred towards me because I wasn’t getting punished for fighting. I was simply allowed to walk away and wash their blood off me while Mom and Dad tended to their injuries and not so kind way.

When came to family outings like skinny dipping. Mom and Dad didn’t force any of us to join in on the fun, but neither did Dad exempt Mom or my sisters from skinny dipping with us. Considering Mom and Dad had lifted that restriction along time ago soon after the round table meeting and not ignoring the fact they were spying on them anyway or the fact Dad had found and taken all their porn magazines while he was doing a regular routine search of their rooms for the missing tranquilizers. Which stated that one naked woman was nothing they hadn’t seen before and was doing their best to make it part of the norm instead of a sexual mentality, but I had feeling that it was too late for them, noticing how quickly that they had declined by wearing trunks instead; most likely to try to hide their hard rock penises after seeing a pair of tits.

I don’t know what could have been worse, having them show they're tightly bulging under their trunks or without them. Besides I can guarantee Mom and my sisters have seen their share. In any case, it had no effect on the rest of us not even Kerry’s new husband seemed to be aroused that easily seeing his wife or Moms or Jody’s as they ran towards the water. Sorry boys but it would take more than that for the rest of us to get aroused. Not even Aaron had any difficulty seeing three naked women jumping into the water running by him, and he was 13 at the time.

They could have been another boy or my mother as far as he or we were concerned, and he wasn’t part of the family.  Even though he called them “Mom and Dad” like the rest of us. After a long debate with our mother and me that it was more than alright to do so, and after a while the strangeness passed after I had explained that I had several Mom’s and Dads, one more wasn’t going to matter. My mother agreed, but I could see the hurt in her eyes, knowing that a part of her self was being shared and taking away a bit what made it special. It was also the last time he called her “Mamma.”

Susan and Becky soon afterward used it as well, having our mother tell them that she rather be called Mom rather Mamma as if they were still little children, not teenagers who will soon reach adulthood in few years. Even Daddy simply became Dad, but not for me, he would always be Jim, my abuser. I only use the words “my father” to reference him for all those Dads that I respect and had earned that title and will do so forever.

Mom and Dad did their best regarding making it a part of the norm, even explaining that sexual arousal was a choice, compared to other ways that it happened. Like me they knew perfectly well how and where babies came from and have taken the same classes as I had, and had the same detailed discussion regarding the “big sex talk” but it didn’t change the fact that it embarrassed them and excited them. So Mom and Dad simply let it go, hoping in time they too will just think it was part of the norm and just get tired of seeing a woman’s body as sex object, instead of something beautiful the way God had intended to be, and that’s were Mom and Dad made their mistake, if they hadn’t let it go the following events wouldn’t have happened.

My mother hated the idea regarding my home-visits had been terminated until she could prove that her home would be a safe environment. Yet she also understood that my father couldn’t be trusted when it came to home-visits at home, so every chance she got she came to visit me every weekend for a few hours or an overnighter ever so often, but my father would forbid it and make it harder for her to even spend time with me and Aaron. Yet when my mother wants something bad enough she usually gets it.

Aaron, on the other hand, was under no obligation when it came to home-visits because he wasn’t under the states umbrella law. All she had to do was show my caseworker that my father had changed enough by marriage counseling, to release him back into her care. The Rothwell’s did their best to prevent that from happening, but they too didn’t have a leg to stand on. Unless my mother was willing too hand him over to state and place him into the system then they couldn’t prevent her from taking him. Which was never going to happen, if she could have I would have gone with my brother as well.

Once more the DDS stepped in to guarantee Aaron's safety when it came to my father. No longer would tranquilizers or drugs that can incapacitate you be allowed in the home. Nor will he be allowed to beat up on either my mother or my brother without stiff consequences that could lead to jail time. Implementing surprised visits in the home, church, and school; where they will inspect any marking, bruising that can not be explained. He may not be under the same contract as my mother, but neither will he go Scot free. He would simply spend some time in a jail cell or not be allowed in the home until he could prove that he wasn’t a danger.

My mother told me that since my room was secure again having the walls reinforced with metal plating inside the wall to prevent him from chopping it down with an ax and the window had been lowered with removable quick release that would allow Aaron or I to remove it and jump to the ground easily if we needed to escape. Aaron had taken my room until I came home again. She also told me that Office Kenly and Bishop Earl had setup safe checkpoints that either of us could go to closer to home. All we had to do was simply opened the door and bolt it shut and the people inside would notify the local authorities. Each home was closes enough that we could be there in a matter of minutes; one on either side of us and two behind us and one across the street. I knew my father didn’t like the arrangements, but he brought it on himself.

