When I woke the next morning, my face wasn’t throbbing, after Maude had put a cold flannel on it, but it still hurt to touch and I could feel that part of my skin had become bumpy. I knew he left a mark, which meant I now had to put up with him mocking me in front of people, telling them how clumsy I am for falling over, or always managing to get myself scrapes and scratches. I don’t know if anyone ever actually believed him, but either way, they knew better than to voice their opinion.
As soon as I sat up, my head started to thud, I tried to rub it away, wishing I could just go back to sleep, at least for a few days, at least until I could be bothered to deal with yet another day of seeing my father’s smug face.
Just as I was willing my headache to go away, Maude came into my room with
