Abominations (American Horror AU 3)

Chapter 15

NOTE: This chapter is written in the first person as Helen's point of view.

WARNING: This chapter contains content which may be triggering or disturbing to sensitive readers. Discretion is advised.

You know, Helen isn't my real name. My last name, Mortenson, I kept after my divorce. I legally changed my name in the late eighties or so.

"What was your name your mother gave ya?" Delphine asked.

My birth name was Elina Linnea Darling.

"What a beautiful name," the centuries-old woman told her. "Linnea."

It was only my middle name. Means "lime tree" in Swedish.

"Are you Swedish?"

I'm just getting to that. Just listen.

My childhood was pretty normal, actually. I was born in South Carolina on October 28, 1966, the youngest of five children, and my father, Jimmy, owned a farm. He was American, born and raised. However, my mother was not. She was from Sweden, and came here in the early fifties. Her name was Britta. My parents met performing in a freak show in Jupiter, Florida. My father had something wrong with his hands. Two pairs of fingers on each were merged together; they named him 'Lobster Boy'. My mother, however, was showcased because she had telekinesis, but I know she had other powers as well because I lived with her.

"W-Was your mother a witch?" Delphine asked.

See, that's the thing. She always denied being a witch. She was church-going woman; very religious. We went to church every Sunday in our town. I wouldn't consider her a fanatic, so to speak. She just, well, didn't want to be called a witch. Looking back, she was indeed one. I actually got my powers from her, and I passed them on to Eleonora. My mother got her powers from her mother, and her mother before, and it goes all the way back, a hereditary line.

I had four brothers—wait, no. Five. The eldest sibling, a sister, changed her name to Adam because he had a condition that led to him having a sex change and becoming a male. Apparently he was a lesbian before the operation, too.

Delphine grimaced, looking at Helen in horror.

Madam, it's a different time. People get sex changes.

"Oh, dear Lord. You've forsaken this once, proud country!" Delphine reacted, frowning at the thought so alien to her own ideas.

Oh, quit bitching! Let me continue…

Then there was Christopher, probably the most normal of all of us. He was the second eldest, and for a time he worked for an automobile shop. Next came Tobias, or we called him 'Toby', he was a piece of shit. He had a temper problem and always found a reason to bitch. Next was Julian, or 'Jules'. He was a good kid, just two years older than me. Finally, there was me. My family all loved me. I was put on a pedestal by my father. I was his little girl, but then again, I was the family favorite. Life was good. I was actually an 'alright' kid. We also had others being a part of our family on the farm, but over the years, they either died or moved away, at least during my lifetime. There was Bette and Dot Tattler, who were conjoined twins. They were like another pair of mothers for us. Then there was Pepper and Salty, microcephalics; but they made us all smile with their antics. Jyoti, who was the size of a toddler, also brought us joy and helped my mother around the house. Eve was six-foot-eight, and then there was Paul, all tattooed and had seal-like arms. We had a bunch of former freaks living on five acres, but my father had built a separate house for those who couldn't fit in the main house as the family grew. Nevertheless, they were all my family.