Breaking The Cycle

Chapter 6

Sarah's POV

*12 Years Prior*

    "Hurry Abby! Hurry! Dad is almost home and we've gotta have this mess cleaned up! I'm not getting in trouble for you again!" I scream to my sister as I shove everything from the floor of our room into the toy chest. Our dad hates coming home to a mess and the last time he did, I couldn't sit for over a week because my butt hurt so bad, so I'm making sure everything is spotless today. Just as Abby is shutting the lid on the chest, the back door slams shut and the walls shake from the force. We can hear our dad's heavy footsteps coming closer and closer to our room and we both take one last look around making sure the room is clean. Taking a deep breath, we wait patiently for the door to open, but just outside the door, we hear our dad's steps come to an abrupt stop before we hear him turn and storm off into the direction of the living room. Curious as to why he didn't come into our room like he always does, Abby and I quietly c***k open the door just enough to see down to where our dad headed. I look out first and gasp when I see him crouched over our mom on the floor pounding his fists into her. Hearing me, he stops mid swing and turns to where I am standing peaking out of my door. I see the rage in his eyes as we make eye contact and I quickly shut the door shoving the rocking chair from the corner under the handle. I grab Abby's hand and yank her to our closet where I close us in and pray he leaves soon. This kind of thing has became very common for us lately, but usually he gets to me before my mom. He has never laid a hand on Abby or John; they are his golden children, while I'm just the one in the middle he never wanted to begin with. The last few months, my dad usually comes in, beats me around a little bit for whatever reason he can come up with and then goes off to pick a fight with my mom, typically too tired to beat her after beating me. Thankfully it's summer, so hiding all the marks on me is easier for my mom to do, just means I spend a lot of time inside the house while everyone else gets to go out a play. It's not fun, but at least I can keep my mom company inside and she has been teaching me a lot of her old family recipes, so I'm gonna be a pretty great cook one day.

    Abby and I have been in the closet for about 20 minutes now and just as I think the cost is clear and our dad has probably left, I hear our bedroom fly open. Before I even have a chance to brace myself, the closet door opens and our dad is standing over us with a fire in his eyes that I have never seen. He reaches down grabbing a handful of my hair and rips me up from the floor, leaving Abby sitting there alone with her knees brought up to her chest and hot tears streaming down her cheeks. As he drags me from the room, I take a quick glance around and see that our door is splintered into a hundred pieces all over the floor with the hinges still attached and holding pieces of the wall. I have a feeling this isn't going to end well.

    We get to the living room and my dad throws me on the floor hard, before coming to stand over me. I feel something hot touching the exposed skin on my leg and notice it's my mom's limp body laying next to me. A small sob escapes my lips and it fuels the already ignited fire in my dad's eyes.

    "Keep disobeying me and you'll end up just like her, you hear me?" he growls as he kneels down over my body and runs his hand down my side. "Now, you're gonna exactly what I say and I don't want to hear a single noise from you, except yes sir, is that understood?"

    I nod my head slowly afraid of what he might do if I speak. "Speak you little b***h! I said, DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?" he screamed as he got as close to my face as possible.

    "Yes sir." I reply as clearly as I can trying to hold back my sobs and erase the fear from my voice. An evil smile crosses his face as he begins to run both hands over my body. Taking my hands and pinning them above my head, he proceeds to slap my face repeatedly before giving me a few good punches to the ribs. I hold back every scream and cry I want to let out and lay there as still as possible while I take every hit he gives me.

    "Well look at you.." he says as his free hand grazes my breasts. "Looks like you're growing up to be quite the woman. And do you know what women are good for?" he leans into my face breathing heavily. The smell of alcohol fills my nostrils and I fight the urge and throw up all over him. "Women like you that don't listen and provoke the man that takes care of them, deserve to be taught a lesson and all a woman is good for anyways is a good fuck." he lets out a sinister laugh. "Ain't that right, my little slut?" I don't reply in fear that if I open my mouth, I won't be able to hold back any longer.

