Broken Bridges

Chapter 11

                      September 22nd, 2020
                                    Harper
The worst thing about betrayal is that it never comes from your enemies. That feeling when you feel close to them, trust them and love them, and then they betray you in the worst way you can imagine. Trust is so fragile. When it is strong, it's rock solid and unlikely to break. When it's weak, a bond of trust can crack within seconds. Be careful. Some people are willing to betray years of trust just for a few moments of fun.
                                     ***
Lilliana picks me up for school this morning so I didn't have to ride the bus by myself.
" You know, you are the biggest crybaby I know. You're fifteen years old and scared to ride the bus without your boyfriend." She rolls her eyes at me playfully and laughs.
" I'm not scared." I testify. " I just don't prefer it." I giggle and take a drink out of my water bottle.
" You are spoiled as hell." She says, snarkily. I place my water bottle back into the cup holder and look out the window. We pull into the student parking lot and Lilliana pulls into her parking space. Lilliana pulls down the mirror above her head and starts brushing her fingers through her long, blonde curls.
"Come on, Lily!" I say, excitedly, tapping her on the arm. Her blue eyes flush with pain as she flinches.
"What's wrong?" I question. I grab her arm and roll up the sleeve of her black, long sleeved crop top. Her whole arm, from her wrist to her elbow, was covered in a dark, black and blue bruise with multiple red gashes.
" Lily. why do you let him do this to you?" We need to do something about this."
"No. Harper, I'm not telling anybody. I'm going through enough as it is." she says, gesturing to her arm and black eye covered by makeup.
" Reporting him will make this better!" I raise my voice. " He won't ever be able to lay a hand on you again!"
"I don't want to talk about it anymore." she says, getting out of the car. I stop pressing the subject and follow her into the building.
" I'll see you in spanish." Lilliana says as we part ways. As she goes to her class, I go the opposite direction, away from the English hallway and to the counselors office.  I approach the counselor, Ms. Remington's office and quietly knock on the door.
" Ms. R? Do you have a minute?" I question.
" Yes of course Harper. Come in." She gestures to the chair across from her and I take a seat. " What's going on girl? How's it going? " She crosses her right leg over her left and looks at me eagerly, excited to hear what I have to say. I open my mouth to speak but no words come out. I sigh and take a deep breath. Ms Remington's excited demeanor turns to seriousness. " Harper, what's going on? Are you okay?"
"Yes Ms. R. I'm fine. I'm actually here to talk about my best friend Lilliana Blanchard. I found out something last night and shes been begging me not to report it but I have to. Her bruises, scratches and gashes are tremendous and she's in so much physical pain. He's hurting her!" I rant, my hands shaking and my thighs bouncing up and down with anxiety. Ms. Remington looks at me with horrified eyes.
" Who, Harper? Who's hurting Lilliana?"
" Her stepdad. Scott Finch. He hits her. He's been abusing her. He gave her a huge black eye last night because he didn't know I was there and she showed up to school this morning with bruises, scratches and gashes on her arms. She won't report him. She says it will just cause problems, but I just can't have her hurting like that. " My lips tremble.
" Thank you for telling me, Harper. I'll do what I can." I stand up and so does Ms. Remington. She hugs me and guides me out of her office.
" Have a good day Ms. R." I say.
" You too, Harper." She replies. I make my way to language arts and arrive thirty five minutes late.
"Where were you?" Maliyah asks as I sit down at our table and pull my copy of To Kill A Mockingbird out of my backpack.
" With Ms. Remington." I reply. " I had something I needed to take care of."
                                     ***
After school, I meet Lilliana by her jeep and get in.
"How was your day?" I say, guilty. I can't look her in the eyes after I reported her situation with Scott this morning.
" Good." She says. She takes a bottle of ibuprofen out of the front pocket of her bag and takes out three. " Do you have any water?" I nod and hand my water bottle to her. She throws her head back as she takes the pills. " My arms are just really sore." She says after she catches my weird glance. As we pull up to her house, police cars surround her house, blue and red lights flooding the streets around them. The front door is wide open, both Scott and Christina's car in the driveway.
" What the hell!?" Lilliana screams, slamming her hands against the steering wheel. Two police officers walk out of the door, restraining Scott, and bringing him to the police car. Christina runs out behind them screaming.
" Let him go!" She pleads. " You have no proof. You have no proof!"
" Ma'am, step away. The school counselor saw your daughter's wounds and there are visible injuries on your husband's hand indicating he was the one who gave them to her. He's been abusing her in your own home and you haven't noticed." One of the officers says to Christina. Christina looks up at Lilliana through her car window with despair. You could see the guilt in her eyes from not knowing what her daughter was going through. Lily looks over at me with betrayal burning in her icy blue eyes.
" You reported him. Didnt you?" She asks. " Didnt you?" she repeats when I don't respond.
" Lily, I.."I begin.
" I can't believe you!" She interrupts me with a scream. She gets out of the car and slams the door. She passes Scott in the backseat of the police car. " Scott, I'm so sorry. I didn't break my promise. I didn't tell anybody. " She cries. His eyes narrow and turn so evil, it's as if they turned black.
" When I get out." He pauses. " Your mom and sister are next."
" No please." She begs. The police car drives away and Lilliana falls to her knees, sobbing hysterically and crying off all the makeup that covered her bruised eye. A short, red headed, female police officer approaches her.
" Sweetie, I need to examine you please. I need to see where he hurt you." She grabs Lilliana's hand and she obeys, lifting herself off the ground. The woman examines her eye and Lilliana lifts up her sleeves, revealing her bruised and scratched arms. I finally got out of the car and ran to Lilliana's side.
" Lily please. I had to. I had to protect you. I couldn't let him keep doing this to you!" I cry. Lilliana has never been this angry with me.
" Get away from me!" She screams. " You betrayed me, and for that I want nothing to do with you!" Tears fall from my eyes like rain and my throat closes up and it feels like I'm suffocating.
" Harper, Let me take you home." Christina says, coming up behind me and placing her hands on my shoulders. We get in the car and it's silent the whole way there. She pulls into my driveway and I jump out as fast as I can. I run into the house and throw my backpack on the kitchen floor. I run to the bathroom and fall to the floor and let it all out. My best friend of fifteen years hates me and I don't think she'll ever stop. I've done something unforgivable even though it was for her own good. For the past few weeks, my life has been falling apart at the seams and I can't seem to figure out why I feel the way that I do. So empty, numb and worthless. A disappointment to everybody in my life, even to those who aren't. I drag myself over to the bathtub and grab the razor blade from a few days before. I place it on my wrist and press down. I whimper as it slices my skin and my bright, red blood spills out. My blood mixes with tears as I do it over and over again until the pain disappears and the tingle in my arm is gone. I cut until I feel nothing. I cut until I'm numb.