Saving Lily

The Mahoney's

The relief ended just as quickly as it had begun. Everything was perfect if you were on the outside looking in. I had the bedroom of every little girl's dreams. A cute little table with two chairs where I could sit and have tea with mister Bear. Baby dolls and all of the accessories to go with them.

I had beautiful dresses in every color and ribbons for my hair to match them all. I had what seemed like to me every pair of shoes that had ever been made.

But that's it. That's where it ended. You see, just because I had it, doesn't mean it was mine. And the Mahoney's never failed to remind me of that. I shared a room with Sophia, their biological daughter, and it was no secret that the toys and clothes and shoes actually belonged to her, I was never allowed to play with any of it. I had to sit and watch while she enjoyed it all. Sometimes she would let me join in as the maid and serve her and the dolls.

Sophia was the same age as me and so to people that came to visit it looked like I got to enjoy living in the lap of luxury.

They would dress me up when company came so I looked the part and was required to act the part. But that couldn't have been farther from the truth.

I wasn't ever allowed to call them mom and dad. I had to call them ma'am and sir.

They would give me beautiful dresses and shoes and ribbons, and then take them away as quickly as they had given them.

I had to take extra care not to let my mothers pearls be discovered in fear that they would take them away too.

The Mahoney's also had a son, William. He was two years older than me and he was terrible, always teasing me and calling me names.

Once he knocked over a table, breaking Grace's favorite vase and blamed it on me. I got whipped good for that one.

Robert would drag me down to the basement and hit me with a leather strap. I don't recall him ever taking William or Sophia down there, just me.

"How dare you destroy our things after everything we have done for you." He'd say.

"It wasn't me. It was William." I would cry. But he never listened.

I would watch as William and Sophia snickered from around the corner as I endured the beatings for thier actions.

I had hoped that they wouldn't want to see me get punished on their behalf. But it never seemed to phase them. And no matter how much I insisted it was them and not me, they never would admit it.

At first, the beatings where just with the strap across my bottom. But over time they grew more intense until he would hit me anywhere he could with whatever he could.

I learned quickly that no matter what I said, it would only make him more angry.