Chasing Elliott - Published

chapter eighteen ... need some pointers

Sisu (n.)
extraordinary determination.
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I wake up to the sound of something breaking downstairs. I groggily sit up in my bed and rub at my eyes before I flip my purple comforter off my small body and rest my stuffed elephant by my pillow. My tiny bare feet hit the cold hardwood floor as I tiptoe over to my door and slowly creak it open.

I could hear muffled voices coming from downstairs and glance down the hall to see my brothers' door shut but my parents is open. I slowly walk over to the stairs and hug the railing as I make my way down them, careful not to make any noise.

Once I reach the bottom of the stairs, I am able to start making out what they were saying but the sound of glass crashing freezes me on the spot in the hallway.

"You bastard," my mom yells as I hear the sound of skin hitting skin. She screams loudly as I hear something hard hit the wall.

"You will not take my kids from me, do you hear me?" My father seethes out and as I grow frightened by his tone of voice. Suddenly, I see a shadow approach me but my feet don't carry me anywhere.

I slowly scan my eyes up my father's legs, to his torso, and finally to his flushed face. Before I have the chance to dart back up the stairs and take solace in my room, his hands roughly grab my forearms as he picks me up off the ground.

I quickly shot up, out of breath as I put a hand on my chest to try and steady my breathing. I closed my eyes tightly, trying to shake the memory from my head when I realized I had woken Kingsley who was asleep on my lap just moments before.

"What's wrong, honey?" She asked quickly as she pushed herself up to sit and wrapped an arm around my shoulders, using her free hand to push some of the hair away from my face. I took a deep breath as I opened my eyes to stare straight ahead.

"Just a nightmare," I mumbled which made Kingsley sigh as she squeezed my shoulder.

"Need some coffee?" Kingsley questioned softly and I felt her eyes burning into the side of my head. All I did was nod which caused her to get up and quickly slip into the kitchen to brew us a pot.

I put my elbows on my knees and rested my head in my hands, gripping my hair tightly in my fists. It had been ages since I'd had a nightmare about that night, or any of the horrible nights I went through for that matter. My throat clenched as I watched Kingsley walk over to me and sit down, flashing me a small smile as she handed me my coffee cup.

"It's okay, honey," she whispered as she rubbed small circles on my back. "They'll go away, they always do."

I forced a smile on my face and nodded but before either of us could utter another word, my phone started ringing on the table. Seeing it was Cooper texting me, I quickly picked it up, thankful for the distraction.