“Hmph, we have before,” her mother mumbled.
“I’m outta here. Donna, can you grab my plate? I’m about to go warm up the car.”
“Yeah, I got it.”
Bella went to kiss their parents. She leaned over and kissed their mother. Before she could kiss her dad, he pushed himself off the couch.
“Now, you know damn well I’m not letting you walk to the car by yourself.” He grabbed his coat from the rack and threw it on. “Gimme your keys.”
Bella shook her head and handed him her keys. “Daddy, you still treat us like little girls,” she chuckled.
“No, ma’am. I treat you like ladies. Any man that would let you leave their house after dark without walking you to your car is not a man. Besides, you and your sister will always bemylittle girls.”
Her dad’s words made Donna smile. When they walked out of the house, her mother asked, “Is that Creed a man like your daddy?”
“Yes, ma’am. Well, as close as you can get to somebody as perfect as Daddy.”
Donna laughed with her mother until a pain powerful enough to make her fall to her knees pierced her skull. She screamed and pressed her palms to her temples, hoping the pressure would bring relief. Instead of running to her aid, her mom jumped to her feet and ran toward the front door.
The shrill of her mother’s screams drove Donna to her feet. She pushed through the door, and what she saw when she got outside almost took her back down to her knees. Bella was lying on the ground with a small puddle of blood pooling under her head, and her mother was on all fours, pushing against her father’s bloody chest. She was performing CPR.
Donna, instinctively ran to her twin as she screamed for the neighbors who had quickly gathered to call 911.
