Shattered Trust
2023 Words
Bianca.
As I spoke, a heavy silence filled the room, only interrupted by my ragged breathing. I felt my mother’s intense gaze on me, creating a suffocating atmosphere. I waited for her to say something, but she remained silent. The tension in the room increased as I anticipated her next action.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, she spoke, her voice barely above a whisper yet cutting through the silence like a knife.
“Sinner?” Her tone was icy, filled with contempt. “Yes, you are a sinner, Bianca. You are a sinner because you dare to defy me,” she continued, her voice gaining strength with each word. “You defy the one who gave you life, who raised you, and who loves you despite your insolence.”
I swallowed hard, feeling my throat dry and constricted.
“M–Mother, I’m sorry,” I pleaded, my voice barely a whisper as her tone grew louder.
“You’re not sorry,” she yelled, her voice laced with venom as she delivered a swift kick that sent me flying across the room. “Stop acting as if I wronged you, child.”
I groaned in pain, but I dared not scream for fear of worrying my brother. I had to endure the punishment alone.
“I see. The pain does nothing to you,” she mocked as she moved closer. I groaned and waited for her next move.
She was about to hit me when a voice interrupted her.
“What do you think you are doing?” Father’s voice cut through the room. I sighed in relief. I was saved. My father could save me. He ran towards me and helped me up. I groaned.
“It hurts, father,” I complained.
Father’s face bore into my gaze. I could see that he was heartbroken. Did father know about her abuse?
“I’m so sorry,” he apologized, gently helping me sit on the bed. “Show me where it hurts, darling.”
I looked down, not daring to speak. “Bianca, I am with you. Tell me where it hurts.”
“Everywhere, Father,” I muttered. “My whole body aches.”
“What!” He exclaimed. “Your entire body?”
I nodded my head. It hurt like hell.
“Quick, call the doctor!” he screamed, his voice trembling. His face turned pale. “Get the doctor here.”
“Yes, father.” After Daniel left, Father gently rested me on the bed. I groaned, unable to move as I lay flat.
“You have a lot to answer for, woman,” he howled. “You need to tell me why you are treating my daughter like this.”
I wasn’t sure if father knew about Daniel’s abuse as well. Should I tell him everything? Would we be free after telling him, or would Mother beat us to death after Father left the kingdom for his work?
Seeing my mother’s burning gaze made me want to die. Her gaze burned into my soul, and I began to tremble. Who could dare say that? I didn’t want to die. Not yet. Not without knowing who my mate was.
“Father,” Brother called, pushing the door open to reveal the doctor. He was an elderly man. He walked in with his apprentice, who carried a small box with him.
“Beta,” he called, bowing his head.
“Old man Miller, please stand up. You don’t have to do this,” Father announced. “Please check what is wrong with my daughter. She is in pain.”
Looking at how Father was trembling made me realize he knew nothing of what was going on. Mother hit us almost every day or whenever she wasn’t in a good mood, yet she never called a doctor to attend to us. We endured the pain by ourselves and overcame it without any treatment.
“Okay, beta,” he replied as he approached me. He gently sat beside me. “I will start diagnosing you, child.”
“Okay,” I muttered gently as I stretched my hand. He took my hand and began his work. After a while, he spoke, touching my ribs.
“Ha!” I let out a scream. I could no longer hold back the pain.
My father ran to my side. “Are you hurt, Bianca?”
“Does it hurt?” The doctor asked.
“Yes. It hurts so much.”
“I’m sorry, child. You will be fine.”
“What is wrong with her?” My father questioned. “How is she?”
“She will be fine,” the doctor began. “Her ribs are broken, but I will fix them now.”
“Broken ribs!” he yelled. “Does that mean she is in a lot of pain?”
"Yes," he responded. "I wonder who could have harmed an innocent child without her Lycan wolf to this point. That person must be a devil and should be arrested and brought to the king."
I couldn’t laugh because of the pain. If the doctor found out that the devil he was talking about was none other than the beta’s wife, he would be shocked to death.
“That person should be punished,” he added.
“I will definitely find out who that wicked being is,” Father said, glancing at my mother, who stood there like a statue. She wasn’t bothered or concerned about what was going on. My brother scoffed, knowing who the devil was.
“Please do. That person needs to be dealt with,” the doctor added, returning to sit beside me. “I need you all to go out. I need to focus on healing the young lady.”
“Okay. We will do as you want.” The doctor began treating me as soon as my family left.
