The front door closed and the lock clicked into place. I waited five minutes before leaving my room. I went to Marie first, cradling her in my arms while she cried. Johnny and Tyler and Jamie came to her room and we all sat on her bed, comforting one another. This beating had been real bad- for all of us. Marie would have a bruise on her face in a little while. Jamie was clenching his teeth. He was so upset. He loved Marie as much as I did. I reached out and touched Jamie's arm and he relaxed slightly. He had dark bruises under his eyes and a scab was forming on his cheek. I looked to Johnny and Tyler, who were sitting silently on the floor. Tyler had a bump on his head, and Johnny's lip was bleeding. I had a large bruise forming on my thigh. It stung whenever I tried to walk.
Marie took a shuddering breath and looked up at me. "Are you okay?" Jamie asked her. She nodded and laid her head down on his lap. He stroked her long black hair. I hated that she had to suffer so much. What pleasure did He find in hurting us? What had we ever done to deserve this? What was wrong with Him? Tears started to form in my eyes. Jamie looked at me and for the first time in a long time he looked afraid. Tyler and Johnny wandered out of the room to find some food. Marie fell asleep. Jamie carefully laid her down and pulled the thin sheets up to her chin. I loved the way she looked when she slept. So peaceful....almost like a normal seven year old. I brushed her hair back from her face and smiled. My baby.....
Jamie and I left her room and sat on the floor in his. We each sat staring into space, seemingly lost in thought. "We could get out of here you know." I looked at him blankly. "What?"
"We could escape. The front door can be unlocked from the inside. There's no way He'd notice we'd left until He came to beat us. By then we would be long gone. We could leave right now! Grab what food we can and run to the nearest police station." I thought about that. Freedom.....it seemed like a faraway dream that I would never be able to reach. We could leave! We could get help and get away from Him once and for all! We could see our families again! Why hadn't we thought of this before? It would be easy! I frowned. "Jamie, we can't."
"What do you mean we can't? Sure we can-"
"Jamie. Look." I led him to the boarded up window and had him peek through a slat. There was nothing but desert as far as the eye could see. I knew it was that way in all directions. It was to make sure no one would discover us. "Oh." Jamie said, disappointed. We could make it. Jamie and I. But the others.... They wouldn't last past the third day out there. "Jamie, you could leave. You could go find help! Find the police or someone and bring them back here to save us! It's perfect! Then they could arrest Him and we could go home!" He was already shaking his head. "I won't leave you here. Not with Him. We will figure something else out."
I sighed. "Fine."
The days dragged by, as they always did. They were full of monotony. But we were used to it. We found ways to entertain ourselves. Johnny and Tyler enjoyed sneaking outside to catch lizards and bugs in jars and then bring them inside. Jamie would use a pencil and draw each specimen on any scrap paper we could find. We was a great artist. Marie used spoons and leaves from bushes outside to make dolls. But these dolls would always have to be destroyed and the spoons washed before He returned for the night. One day I watched as she sadly plucked the leaf hair from her dolls and I had an idea. Using a pair of old socks and leaves, I fashioned a rag doll for Marie. I used a sharpie I had found in a kitchen drawer to draw a smiling face on the doll. The next day I presented it to Marie. I had never seen her smile so big. It made me want to cry when she held the doll close and rocked it like a real baby. I thought of all she was missing out on being stuck there, and wished with all my heart that I could get here out. It wasn't fair that she had to miss so much of her childhood. She'd only been alive seven years, yet she had already experienced more pain and heartache than most thirty year olds. That night another lump rose to my throat when I saw her snuggle with her doll as she went to sleep. I smiled as I flicked off her light. "Goodnight Ilise. I love you." She said in her sweet little girl voice. "Goodnight Marie. I love you too." I wish, I wish...
