Chapter 12 - THE CONFRONTATION IN THE DARK
The darkness of the hallway was total,
broken only by the occasional flash of lightning through the windows.
I crept out of my room,
moving silently on bare feet,
knowing I had to get to Martha before he did.
She was old,
frail,
and had no defense against the violence that was coming up the stairs.
I found her room,
slipping inside,
pressing my hand over her mouth as she started to wake up in confusion.
I whispered in her ear,
telling her to be quiet,
guiding her into the small cedar closet at the back of her bedroom.
I locked her inside from the exterior,
hoping the heavy wood would hide her from his sight.
Then I turned to face the door,
holding a heavy silver candlestick I had grabbed from her nightstand.
The footsteps on the stairs were slow,
deliberate,
and heavy with absolute confidence.
He wasn't rushing;
he was savoring the hunt,
knowing that I had nowhere left to run in this dark house.
The door to Martha's bedroom creaked open,
and the silhouette of my father filled the frame,
illuminated by a sudden flash of purple lightning.
He looked massive in the darkness,
a giant from my childhood nightmares come to life to reclaim his property.
He spoke my name,
his voice low,
calm,
and dripping with a terrifying affection that made my skin crawl.
He told me it was time to come home,
that the game was over,
that the family needed to be whole again.
He stepped into the room,
his boots leaving wet,
muddy tracks on the clean carpet,
his hand reaching out into the dark.
I didn't answer him,
keeping my breathing shallow,
waiting for him to get closer,
waiting for the right moment to strike.
He laughed softly,
stating that he could smell my fear,
that I was always an easy child to read.
He took another step,
and as he passed the window,
the light caught his face,
revealing the raw,
manic fury in his eyes.
He wasn't trying to take me back;
he was trying to end the threat I posed to his freedom.
I swung the silver candlestick with all the strength in my small body,
aiming for his head,
screaming in a mixture of rage and terror.
The heavy metal connected with his shoulder with a dull thud,
making him stumble backward with a grunt of pain.
He roared in anger,
his hands flailing in the dark,
grabbing my arm and throwing me against the wall with brutal force.
My head hit the plaster,
May you like
and for a moment,
the room spun in a galaxy of white stars.