“Sorry. I will be done soon.” Throughout the treatment process, I screamed and groaned in pain.
“It really hurts, sir,” I cried. “I’m in pain. Please do something. I feel like I could die from this pain.”
“I know it hurts, young lady, but I will be done soon. I just need to put them together.”
I was sweating profusely from the pain. My mother should be blamed for this. She was the one who put me through all this. Gritting my teeth, I endured the overwhelming pain.
“I’m done,” he breathed out, packing his things together. “I advise you not to carry or do anything until you are fully healed.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“You will be fine, child.” He smiled and stood to his feet. “I will be coming here to check on you.”
I attempted to move, feeling a sharp twinge of pain with each motion, and cold sweat breaking out on my skin.
“Stay put, child, or it is going to hurt more.”
After the treatment, he called my parents back in.
“Beta, you should keep an eye on her,” he advised. “She needs to rest to be fully healed, and I will also be coming here to check on her.”
“Thank you so much. This is for your service.”
“You don’t have to do this, Beta. The treatment is free.”
“It’s a gift from me, Old Man Miller,” he insisted. “Please receive it.”
“Thank you so much,” he said, passing the money to the little boy who followed him. “I will be on my way now.”
“Okay.” My father escorted him out before saying goodbye.
He kicked the door open, revealing his angry face. He stood there, shoving daggers at her with his eyes. Everywhere was silent, like a graveyard, before he marched towards my mother and grabbed her hand.
“Tell me, woman. Why did you hurt my child?” he demanded with a howl.
Everyone could feel how angry he was. His voice trembled with a mix of grief and rage. “What did Bianca do to deserve this? She is your daughter, and you chose to break her ribs.”
“Enough, Peter,” Mother roared. “Are you scolding me in front of your children? Are you trying to ridicule me in front of them?”
“What are you talking about?” he asked. “If you know that you don’t want to be ridiculed, why did you do this to my daughter? Are you a monster? If any stranger did this to your only daughter, would you be happy?”
His grip on my mother tightened as he spoke harshly to her. This was the first time I saw my father raise his voice to her. He was always a loving husband to her.
“Are you calling me a monster, Peter?”
“What are you? Aren’t you a monster? Only an evil monster could do this to their blood.”
She was trembling at my father’s words.
“Let go of me,” she warned. “Now.”
“I demand an answer from you. Why did you hurt my daughter like this? Who permitted you to beat her?”
“Should I ask for your permission before I deal with my daughter?”
“Your daughter?” Father scoffed. “Good for you.”
“Yes, she is my daughter. She disobeyed me, and I punished her,” she responded.
“Tell me, what did she do?”
I watched as they argued among themselves, hoping she could tell Father what she had asked me to do. I hoped she could inform Father that she had instructed me to stay away from my brother.
“She is a young girl, but she has started socializing with guys in the kingdom,” she uttered.
I was shocked, almost shocked to death. How could my mother open her mouth and spill out lies? She was lying right in front of me. Did she think that I was dead?
“I’m only trying to protect her.” My father’s anger started to diminish as my mother sweet-talked him. She held his hand and gently stroked it. “Trust me, Peter. I know I took it too far, but I didn’t mean to hurt her. After all, she is my daughter. She should have listened to me when I cautioned her.”
Brother’s face darkened as soon as she said this. “Don’t listen to her, father,” he cut in. “She is lying.”
Father turned around and faced him. “What do you mean, son?”
“She is lying. My sister could never do such a thing.”
My mother smiled gently, showing no signs of anger. "Are you calling your mother a liar?"
“Yes, and I will repeat it.”
“Enough, son. Stop being rude,” Father interrupted, facing mother. “Even if you want to punish her, you should do it without acting evil.”
“Okay, I understand,” Mother whispered, as if admitting her fault. Was that all? Was that what Father was going to say?
I was hurt and couldn’t control my tears, feeling helpless. As tears streamed down my face, I couldn’t help but feel disappointed in my father’s judgment. How could he do this?
“Please, everyone, go out. I need to rest,” I uttered, feeling disappointed. What was I expecting to happen? Did I expect my father to hit her for me? I was glad that I didn’t tell him what really happened, or else Mother would kill me."
“Okay. We will be back to check on you.”
“Okay,” I muttered, trying to mask my feelings and tears.
As my brother’s hand reached for the doorknob, he turned around to check on me one last time.
With a trembling voice, I called out to him, afraid to stay alone, but before the words could escape my lips, the door slammed shut.
- Writer