Mostly my mother was hoping that the Rothwell’s would reinstate my home-visits, but Dad left the decision up to me, expressing strongly that in his and Mom opinion we should wait and see. I declined and agreed with them, telling my mother that I loved her and I trusted her, but when came to my father. There was no deal on the table that could convince me that I would be safe in her home with him there. I knew it hurt her, but I was perfectly happy here and even more so having my old life back.

School hadn’t ended yet by the time Aaron went home, kicking and screaming because he liked having me closes by and he had bonded with the Rothwell’s except the three bad boys that only bonded to themselves and their private club of misfits. In some ways, I wish I could have gone with him. If I had a crystal ball I most likely would have, than face what was coming. I had mentioned before how I didn’t trust the new Bishop and for a good reason. I never liked the Bishop that took Bishop Lanwall’s place. Something always told me not to trust him.  I didn’t need Jeff to tell me that he couldn’t be trusted with sensitive information, unlike Bishop Lanwall or Bishop Earl.

His name was Bishop, Crawford. I don’t remember his first name, but I recall that he was short, tubby fat man that could have been a circus ringmaster trying to get you to buy a ticket to see a peep show. Black oily receding hair that didn’t do much to cover his baldness; instead of soft brown eyes his was dark almost black and when they looked at you it made you feel dirty inside.

He reminded me of a portly snowman from his head to his feet that looked like clown feet when he walked. When you shook hands with him it always made me feel like I needed to take a bath. There was no light behind these eyes and there wasn’t a feeling of peace and serenity. Even though he was a man of God and called by God when he gave his testimony you didn’t feel moved in any way. At first, I thought it was just me, but even my best friends and their fathers said something was off with his guy.

It didn’t make feel better when we learned later on that he had been excommunicated soon after for sex crimes, prostitution ring, and drugs by selling them to his congregation with the help of some of the teachers and priest and few elders to help build their missionary funds and pay for nice homes and cars or kids college fund. It was a huge scandal and rocked the small town Highland at the time.

Like I said early on, sometimes it does happen. After all, they are just as perfect as the rest of us when it comes to poor judgment and bad mistakes. But Dad and Mom were taken in like the rest of the ward, since the majority liked the guy, being Dad was a man of God and his family followed him. The guy could do no wrong in his and her eyes.

Shane was in some way’s a fence sitter at times, but even he had to admit that there was something off. When the three bad boys and their friends were welcomed with open arms and were given a free pass when everyone in the house knew what they were doing down in the basement. Dad and Mom refused to talk about it, and if any of us did, the punishment was heavy-handed.

Dad would say that they each had confessed their crimes to the Bishop and the Bishop told him not to worry about it so much, that all boys “experiment” once and while. That alone should have told him that there was something wrong with the guy. He even seemed proud that Shawn had been returned to fulfill his Aaronic Priesthood duties blessing and passing the sacrament and going home teaching.

It was when he started to question it. When it came to where they got the money to buy nice clothes and other things that were above their allowance. They would say they were gifts or they earned them by doing odd jobs for Bishop Crawford and some of the members of the ward, having the Bishop back it up. Not even Shane and I were that thrifty when it came to spending our money, but Mom and Dad stop questioning it and would say. “If the Bishop said it was ok then it came straight from Gods mouth.”

Shane and I told Mom and Dad that we were propositioned by Bishop Crawford to deliver sealed packages across town to help with our so-called missionary fund and college fund, but we both turned down the offer. Telling him we already had employment. After all, I had a job for the summer and some extra when it came to mowing the neighbor lawns when spring arrived and worked all the way up until fall, plus working on ranches tending sheep and cattle on the weekends.

When Shane graduated from high school he did it full-time while he waited for his mission call.  Dad simply said that the Bishop was just trying to “help” and we had nothing to be concerned about since Shawn and Danny had made a three-sixty turnaround and it was due to Bishops Crawford’s influence by taking them both under his wing. Stating they are seldom in trouble as much as they used to be.

Even Arthur was given a job working around the neighborhood, he didn’t make as much as the other two boys and their friends, but he did make more money then Shane and I sometimes, When it was questioned Bishop Crawford would say they were just being generous and didn’t want to make Arthur feel bad and offered again to help with “jobs” for Shane and me closer to home. Dad suggested it could benefit us, but it was our choice so once again we declined the offer saying we both like our current jobs and our employer and I knew that painted a target on my back.