Secrets (NAJ Freshpaper)ON HIATUS

Prologue

Pain and panic flashed through my head as a watched in horror as daddy beat mommy. Tears rolled down my cheeks as I listened to mommy's screams of agony as daddy stabbed her in her chest, slashing the knife across her throat. I wanted to run, I needed to run, yet my feet stayed planted to the ground as though cement was rooting me to the ground. I squeezed my eyes shut tightly, horrified that I couldn't hear mommy's screams any more. The icky silence traveled through the house and I felt more tears run down my cheeks.

I shakily open my eyes and to my horror, daddy was right in front of my face, smiling wickedly. Blood was drying on his cheek, and I wanted to just melt right there. My body was trembling so hard and it hurt to breath, and I was still hyperventilating like mad as daddy reached out and gently caressed my cheek.

"I am so sorry you had to see this, my love," he said, and I flinched quite violently. Daddy frowned. "Please be a good boy and don't tell anybody, you don't wanna get punished, do you?"  I violently shake my head and he pulls away. "Off to your room you go. The policemen are coming, tell them you didn't know what happened, for daddy."

I scurried upstairs, but instead of going to my room I go to mommy's. She and daddy's rooms were across the house, daddy's being downstairs. Daddy tells me it's because she kicks around in her sleep.

I climb onto her bed and grabbed her stuffed animal. It was a torn up zebra, she calls it Paige. I took it and ran into to my room, throwing it on my bed and curling up around it, hugging it tightly as I heard sirens grow closer, making my ears ring painfully.

I listen to their booming voices from downstairs, and I hear daddy say something about having a child. I wince as I hear rapid footsteps heading up the stairs, which creaked loudly making me sit up straight, prepared for the police to come in, which they did. Daddy was with them too.

They stared calmly at me, almost to calmly in my opinion, but they were dealing with a ten year old child, who still calls their parents mommy and daddy, so I can't really blame them. I knew they were going to interrogate me, and saying I had no idea what happened would be an obvious lie, and as much as I hated lying, I was scared of what daddy would do to me if I told them the truth.

"Hello, my name is Mrs. Paige," says a tiny blonde girl with gorgeous blue eyes. I wince and grip tightly onto the zebra plushy underneath my covers. "Now, do you know what happened downstairs? To mommy? You don't have to tell me if you don't want to, hun."

I nod numbly, and daddy stared at me with pleading eyes. "I heard mommy and daddy fighting downstairs and I went down  to see and mommy had a knife in her hands, a-and it l-looked like she, l-like she was gonna h-hurt daddy....I got scared a-and ran upstairs...." I stopped as I felt a drop on my leg, though I didn't remember crying. It was more believable since daddy had a few cuts on him, but that was just because of mommy fighting back against him. I felt a soft hug and I opened my eyes and let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding. I looked down to see Mrs. Paige hugging me tightly, and I hug back and softly weep into her shoulder.

"I am so sorry you had to see that, Fresh," she says to me then turns to daddy. "I would recommend therapy." She lets go of me and I flop onto my bed, sniffling miserably. Daddy nods and Paige rubs my back gently and I slowly drift off.