Page 39 of Redemption in the Dark (The Righteous 5)
“Buuug, all the guests are waiting. It’s not nice to keep guests waiting.”
Daddy’s voice made her shiver, and she clenched her knees, curling up into as small of a ball as she could. The smell of stinky smoke was strong now. The music and laughter made her push herself deeper into the corner. The closet door opened, and the light from her bedroom made it bright in the small space. Too bright, she wanted him to close the door and go away. She wanted him to go away forever, but that was a mean thought, and she wasn’t allowed to have mean thoughts about Daddy.
“Buuug, you got all dressed up to go to the party. Don’t you want to go to the party and meet Daddy’s friends?”
She pressed her lips together as her bottom lip shook. She was trying not to cry and worried that Daddy would hear her, but if she upset him and made him angry, then she knew she would be punished.
“Bug, I know you’re in this room.” Daddy’s shadow was moving, and she peeked around the box to see that he was standing with his back to the closet. “If you don’t come out right this minute, I’m going to be very disappointed and very, very angry. You know what happens when Daddy is angry, Bug, and I don’t want to be angry with you. You’re my special girl.” Daddy moved away from the closet door, but she could still see his shadow.
She didn’t want to stand. She didn’t want to show her hiding space to him. It was the only place she felt like the monster her Daddy became wouldn’t find her, but she had to, or he would get really scary.
Maeve gave Bunny a kiss on his nose.
“I’ll come back for you,” she whispered in Bunny’s floppy ear.
She crawled out of the small space and silently slipped passed the boxes until she could stand. Folding her hands in front of her, she looked down at her white patent shoes and the frills on her pink dress.
“Daddy,” she said as quietly as she could.
He spun around, and she could see his black socks as she stepped close to her.
“There you are, Bug, that’s a good girl.” He knelt down and used his hand to lift her chin and force her to look at him. “You look so pretty, Bug.”
He smiled wide, but it only made the tears run faster down her cheeks.
“Hush now, Bug, we’re going to have a great night. You’re the entertainment. You like putting on a show for Daddy, don’t you?” She nodded as much as she could with his large hand on her chin. “Now you get to put on a show for Daddy’s friends. They are going to love you.”
Daddy stood and held out his hand for her to take. A little whimper passed her trembling lips as she put her hand in his.
* * *
Maeve suckedin a sharp breath as she practically jumped out of bed. The room was dark and quiet. Only the sound of the fan let her know that she was indeed awake in Wolf’s home and not still in the same memory that had haunted her for years.
Her heart was hammering hard in her chest, and she felt gross as the cold sweat that always accompanied the memories trickled down her back. It made her hair damp, making it stick to her neck. She tossed the blanket off her shoulders, her body shivering when the cool air of the fan hit her skin.
She walked to the window and grabbed the side of the wide frame, her fingers curling around the dark wood. She looked out at the dark open space illuminated by the full moon and could see the cows in the distance and the barn’s peak.
Why did people say that time would make things better? Or a person would eventually become desensitized to the pain, fear, and soul-wrenching sadness that had been inflicted on them?
It wasn’t true.
She always wanted to yell, ‘fuck off. It doesn’t work like that,’ to the ignorant assholes that would say it with a sad smile. There was no miraculous time switch for the shit that wanted to seize you by the throat when you were least expecting it. She wasn’t going to get back to sleep now. The feel of Mr. Bennett’s hands still left a stain on her skin that she wanted to scrub off. If she thought it would work, she’d peel her skin off her body, but the taint he left was more than skin deep.
She tiptoed across the floor and out into the hall of the quiet house. Maeve paused outside of Wolf’s door. She wanted more than anything to go in there and slip into bed with him, but he wouldn’t give her what she needed. She wanted her mind scrubbed of the dream, but that only happened one way, and the line in the sand had been drawn. She smirked as she pictured running her foot along that line in the sand to wipe it away.
Wandering down the hall, she slapped a hand over her mouth to keep from screaming as a pair of eyes appeared in front of her.
“Holy geez, Duke, make some noise or something. You trying to give me a heart attack,” she softly scolded the dog that just turned his head to look at her. “What’s the matter? You can’t sleep either?”
Duke padded forward, nudged her hand with his head, and then turned his body to sit down at her side. His spine was straight as he looked up at her. She took a step forward, and Duke followed, his fur brushing the bare part of her leg.
She stopped, and he stopped.
Intrigued by the reaction, she took a few more steps and varied her pace, but he kept with her. She took a step to the side, and to her shock, the dog stepped to the side as well as if he were anticipating her every move. Enthralled with the game, she backed up, and Duke followed, his eyes still fixed on her face. Giggling, she turned in a circle, and Duke stuck to her left leg like he was glued there.
She knelt to give him a hug, but he almost knocked her off her feet as he darted between her legs and laid down. Maeve looked down at Duke as she finished her kneel, careful not to put weight on him, and rubbed his soft head and ears. She loved his ears. They reminded her of giant, silky soft bat wings. They were almost too large and stood unbelievably tall. She’d bet he could hear halfway across the property with those things.
“Do you think I need a chaperone, Duke? You seem to have decided to stick to me like I need one.”
