Sweet Cream

Chapter one

     Destitution has a very specific feeling. Hunger pains, sleepless nights, and biting cold. Sleeping on dirt is shameful. Black bugs and red ants find their way through the cracks in your walls to make their homes in your pillow overnight. The earth under your back is hard-packed and damp, causing sickness to run rampant.
     What's worse is the fear. Dogs and humans alike can smell fear. I carry small shards of metal in my pockets at all times because I don't trust my safety in this place. What little money we have goes towards sturdy wooden doors; harder to kick in. Our windows are caked with mud and boarded up, not only to provide insulation, but to deter attacks. This is the life my mother and sister left for us.
     I don't want to open my eyes. I don't want to acknowledge the chill in my bones or the dull ache in my head. I want to drift away from this place with a heart full of peace and contentment.
     I breathe in, I breathe out. Today I will awake and be strong. It's the responsible thing to do. It's what I just do.
     I forcefully lift my body off the ground. Some early sunlight drifts into the darkness before me. A tendril of warmth glides through the shattered front window, landing softly on my face. I glance down at the pallet of woolen blankets I sleep on, watching my younger brother toss and turn. That's why I wake up. For him.
     "Elija, it's morning."
He doesn't move. I squat down beside him, gently touching his shoulder. "Elija."
     He opens his right eye, despondently rolling over, his back arches and he raises his arms above his head in a stretch. He smiles at me, yawning deeply. I smile back.
     "Mornin', Cora. How'd the dreams treat you?" His voice cracks.
     I lean on my heels and brush a lick of stringy hair genuine my ear. Soft brown falls in waves down my back, slightly matted. I'll need to take a bath soon.
    "No dreams. Guess mom wanted me to have some actual sleep for once," I sigh.
     Elija runs a hand over his face, rubbing sleep from his eyes. He sits up, cocking an elbow on the dirty eggshell-colored cloth he uses in place of a pillow.
     "If she were around, she'd want you to get some sleep," he says.
     I stand and turn my back. I feel the blood rush to my cheeks. 'If she were around.'
     My mind flashes in pixels of color. Red, black, brown, more red. The day my mother decided she'd had enough, Elija and I lost the only family we'd ever had.
     "Cadence! No!" My mother screamed. I sprung awake, pulling Elija behind me. His eyes were wide with shock and excitement.
     "Cora," my mom yelled. "Cora, get him out of here."
     Elija gripped my skirt. I reached behind me to pull him to the wall. The adrenaline pumping through my veins made my head pound with anger. Once my mother saw that Elija was safe, she seemed to forget about us.
     "Who do you think you are? You think you can burst into my house and take my daughter? What kind of person would-" my mother shouts before she sees the gun pointed at her.
     "Give is the girl. You obviously have other children to care for, so just let this one come with us," the gun-holder said sternly. Two men had easily broken down our plywood door, shining lights into our small, one-roomed house.
     "There's no place to hide. Just give us the girl and we'll leave."
     My mother gripped onto my sisters arm. Tears glistened on her cheeks. "What do you want with Cadence? She's my oldest, she needs her family just as much as we need her.
     "Ma'am, you have ten seconds to let her go."
     One. "Mom, it's okay."
     Two. "No, Cadence, it's not!"
     Three. Cadence looked at me with fear and confidence.
     Four. "Cora, I'll find you. Stay alive."
     Five. My mother grabbed for the man holding the gun.
     The next five seconds passed in a blur. My mother grappled with the man for what felt like hours before he pushed her against the wall. A loud 'bang' rang out.
     "No!" Elija rushes forward. The men had already escorted a wailing Cadence out of the hole where the door once was.
     Our mother dropped to her knees. She clutched her stomach, red spilling between her fingers. Elija caught her as she fell backwards. He looked up at me, tears in his eyes. "Cora, Cora, what do we do?" He asked. I stood frozen, helpless.
     "I...I don't..." I whispered, staring at the blood pooling on the ground.
     "Mom. Mom, stay awake," Elija begged. My mother's eyes lulled to the side, then to the other side to land on me.
     "Don't let him starve, Cora"
     Her eyes rolled into the back of her head.

     "Hey," Elija waves a hand at me. "Cora, don't think about it."
     I shiver, realizing I'd stopped moving. I release a breath. "I...sorry." I cough. "You hungry?"