Chapter 1
This is my first story so please hang in there. This book does contain triggers of many forms of abuse please no this before you keep reading. This book can also by found in wehear from the app store as an audiobook.
I was woken up by the sudden sharp pain of having a hand wrapped into my hair and dragging me out of bed. He pulled me like I was nothing more than a rag doll as he made his way down the stairs. Still half asleep I try to get my body to do what it needs to do to get some kind of footing. That proves to be impossible and I feel myself hitting every step on the way down.
" Ember you stupid b***h" he growls " Can you do anything right?"
It is not a question he is seeking an answer for, we both know the answer. It's no. What have I done wrong now? I find out very soon. He now grabs my face, forcing me to look at the sink in the kitchen. There is his dinner plate and fork sitting there. Not this again.
" You didn't clean up your f*****g mess and you think you can just go to sleep? That is not how things are done in my house!"
Those aren't my dishes. He must have come home late, ate, and put them there. Dad drinks a lot. He spends all day drunk, to be honest. When he comes home from the bar, he eats and forgets that he put dishes in the sink after I have already gone to bed. I don't say any of what I think, if I did what coming next would be worse. He smacks the back of my head so hard my face is greeted by the cold steel of the sink. I hit my head so hard I instantly became dizzy, falling to my knees.
His eyes turn all black and I know now I am in real trouble. I somehow manage to cover my head before the blows of his foot comes down hard and fast. I don't know how long he will kick me. I want to scream, to cry out from all the pain, but I can't. If I do and I wake someone up, if someone hears and finds out, that is something that just can't happen. No one can know what goes on in these four walls of Hell I call home.
After he feels I have been 'punished' enough he rips me to my feet and pulls my hair back making sure I am paying attention to him
" Clean up this f*****g mess and get your disgusting worthless self away from me."
He then makes himself another drink, leaves the room, and goes to watch television. I wash the plate and head upstairs. I try to lay down but no matter which way I do all I feel is pain. It's 4:45 am now and I might as well get ready for school.
I open the door to my room to hear dad snoring. Good, he is sleeping. I get my clothes and head to the bathroom. I turn on the shower and undress as it warms up. Once I step into the hot water, I watch as the blood gets swept down the drain, as if it is being erased. If only the water could also erase the pain.
I get out when the water starts to run cold. I take a good hard look in the mirror. Most of my body is blue and black. Bruise on top of more bruises. The beatings come so often, that even being a werewolf who heals faster than humans, I can not heal. I look at my face and see tonight's beating has left me with a busted eyebrow, causing my eye to become blacken and swollen. Great. Dad normally tries to avoid my face. I guess he was just too drunk to be bothered this time. I try to cover it with concealer. Even with makeup on I can't be pretty, even if I took the time to do it. As my dad and his friends like to remind me, I fell out of the ugly tree and hit every branch on the way down, there is no way to fix that. I need to get out of here before he wakes up or he will lock me away till my face is healed and since I can't eat at home, it could take even longer.
I grab my hoodie, phone, and bag and walk out the door to make the six-mile trip to school. The October weather is perfect for the walk. It is cool but not cold. The leaves have started changing and falling. I put my headphones in and start scrolling through my music to find something to listen to. When I can't decide I put it on shuffle and let fate decide. Music is the only thing I will let fate pick for me. Broken Home comes on, how ironic. At least I will have some peace today. I pull my hood up and start along my walk.