I stepped back into the principals office and took my seat. The stress that was building up inside me was almost unbearable but I knew I had to get through this.
« Right. So Maya, we are going to have to ask you a few questions concerning you father and we want you to tell us the honest truth. Remember, lying won’t help. »
I took a deep breath and nodded.
« How often do you see your dad after school ? »
I took time to understand the question before giving an honest response.
« He’s almost always home when I get back but tends to leave during the night. »
The police’s expression stayed completely neutral and unreadable.
« Is he in good shape when you get home ? »
« He’s often drunk. »
« How does he greet you ? »
I swallowed my nerves and answered the shortest way possible.
« He hits me, and sometimes… » I looked down at my feet before resuming. « he goes further… physically… »
This time I heard the principal pull in a breath of air in shock. The police woman looked at Chief O’Neil with a frown and Chief O’Neil shook his head in disappointment.
« How long has this been going on Maya ? » He questioned with full concern in his voice.
« 9 Years. It started the night my mother died. » That last sentence did it. I couldn’t hold it in anymore and just started bawling.
« So he’s been physically and sexually abusing you for 9 years straight ? »
« No, he started the sexual abuse only just a few days ago, before I started going to school. »
« This is a big case we have here. Maya, I’m afraid we’re going to have to bring you to the police station with us, there is going to be a lot for us to deal with. » he said, collecting his stuff and making his way out of the office without further ado.
« But what’s going to happen to me ? » I asked quickly.
He turned around and answered simply, « I don’t know yet. »
That’s when the female officer broke in. « Listen, we’re going to find a place for you to stay tonight. Do you have any other family ? » She asked.
« Not that I know of. »
« Right well we’ll look into that as soon as we find proof about your dad. »
« You don’t believe me ?! » I asked completely shocked.
« I do. But we can’t accuse anyone for something unless we have proof, you see ? Just follow us and all will work out the way it should. Thank you Sir for your time, » she said, addressing her last sentence to the principal.
« No problem, » he answered, looking quite bewildered from the information he had just witnessed. He gave me a quick glance and smiled weekly. « Good luck Maya. »
His words shot through me making me tense up and start to panic all over again. This was it. This was my only chance to get a normal life back. If this chance slipped away, I would be left with nothing.
I looked back at the Principal for reasurement before walking out the door followed by the third police officer. Chief O’Neil was already in the police car waiting for us when we arrived. I was lead to the back seat next to the police woman and the minute we closed the door, the engine turned on. As I looked out of the window, I noticed how behind nearly all the school windows were a bunch of curious students probably wondering what on earth was going on, even the teachers looked interested. Quickly though, the school disappeared from my sight and all I saw then was a blurry landscape rushing by as we made our way around cars and through red lights, siren on, to get to the police station as fast as possible. I was impressed at how the cars that were in front of us automatically made way but the car ride was still scary. Some death guy could’ve just appear from out of no-where and crashed into us while we crossed a red light. Luckily though, that didn’t happen and before I knew it, we were parked in front of the police station, unbuckling our seat-belts. Chief O’Neil lead me into the building and told me to take a seat in the waiting area as he and his colleagues carried on down the hall to take care of a few thing before taking me to questioning. I sat there biting my nails and glancing around every second or so in-case my dad just suddenly turned up. It was kind of ridiculous to worry about that because in the first place he would never dare touch me seeing as I’m currently in a police station and anyway, he’s currently under-arrest. But that didn’t stop me from worrying.
I think a good 10 minutes must’ve passed before Officer O’Neil came back to get me. He brought me into his office and called in one other colleague to record the interrogation. I took a seat, my heart beating faster by the second and my breathing growing unsteady.
« So, Maya Grahams. You claim to be a victim of your dads physical and sexual abuse. Your dad is currently under arrest for disturbing the neighbors because he was drunk and you were previously in the hospital. » He pointed out, rummaging through what I guessed was my file. « Would you please explain why you went to the hospital ? »
I was feeling a bit dizzy but I managed to calm myself be taking deep breaths and concentrating on the present while he was talking. When the time came for me to answer his question though I felt completely un-prepared.
« Well… My-my dad was out late one night and when he got back.. he came up to my room and punched me a few times until I fell unconcious… All I remember after that was waking up in the hospital and getting questioned by the police. » When I finished my explanation I suddenly realised that the police officer who was recording us was the same police officer who was at the hospital. The one who looked overly suspicious.
He was looking at me strangely. For some reason I just couldn’t read his expression.
« That’s not what you said at the hospital though, is it ? » ChiefO’Neil questioned, cutting into my thoughts and bringing me back to earth.
« Uh, no. No that isn’t what I said at the hospital, » I confirmed lowering my head.
« Okay, so from what I heard, your dad was the first to get questioned about the night you fell unconscious. Did this influence your answer in any way ? »
« … No. »
« Explain. »
I took a deep breath, cleared my throat and admitted the whole truth.
« As I told you, I woke up in the hospital completely disoriented. The nurse came up to me to explain everything and told me my dad was here to visit. I would have loved to tell the nurse something like I was still feeling a little weak and therefor would prefer to rest a little longer but she left as soon as she informed me of the terrible news. When my dad came up to me, he acted all nice and caring but practically blackmailed me under his breath by saying that if I told the truth, he would kill me. » As I finally finished my sentence I started to tremble at the memory.
« Do you have a few bruises you could show me on your body ? »
I slowly lifted my sweater revealing the old bruises which had started to disappear during my stay at the hospital. Then I pulled my sleeves up to show him the previous whipping I had endured the night before. To finish off, I turned around and showed him the biggest whip marks that were inlaid on my back. It burnt just touching them.
« He whipped you ? »
« Yes, with his belt. Yesterday night. » I confirmed.
« Does he tell you why he does this to you ? »
« He say’s it’s because it’s my fault that my mum died. Just because she died on her way to get me. » I felt a tear trickle down my cheek and instantly lifted my hand to brush it off. « Maybe he’s right though… » I murmured, mostly to myself.
« Well, I think I’ve questioned you enough for today Maya. You shouldn’t worry too much, what you told me sounded quite convincing so things should brighten up for you soon. » He said. « Follow me, we’re going to see where you can stay for tonight. »
I followed him more upbeat than before thanks to what he had just told me but still very unsure, but before I could get out of the door, the other police man rested his hand on my shoulder and gently turned me around.
« Maya, I want you to know that I believe you. I will fight to defend you of any contradictions that may come your way. Just stay strong, you will get through this. » He whispered looking me straight into the eyes. And then, as if that never happened, he let me go and strode off towards the other direction. I had to walk a little faster to catch up with Chief O’Neil but managed without him noticing anything. I suddenly felt a lot better. Now that I knew someone believed in me, someone with power, who was capable of fighting for justice, I felt protected for the first time. This gave me hope.
YOU ARE READING
Beautiful misery
Dla nastolatków~You have to suffer to be happy~ Maya is a 16 year old girl who is constantly abused by her dad. She has to find a way out but is scared of where she might end up. Little does she know that one punch too many will get the police involved and may jus...
