Broken Boundaries

CH4 Shield Down

Three hours have passed, and a migraine has started the numerous conference calls and stacks of offers piling on my desk don’t help the matter either. I punch the button on my office phone that directly connects me to my assistant." “Hey Julie, can you get me some meds for migraine and some lunch also I need to know what I have scheduled for the rest of the day please, and thank you."

Julie quickly responded as usual "Yes mam I’ll be there in a jiffy."

Thirty minutes later I look up to see a skinny tiny woman in a pencil skirt flats and dress shirt carrying a tray headed my way. Her bouncy red hair is tied up in a loose ponytail with pencils and her glasses ride loosely on the bridge of her nose bouncing as she practically jogs to my office. One big swoosh and my door flies open.

"Oh, oh I’m sorry Ms. Richardson. I don’t mean to barge in, but you sounded urgent on the phone, so I tried my best to get here as" ……stop! I cut her off quickly holding a finger up she quickly straightens herself back up and turns to place the tray of sandwiches, meds, and water down on the coffee table where my clients sit. I stand up and walk over to her.

"Mrs. Julie you must know by now I’ve told you several times you don’t have to call me Ms. Richardson Clara is fine. And you don’t have to rush trust me I’ve been in your shoes before I know how it is out there."

I patted her arm and motioned for her to sit with me. She reluctantly does and sits on the single black leather sofa chair across from me. She picks at her knuckles nervously and then looks at me with a sad gaze.

"Ms. Clara thank you so much for being understanding I’ll try to do better for you in the future I promise."

"Do better?" I retort taking a bite of the triangle sandwich I’m sure she made herself.

"Mrs. Julie there is nothing to do better I couldn’t ask for a better assistant than you. So don’t think about changing on me ok."

The sadness in her eyes vanishes and is replaced with joy and reassurance. Her last boss was a prick and did a real number on the staff here. It’s taken me a while to earn trust and instill confidence in most of them. We were number sixty in marketing for the past several years but since I’ve taken over and been trying to boost some morale back in this place so far together as a team, we’ve managed to pull the top twenty. My goal is to try for the top ten in the next two maybe three years but I’m not ready to tell any of them that yet. They’ve all been stressed out enough the past few weeks with new projects coming in and numbers growing. I’m considering moving us to a bigger location and scouting out some new talent to help offset it all.

"Mrs. Julie you simply made too much for this girl to eat alone how about you join me."

"Oh no I have so much to do I’m really" …. Have you eaten lunch? I cut her off again questioning her because I know damn well, she will skip lunch she picks up the slack for others and as many times I beg her not to she still does letting others take advantage of her.

"No mam not yet but I plan to after I finish a few more things." She looks down as she says this, I look at her a few seconds more and grab two sandwiches and walk over to her. Her body tenses up when I stop in front of her but relaxes when I squat down to be at eye level with her. I took her hands and flipped them over placing the sandwiches in them and gave her hands a quick pat before standing up and walking over to my seat on the three-person leather loveseat. I grab another triangle as we eat in silence. Slowly she began chatting to me. We talked for an hour about her family and where she grew up and went to school. Finally, lunch was over. Seeing her smile and confidence made me happy. I just need to instill some backbone into her, and she will be perfect for the position I’m wanting to create that will have her manager over all the assistants. A general assistant if you think about it that way.

I go back to work feeling pain-free and a little more relaxed. I pop my earbuds in listening to my sss prime music recommendations for my list. A good couple of hours went by when I looked up and see most of the office has cleared out and Mrs. Julie walked towards my office with papers in hand, she looked shaken. I pull the earbuds out and close my computer. as She walks in with her head down and approaches my desk takes a seat in one of the two cushiony chairs in front of my desk and places the papers face down on my desk. I grab the papers, but she hangs her head low and I can hear the low sobs coming from her chest. I turn the papers over to read a voicemail transcript she printed out one from early this morning and another from an hour ago.

