Your Shadow Is My Light

Chapter 7 - It's better to stay silent.

Normal text
Thinking
Onomatopoeia

Rayne's POV
BANG! BANG! SMASH!

My footsteps thundered in the eerily silent room. Ignoring the sharp bumps and crashes coming from the living room, I ran to grab a knife from the kitchen. In the blink of an eye, I tackled the kneeling man. Both of us tumbled roughly across the creaky floorboards. Unfortunately for that bastard, while my head was lucky enough to be spared, his smashed into the legs of a nearby coffee table.

Crack!

The wobbly furniture collapsed onto his face, putting a stop to his endless cusses. Fresh blood seeped out of the gash on his temples. Like the ingrate in his mouth, I wasn't the least bit concerned about this damn animal that was my father. I only looked up at the woman lying motionlessly on the ground.

"Mom?"

She didn't answer. Fear gripped my heart.

"Mom?" my shaky voice grew urgent.

Hope gradually extinguished when no response came. Mom never ignores me. She could turn a deaf ear to my father's hissy tantrums but she would never brush aside my pitiful cries. For as long as I could remember, whenever I start wailing, Mom would instantly fly over to coax me. It has always been like this. So why... Why won't she answer me now?

Faint sobs and hiccups escaped as I kept calling, "Mom, please answer me. Mom!"

As much as I wanted to hug her, I couldn't. Because there's still this savage pinned underneath me. I can't let him go scot-free after what he has done. A dangerous glint flashed in my eyes. Blood was pounding. I couldn't think straight. Only the memory of his disgusting hands clamped around my mother's neck remained raw in my mind. Her desperate cries. And the increasingly weaker struggles. My heart trembled. I hate hearing those gut-wrenching pleas. Full of weakness and fear. Why must a kind woman like her pander to the likes of this trash??? Why must she always be the one with bruises on her fair skin??? Because of a flimsy piece of paper??? Because of a marriage certificate??? Because she's his wife??? Because 'Caddel' was now her last name??? So she's this man's property??? But she's my mother too! So why must she quietly endure his bullshit?! Why do we have to act docile and meek in front of this rubbish?! Why won't those fucking police do anything?!

The deep red lines clawed out by Mom still remained fresh on his face. Flaky skin peeled as fleshy ravines drew down to his neck. Eyeing the spiderweb of blood spreading across his cheeks, something snapped in my mind. The knife slipped out of my hands as they reached out to grab his throat instead. I squeezed with enough force to get this maggot choking. If only it could crush his windpipe too.

In bouts of coughing fits, he shrieked while attempting to punch my face, "STUPID WENCH! YOU DARE TO FIGHT BACK?! YOU FUCKING BITCHES HAVE REALLY GONE MAD! I WILL KILL ALL OF YOU!"

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Blood rushed to my head and everything spontaneously combusted. My consciousness momentarily blacked out. I only remember a buzz ringing obnoxiously in my ears. A thought came to mind—our nightmare would end once he's gone from our lives. As long as this man disappears. As long as he dies, Mom will wake up. That must be it! Mom's tired of this shitbag. She doesn't want to see him anymore. So as long as I kill him now, she will finally answer me.

HOW DARE YOU THREATEN MOM!

A particularly harsh blow landed on my nose. It left a tingling sensation. But there's no pain. My nerves had long grown numb to external stimulants. Completely isolating me from the outside world. Every ounce of pain was dulled to a sore throb. Warm liquid dripped down my nose. One drop at a time. Just like my waning rationality. It's also vaporising alongside every drop of blood.