Where the hell is my phone?
Rubbing my tired eyes doesn’t erase the nightmare about to unfold in my bedroom, starring me. But this time I’m awake. This is my reality. My nightmares have never been so real before.
“We could’ve done this the easy way, but you just had to be difficult. Charlie likes challenges. Not me. I guess that’s why he likes you so much. Defiant. But you’re still a little girl.” His laughter booms from the other side of the door. “And I’m the big bad wolf.”
“I’m not a little girl. My. Name. Is. Tia. Asshole.”
Even my own mother forgets my name when she’s sober or she pretends I don’t exist. And I don’t like the pet names her unwelcomed visitors give me—as if they know me, as if I’ll accept their flirtation attempts.
Is there any point in hiding anymore? I’m about to be kidnapped from my own home. My shithole. My living hell.
My lungs constrict as if someone punched me in the chest and my breath is lost somewhere in my throat.
“Mom! Mom!” I wheeze.
I’m wasting my energy, knowing all too well Mom is passed out on the couch. Otherwise, she would have stopped him, calmed him down, or kicked him out of the house. Wouldn’t she? Given that she’s already sold me to a drug dealer, I’m not so sure she’d help me now.
I clamp my lips together and blink back hot tears.
I’m all alone. And it’s all my fault.
The only family left is my older brother, who is probably at football practice right now. The realization I’m on my own makes my heart shrink to miniature dollhouse size, leaving a hollow space in my chest.
My cell phone rings again.
Where is that damn thing?
My mattress is bare of bedding, which I packed earlier. I frantically start opening the drawers of my dresser, but they’re all empty.My purse.Holding my breath, I search the room for it.
The last harsh kick does it, and the slam of the knob making contact with the wall freezes me in place. I take a deep breath to brace myself for the attack because there’s no way I’ll let him take me voluntarily.
I was so close to freedom. To peace. To a new life.
The man on the other side of the doorway wears a devious grin showing crooked yellow teeth. His thin black hair is oily and pulled back in a ponytail. Goose bumps prickle my skin. I can’t remember his name, but I’ve seen him in the apartment before.
“Let’s go. Charlie wants to have his way with you,” he says in a flat voice.
“And you think I’ll just go along?”
His eyebrows furrow and he narrows his eyes at me.
Where’s my mom when I need her?She never helps me anywayis on the tip of my tongue, but I press my lips together.
Mom constantly has parties. Loud parties with alcohol. Squander-parties with drugs. Overcrowded parties with as many people as the small apartment can fit. And no matter how many times the neighbors call the police for noise disturbance, nothing ever changes. The neighbors don’t like her because she’s trash, and they don’t like me because I have her DNA. But the only thing I have in common with the woman sleeping in the other room is blood. And that’s already too much.
I try to swallow but it’s like I ate a thousand cotton balls. Time to scream as loud as I can. I open my mouth, but the words get lost inside me.
Focus, Tia.
The man in front of me has bloodshot eyes and his pupils are dilated—they’re so large I can’t even tell the color of his eyes.Oh, Mom, what did you take this time?Whatever it was, it wasn’t strong enough to knock this jerk out.
Focus, Tia.
The man rubs his hands together and stretches his head side to side. He’s still standing in the doorway.
“You made a choice, little girl. I guess I’ll have to haul you out of this room. And into the trunk.”
He emphasizes the last word and takes a step forward, but hesitates as if he’s giving me a chance to retreat and just go with him. I’d have to go with ano way, not today, not ever.