    "I asked you a question b***h and I expect a reply!" he growls, again breathing all over my face.

    "Ye..yes sir." I manage to get out in barely even a whisper.

    "Good, then you agree!" he lets out another laugh and goes back to caressing my body as I lay stiff under him. He slowly reaches for the collar of my shirt and rips down as hard as he can, tearing my shirt open, exposing my breasts to him. He then goes to do the same to my bra, but before he can loop his finger through the material, a loud crashing sound fills the room and his body slams down on top of me. He feels like a dead weight crushing my body and then suddenly the weight is gone and I see John and Abby standing in front of me, both crying. I look to my side and see my dad's body laying there, completely still. As I try to absorb what all has happened, I begin to hear sirens in the distance growing louder with each passing second until it became the only noise I could hear. The last thing I remember, John is holding my hand tightly and crying as the room fills with unfamiliar voices.

    My eyes flutter open and a soft, steady beeping noise fills the silence around me. I look around the brightly lit room and then over my sore body, seeing an iv leading from my arm and a few monitors hooked up to my chest. I try taking a deep breath, but a sharp pain takes over my body and the beeping on the monitors become louder and more urgent than before. I can feel my body going into panic mode and I try to steady my breathing and relax, but with no success. After a few seconds, I see the door to the room I am in opens and a young nurse walks in followed by my mom and siblings.

    "Good Morning Miss. Sarah. How are you feeling?" asks the nurse. "Based on your heart monitor, it looks like you got a little bit anxious just now when you woke up. Well, let me assure you sweetheart, you are in great hands and we are gonna have you feeling better in no time." she finishes with the sweetest smile on her lips.

    "Why am I here? What's wrong with me?" I begin to ask looking at the nurse, then looking over to where my mom and siblings are standing, "What happened? Where is he? What's going on? Someone please answer me!" I cried out, the monitors again going wild beside me.

    "Calm down honey, it's okay, I promise." my mom says as she sits on the side of my bed and grabs my hand, rubbing soothing circles onto the back of it. "We are safe now, I promise. You had some internal bleeding, but the doctors here got you all fixed up. You still have a few other minor injuries, but nothing that won't heal on it's own. John and Abby, saved us baby girl. We are all finally going to be okay, I promise you." a smile spreading across her tired face. I look her over, remembering the last time I saw her, laid out limp on the living room floor.

    "Momma, are you okay? What did he do to you? How did we end up here? I don't remember everything.." I reach up brushing my fingers along the bruises on my mom's jaw line.

    "I'm okay baby. He only knocked me out, he took the worst of his anger out on you and I am so so sorry for that. I'm sorry for not being able to save you like I should have.." her head drops and a few tears roll down her cheeks. She then turns and takes Abby and John's hands into hers, "thank you both for being so brave and doing what I never could. You 2 are my hero's and without y'all, I'm not sure how far things would have gone the other night." Fresh tear streaming down her face, she turns back to me, "The other night when everything happened, before your father could r**e you, which I know was his intention, John slammed a vase over his head while Abby called the cops. No one knew at the time, but John's hit killed your father. We never have to worry about him again."

  I sit still, just staring at my mom and then eyes darting between John and Abby as I try to absorb everything I've just heard. "Mom..is John gonna be in trouble with the police?" I whisper just loud enough for her to hear me.

    "Oh heavens no sweetheart! John acted in self defense and the police have already taken all of our statements. I convinced them to not question you at all since you've already been through too much." my mom says as she leans in and kisses my forehead. "Now, you need to get some rest so that we can get you out of here soon."

    "But I'm not tired mom. I don't want to close my eyes. I just wanna go ho...." I say before the nurse interrupts me.

    "Give it just a few more seconds hun and you'll be sleepy. Rest is very important right now if you want to heal up good." the nurse says as she steps over to my iv and injects something into it. As soon as she steps away, my eyes become very heavy and I struggle to keep them open and just like she said, after a few seconds, I'm sound asleep.