“This message is for my beloved Clara Richardson. How dare you block my calls and now my texts you dirty girl why are you so bad I am going to have to fix that fast maybe a couple of beatings will teach your disrespectful ass some manners. I’ll call you when you get home and you better f*****g answer, or I’ll come there myself and leave you unrecognizable”.

I squeeze the paper into a ball in anger and place it to the side. The next one I read gives me the Chills, not only that but it’s triggering a panic attack and Jace isn’t here to stop it. "Clara sweet Clara I can’t wait to strangle you as I plunge my d**k deep inside you. Your screams of mercy have me pounding you harder and as you go to take your last breath, I shoot my hot seed inside of you then allowing you to breathe once more. I’ll see you when you get home you filthy b***h your mine."

I start shaking, staring at the words on the paper. I don’t know how many minutes have passed until Mrs. Julie is in my vision yelling at me. I look at her, she has her phone to her ear crying but I can’t hear what she is saying. My breathing is heavy, and I feel my vision fading in and out fast. I have something in my hand, it’s long and pointy, maybe a pencil or pen? I try to pull myself together, but the darkness is pulling me deeper, and then nothing. Nothing but silence until my memories come back like the nightmare they are and like a record it plays over again letting me relive the hell all over again.

Come here you little b***h she screamed at me dragging me down the hall by my hair my malnourished body covered in bruises from the daily beatings banging against the corners of the hall and door frame to my room. I scream begging her to stop as she pics my small body up throwing me down on the floor slapping me like a rag doll. After about 30 minutes of this torture, she then picks me up by my throat pinning me at my closet door you’re such a stupid spoiled brat you think you can have what you want huh I’ll show you …you little w***e that’s all you’ll ever be stupid b***h she then opens the closet door and inside is a pink and white toy box the hard plastic kind she opens it shoving me inside in my last plea I scream “mommy I love you please stop I’ll be good”.

It never works instead she slaps me then screams at me to shut the f**k up that she doesn’t love me and closes the lid. She always places something heavy on top so I can’t move. It’s not till hours later of screaming and crying that I lose my small voice and fall asleep but when I wake the lid is being pushed off by my twin brother and our younger brother. They help me out and tell me to be quiet. We walk down the hallway to the kitchen where I get some water and my brothers go to our hide hole where we save pieces of food for when she starves us. I reached in and grabbed a half-eaten chicken leg from their dinner hours ago. I quickly eat it, drink my water and sneak back to my room. This time it doesn’t stop, it’s the full memory. oh god no I don’t want to feel this pain again I don’t want the full memory I try to fight the darkness but sink further into it.

I’m in my room and I’m walking over to a heap of dirty clothes I’ve made into a bed I curl up on the clothes and start crying softly praying to God that it’s my time to go to heaven because I’m a good girl so he must want me, right? I see my door open and it’s her standing there with some man. She calls me and tells me to be a good girl and come here I don’t respond she walks closer into the room and says in a stern voice “Either you come and do what I say, or I’ll treat you the way I should have dealt with you a long time ago” I sit up and stare at her. She then walks over and grabs my arm jerking me up her nails digging into my arm I wince in pain and see blood forming into small droplets as it runs down my arm. “Now listen to me you little b***h my man says he will give us extra money if you go in that room and do exactly as he says and you will do that”.

I do nothing but stare because why cry when all it means is she will beat me more? She shoves me to the unfamiliar man, and he then grabs me and goes across the hall he slings me onto her bed but before closing the door I see her put her hand out stopping it. “Hold up you can’t get the first pop and not pay up.” the man takes his wallet out and gives her a wad of cash. Her eyes sparkle in delight she then turns and looks at me and says, “Well it looks like I did find a perfect use for you” and she closes the door. The man then turns and looks at me a wicked grin playing on his face. Come here baby girl Daddy wants to show you a fun time let’s play a game. I crawl to the farthest corner of the bed to put space between us. It’s quickly Filled as he crawls up on the bed taking his shirt off and undoing his pants, he is rubbing his d**k while coaching me over offering me toys candy food even a f*****g trip to Disney World. I cover my ears and close my eyes hoping the bad man goes away, I start to rock my body back in forth when I feel him grab my arm. He drags me down to the end of the bed; I open my eyes in terror and see he is fully naked. this is the first time I have ever seen a man naked, and it was gross.

