Hush Little Baby

Some say that loving a damaged person is consuming their poison and hoping it ends before you die. It's saving someone while losing yourself in the works. You get devoured by their malice, robbing you of oxygen, and they become the only thing you can breathe.

Some of the most poisonous people in our lives come masked as family, mine is my mother, Lilith Bixby. She is the epitome of fucked up. She has always reminded me a bit of Morticia Adams from the Adams Family show. Her long dark hair, trailing down her slim back shining as bright as her green eyes. The dark, matte lipstick in blood stain red make her wicked smile even more wicked. My step-father, Alastor Cates said it was that wicked smile that won his heart. It's too bad that smile is also what killed him.

Fortunately, for me Alastor came with a son, Salem, to keep me company even after his death. That's when I needed him the most. My mom would lock us in the house and unplug all of the phones before she would leave. She told us she was going to find us a new dad to take care of us.

I never knew my real dad. My mom wouldn't tell me. All she has ever said is that little girls are evil and I'm lucky she kept me around this long. For as long as I can remember I did my best to convince myself she didn't mean the horrid things she would say to me.

It's the pills; those damn pills make her crazy.

Sometimes I believed my words, but not always.

As Salem and I grew older we watched out for each other when Lilith was around. As I grew older I also stopped calling her Mom. She didn't seem to care, so I didn't either.

On my sixteenth birthday Lilith said she was going to bake me a cake. That wasn't out of the ordinary. She always baked a cake for me and Salem on our birthdays. It was the taste of the cake that bothered me.

I was halfway done with my slice before Salem slapped the fork out of my hand, slid the plate clear across the table and onto the floor along with his.

"What the fuck did you put in this cake, you crazy bitch?" Salem shouted at Lilith.

Still startled by his actions, I slowly turned my head towards her direction to see her slowly turn towards us, her hand on her hip and the infamous wicked grin came across her face. A slow chuckle reaches her lips. She saunters her way towards us, but Salem quickly pushed out of the chair and rises to meet her. He's not afraid of her as much as he used to be now that he's reached puberty and can look her dead in the eyes. You wouldn't know that Lilith isn't his birth mother with the matching light skin and dark hair, but Salem's eyes are an intriguing, mysterious gray as opposed to her green.

"There is nothing wrong with my cake, young man. You better watch your words, and sit the fuck back down before I drag your fatherless ass into the attic and lock you in there for days to come."

I stand up next to Salem, grab his hand and urge him with a shaky tug to sit down.

"Myra, dear daughter, doesn't your cake taste just absolutely perfect?"

"It's fine. Salem, sit down. It's fine," I beg, still holding his hand for comfort.

"Maybe Myra and I should enjoy the sunny California outdoors today while Salem thinks about his poor choices in the attic, hmm?"

"It's fine, Lilith. Thank you for the birthday cake."

"Well then, I will enjoy the day to myself while you two useless teenagers stay here."

Locked in the house hours later I heard the sound of two car doors slam shut. I jump from my bed, trying not wake Salem, to peer out my small box window and see Lilith and another man walking toward the house.