Chapter Eight

 

Chapter Seven

           

 

That night Linda had thanked Mrs. G and wished her a safe road home before tucking her sweet angel into bed. Linda sat in her own rod iron post bed thinking about the new situation she had found herself in.

            Linda needed to work; her life and Emmys depended on only herself now. For too long she had relied on James’s income. During this time she had became soft and had lost the hard shell that she had built around herself during her childhood and adolescence. The same woman who had lived on the streets and worked her way into and out of college now didn’t know if she had the strength or know how to get herself out of this hole.

            What am I going to tell Lance in the morning? How long can I hold him off? Questions; one after another flooded her mind. Come on woman! She cursed herself as she stared at the patch of light that the moon cast up on her ceiling. You have gotten this far! Surely you can think of something to tell him until you find a way out of this.

            Linda didn’t know much about forgery. She had only used their services once when she had to buy her high school transcripts to get into university. She felt almost certain that she could find another on the outskirts of town. These men can find interesting ways to get around during hunting season.

            This thought seemed to release some of the tension inside of her and for the first time in a very long time Linda fell asleep without having to take any sleep aid medication.

            Linda seemed to have melted from herself. She melted into her bed and in an instant she snapped her eyes open to find herself back in the one place that Linda could never forget.

            The smell of damp straw and saw dust hit her nostrils like a bomb going off. Without having to look down Linda instantly knew that she was wearing a faded blue dress that showed the sharp angles of her knee caps. She could feel the ends of blades of straw scratching the back of her legs.

            The night was calm and a soft breeze blew through the open gaps in the walls. She could see soft moonlight lighting up the world beyond those old planks of wood.

            Linda sat motionless and listened to the world around her. The most prominate sound that filled the air around her was the summer song of crickets. Their loud melody had often sung her to sleep many nights before, but something tonight had her on edge.

            Almost by instinct Linda’s ears prickled and she turned her head in the direction towards the small cabin that lay just a few hundred yards from her. She could hear muffled voices. One voice was deep and snarling, Linda instinctively shrunk away from it. She knew that voice well. It haunted her I her sleep and far too often it haunted her when her eyes were still wide with alarm.

            Linda shouldered her fear and crawled from her makeshift bedding. Her heart fluttered as she reached the large barn door. Even though it was barred from the outside she had found that if she pressed most of her slight weight into it that a quarter inch gap opened up just enough to allow the sound of the scene beyond to become in with higher clarity. If she tilted her head just the right way she could see the front porch of the cabin.

            There were lights on inside the house. Linda could see the silhouettes of two figures inside the small building. A smaller frame stood in front of the screen door. Arms posted on hips. Linda still could not hear what they were saying but she could hear the higher pitched shouts omitting from the woman. Another figure paced in front of the window. The figure was large and almost completely blacked out the light behind him.

             A deep baritone growl roared across the night air to Linda’s ears. She had to use all of her will power to not rush away from the door to safety.

            Who says your safe there? The thought crept to her as she placed her eye against the crack gain and looked through. The woman was shouting again her arms flew up above her head. Her father’s pacing had quickened, making the light behind him look as if it was blinking on and off.

            With clarity that surprised her, Linda heard the woman shout at the top of her lungs. The furry that poured from the woman terrified Linda, yet also made her sick with curiosity. She pressed her face harder against the rough wood.

            “Never again you b*****d!” The words hit Linda with enough force to make her hold her breath. She could feel her pulse pounding in her ears.

            A deep animalistic roar rang out, completely drowning out the cries of the woman. Linda’s breath hitched in her lungs as she witnessed the tall brooding figure hurtle from his small square of light and into the woman’s. With ferocious strength the woman was thrown off of her feat and out of sight.

            A crash and a cry of pain and terror spilled from the house. Before Linda had time to make her young legs move she seen her father rush from the house and before the screen door had time to bang shut behind him he was at the Barn door.

            Linda stood frozen in front of the door as he threw the plank to the ground as force the wooden door open. In just a few short second Linda stood face to face with her nightmare.

            “You.” He growled as he stood over her. His breath came out in ragged gasps of anger. Linda’s hair stood up on the back of her neck and she took a step backwards. Of all the times that he had stood over her, she had never seen this kind of wild look in his eyes. She was truly terrified.

            Before she had managed to take another step away he charged towards her and with brutal strength picked her up by the front of her dress. She heard herself let out a gasp of surprise and pain she the material cut into her wind pipe.

            Helpless Linda coughed as he carried her to the pile of straw and threw her to the ground. Despite the few feet of soft material, Linda felt her shoulder hit the hard packed ground beneath and let out another cry of alarm as her bones rattled.

            In an instant he was on top of her. The smell of cheap beer and cigarette smoke gagged her but she smelled something worse that hit her in the face. His anger seemed to be seeping from his pores in thick rancid, bitter clouds. In that instant she knew that her father had came here to take what he usually did and then end her life.

            Linda had heard of God a few times in her short life and she had often prayed that he would come and rescue her from her own personal hell on earth. She had always envisioned him sweeping own with great wings of white and sweep her into his arms and fly away to heaven. She had never thought that her end would come this way.

            Her father’s weight pressed down on her as she heard the metallic clang of his belt buckle as he struggled to free himself. She knew that the pain would come in just a few moments. He would force his way into her and no matter how hard she cried he would rip into her until she lay motionless as her own blood mixed with his own dampness. She would be sore for days afterwards; a hot searing pain that crawled its way into her abdomen.

            Linda closed her eyes as tears forced their way out of behind her lids. She sent a prayer to her own personal God as she awaited the rough but familiar touch of her father. In a moment of wonder Linda opened her eyes in a mixture of alarm and thankfulness as she heard a metallic crunch , felt the weight leave her body, and felt warm damp droplets splatter against her face.

            She opened her eyes to see her father slumped to the side of her. His eyes stood open and staring at her with a look of surprise. Beside him she looked up to see the woman staring at the both of them as she held a heavy shovel in her hands. The woman looked form her to her father, a puddle of blood was quickly forming to trace the outlines of his head.

            “I told you never again.” The woman growled as she spat and threw the shovel on the ground with a heavy flood. She then looked back to Linda and her eyes cleared as if she was just now seeing her for the first time. Linda felt the woman’s eyes scanning over her, taking in the thin body, dress hiked up over her stained and tattered panties, and the blood that had flew in an arc across the bridge of her nose.

            “Run.” The woman uttered the single word in a whisper as Linda noticed a solitary tear glide its way down the woman’s cheek. With only a moments hesitation Linda looked from the woman to the open door behind her. The cool night’s air blew through the trees and with one last breath Linda flew across the room and into the night.

Reviews

[Who Cares]

Nice chapter, very powerful and emotional but a few grammatical errors. I love the flashbacks. Your dialogue is also rather realistic. Nice job

[T. Logan]

This was a longer one, but really powerful! I really like this story.

[Craig2591]

Wow! Powerful chapter! You had me on the edge of my seat! It's a good story! It makes me wonder how she survived from this point.

I'm afraid there are a number of typos in this one. Probably because you were so emotionally invested in it while you were writing it!

[gombeggar]

interesting flashback sequence...hmm...this is a compelling story...when it's all done you need to flesh out and detail some of it though

[Marie]

I don't find any errors in this chapter exept the ones in grammar and punctuation. I believe it's a very good piece, showing showing something in Linda's background that might have brought her to this point. But it's hard for me to judge a work with mistakes in it because I tend to focus on them instead of the content.

[Tabitha t]

I tried my best to edit this to the best of my abilities before I posted it. Im sorry if I have missed any.