“I tried with Blake, Daddy. I gave it my best.” My lips purse as I try to hold back another truth, but I want to be free ofthis guilt. I want to be cleansed by speaking my truth. “I’ve been... depressed.”
Mom smacks her palm against the table. The impact must’ve hurt her hand.
“Depressed, too,” she almost whispers, then louder. “She sits on a gilded throne and weeps.”
I blink, astounded. “Being wealthy doesn’t mean God will smite me if I feel sad. Money doesn’t bring happiness.”
“And you think love does?” she snaps.
“I won’t have it,” Dad tacks on. “My daughter will not burn down everything for an atheist.”
“He is still a good man,” I defend.
“Good? He is the devil who has seduced my daughter. I should have left him in jail. How foolish of me to trust your word.”
“Indeed, you should’ve,” Mom grumbles, looking at Dad as if he is the one at fault.
“Jack isn’t the devil. You saw him at the center. He is blessed with the word of God.”
“Oh? A prophet at work, you say?” Dad leans back and laughs. Then, he narrows his eyes, his gaze searing into my soul. “Did that boy take what wasn’t his right?”
My heart pangs as I draw in a sharp breath. I dart my gaze to Mom, begging for her to intervene. She only lifts her brow, waiting for my answer.
Dad adds lower, “And don’t lie to us. If one more lie passes your lips, it will be God who cannot bear it.”
Tears roll down my cheeks, and I answer almost too soft to be heard.
“Yes. I am no longer chaste.”
Crash!
Mom’s plate flies across the room.
“I failed!” she wails. She covers her mouth and hangs her head, sobbing.
“He knew better,” Dad roars. “That Killborne boy slithered into my home and defiled my daughter.”
My heart pounds, bleeding as her reaction stabs it again and again. I hold myself. My throat is so tight, it’s painful to speak. “We... we are meant to be together. We are sealed by love.”
“Jesus Christ,” mutters Mom.
My eyes widen. Now I am stunned. She has never used the Lord’s name in vain.
“You have become someone I do not recognize,” Dad says.
Mom jumps in. “She will sleep around like a Jezebel. Once virginity is lost, sex is meaningless to a corrupted woman.” She stands, her knees weak. “I need more wine.”
Then, she pushes Dad’s shoulder and points at me. “Take care of this. For once, do something right so I don’t have to suffer your failures.”
A memory slams back. Holding the teddy bear at the endof the stairs. My parents stop arguing and look at me. Mother’s chest heaves.
“Go upstairs, sweetheart,” Daddy says, trying to sound normal.
Mom snarls at him, her expression disgusted. The way she points at me feels like a physical force. She glares at him and speaks with venom on her tongue.
“A shame we bared fruit. If it wasn’t for our daughter, I’d have a life as good as yours!”
Me? I did something wrong?