Terror filled my mind as I didn’t know what he was trying to do. I thought he just wanted to hit me like she did. He lays on top of me, his adult body covering mine I can barely breathe as he tells me “Be a good girl and play with daddy and that daddy will play with her”. I wiggle beneath him as he goes to sit up, he turns and slaps me. He pulls off my shorts and tries for my hello kitty undies, I kick at him and scream as he pushes a hand over my face. He starts tearing at my dirty shirt trying to get it off me. I bite his hand and then reach down and grab something between his legs and squeeze till I hear him begging to stop. I let go and make a run for the door it is locked; I try unlocking it when all of sudden I feel lifeless he throws me against the other wall knocking me into a nightstand I start crying uncontrollably as he yells at me that now he will have to discipline me for not playing the right way.

I try crawling under the bed when he grabs my leg and pulls me out. I scramble trying to hold onto anything when I see a pencil, I grab it as he throws me stomach down on the bed and places a hand on the back of my head holding me still as I feel his d**k rubs up and down my butt. With a pencil in hand, I rear my one free hand backward and stab him in the thigh. He screams and grabs his leg, I stand up on the bed and jump tackling him with the same pencil in hand, but I stab him in the neck. We fall through the bedroom window out onto the yard. I hear her scream “What the f**k” as I take off running naked through the trees, I run till I can’t no more, and I finally collapse from exhaustion.

I wake to being in a hospital room and all I see is my grandma and grandpa. My grandma is crying while holding my hand, but my grandpa just stares out the hospital window. I am in a children’s ward because I see fishes and coral painted on walls to make it seem fun and like you’re under the sea. I try to speak but can’t. I feel as though my throat has something stuck. I start coughing and my grandma quickly looks up as my grandpa rushes over. “Clara baby it’s ok remain calm I’m calling a nurse.” Soon nurses and doctors fill my room asking me random questions, pulling things off me and some small tube out of my throat and nose. I don’t answer they turn their attention to my grandparents’ discussing tests and blood results, after talking to my grandparents and watching the monitors they finally all start to leave. I heard one of the doctors tell my grandparents an officer will be by later and walks out of the room. Oh no, I’m going to jail now I thought, as if sensing my grandpa comes over, “Clara darlin I know you’re scared but you’re not in trouble where here to help you and so are a lot of other people ok”. I nod my head in response now” Clara grandma and grandpa need to know something Did your mom hurt you?” Quickly I shake my head no, “it’s ok to tell us we’ve seen everything a policeman needs to know these things ok” my grandpa says taking my hand softly and rubbing my arm. I start crying as my grandma crawls up onto the bed next to me and holds me crying too, then the door opens, and she walks in that monster of a mother I was born from. I quickly hid deeper into the chest of my grandma. As my grandfather stops her from coming any closer.

“Clara my precious baby are you ok. Why did you run away from mommy like that” “Stop the games Rena we know everything” my grandfather yells as she takes a step closer. “You don’t know s**t Dad raising this little brat has been hell she is rebellious and has destroyed my house. she has anger issues, not to mention she stabbed my man when we were in the middle of having s*x if you must know.” My grandfather’s hand comes up and slaps her causing her to lose her footing she braces herself against the wall and then looks dead at me. “See now you little b***h look what you have done you’ve broken this family apart. I should have aborted your ugly ass” This results again another slap sending her to her knees from Grandpa. She stays down but starts to laugh holding her face and looks at my grandpa and grandmother. “Don’t try protecting her she’s my f*****g daughter” shes cut off as the police walk in. “Rena Richards you’re under arrest for child abuse, child endangerment, solicitation of a minor, paraphernalia, child pornography,” and several more counts he then begins to ramble off something about having a lawyer and to be quiet as they drag her screaming and cussing me out of the hospital room.