SHATTERED

╣TWENTY-FOUR╠

      It was 1:45am on a Christmas day and Neon Night bar, a popular bar in the  city of Cambridge has closed for the day, the bar was vacant, all customers, workers of Neon Night bar have gone home to celebrate Christmas with their families but there was this woman who the manager of Neon bar noticed, sitting on the same spot on a barstool at the front bar, resting her head on the bar top, heavily drunk with alcohol. He tapped her several times on her shoulder but, she didn't respond so, he left to put some other things in place, before coming back. When he came back, he still saw her seated in the same position and this made him angry. He shoved her and this made her beer bottle fall off the bar top, shattering into pieces on the ground and the little content of alcohol that remained in the beer bottle splashed on her. The woman rose her head up abruptly, her disheveled blonde hair, falling to her face.
“Don't you have a home to go to?!” he yelled at her. The woman glared at him angrily, seething. The man stepped back surprised by the woman's reaction.
“Don't you have a home to go to?!” he said rudely, ignoring her fierce look. Out of the blue, a painful slap landed on his face which made a sudden rush of blood like electricity flow through his body. He stood there touching his cheek the woman slapped, dumbstruck.
“Did you just slap me?” he asked her, shocked.
“You, fool! You don't want me to see my daughter! I'm not going until I see my daughter!” she yelled at him, her face red with anger.
“I don't understand what you're talking about!” the man yelled back.
“She told me she is coming home with me!” she yelled, crying. The manager knew she was acting under the influence of alcohol.
“Please, you need to leave. I am closing the bar, everyone has gone, except you.” he lowered his voice, trying to be polite, telling her.
“You! Can't! Tell! Me! To leave!” she charged at him, grabbing his t-shirt. “You can't tell me to leave, when I've not found my daughter!” she fumed in rage, pushing him to the shelf behind where sealed new bottles of alcohol were displayed. The shelve wobbled causing some of the alcoholic drinks to fall off the  shelf. The manager managed to push her away, punching her at her gut. She shrieked holding her stomach.
“Leave, I said leave before I call the police!” he yelled angrily at the woman. He wasn't going to let her treat him like a piece of garbage, he has to take his stand…he can't be a coward, he is a man. The woman picked one of the broken glass from the bottle of the alcoholic drinks that fell on the ground almost stabbing him on his chest. Then, he knew he was dealing with a drunk lunatic. He struggled and struggled with her, getting injured in the process. He yanked her hair and she screamed out loud, dropping the broken glass on the floor. He pulled her by her hair, out of the bar through the exit and shut the door, locking it. He rested his back on the door, sighing in relief.
    He thought the woman will go home by pushing her out but she didn't, she kept on banging the glass door with her fist that he was afraid the door would break. He mumbled under his breathe, walking briskly to pick her beer mug on the bar top which she had drank the beer half way and walked back to the door, opening it.
“Here, I guess this is what you want.” he poured the beer on her and smirked. The woman glared at him, panting heavily. “Merry Christmas!” he said before locking the door.
It was snowing heavily outside but he didn't care if the woman freeze to death in the cold.

                  ➰➿➰

       Ethel found herself in a slaughter house, a pungent, metallic smell wafted through the air. She looked around and saw dried red blood smeared across the concrete wall and floor. She covered her nose and mouth with the sleeve of her blouse, she couldn't swallow because of the irritation she felt, she just looked around scared. She heard someone scream her name.
“Ethel!” the voice echoed through the air in the slaughter house. She turned around, shuddering.

Someone is here too?

“Ethel!” the voiced screamed louder, it sounded troubled. She turned around walking towards the direction of the voice. She yelped when something sharp pierced her heel. She looked at the ground, seeing a shattered light bulb and then she realised she was barefooted.
“Oh God! How did I get here?” she whispered to herself. Suddenly, a deafening scream came from behind, she turned around abruptly, hyperventilating. She saw a closed door with bloody handprint plastered all over, she reached for the door knob, turning it open.
“Argh!” she screamed her lungs out when she saw a naked woman seated on a chair in the musty dark room with an unpleasant smell, the only source of light was the sunlight piercing through the broken wall. Her legs were tied together, hands tied to the back of the chair and her body was covered with blood and margot crawled all over her body from head to toe.
“Ethel.” the woman said, sighing in relief when she saw her.
“Mum?” Ethel recognised the voice immediately.
“Yes, it's me…please, come and untie me quickly. Rex will soon be here.” she squirmed on the wooden chair, trying to untie herself.
    Ethel was afraid to go close to her, she didn't know if it was really her mother or a demon. She took a few steps closer, staring down at the woman's face.
“Mum, is this really you?”
“Get me out of here quick! Rex is coming! Please.” the woman cried in terror, blood mixed with saliva was dripping out of her mouth.
Ethel felt an invisible force push her close to the woman and then she began untying the rope on the woman's hand and leg.
“Thank you!” the woman hugged her, staining her blouse with the blood and margot on her body. She held her breathe for a while, trying not to inhale the putrid smell that made her gorge rise oozing from her mother's body. Ethel pulled her blouse and flare skirt, wearing only a vest and yoga pants she had worn underneath and quickly wore them for her mother.
“I have to get you out of here.” Ethel said as she placed her mother's arm over her shoulder because her mother couldn't walk perfectly, she was badly injured. Her mother limped as she carried her out of the room. As they were about exiting the building, the door leading to the outside of the slaughter house, bursted open.
“Stepdad!” Ethel screamed in horror, he was holding a bloodied human skull with a smug smile on his lips and Thelma cowered, hiding at the back of Ethel.
“You!” he held Ethel's neck tightly almost strangling her.
“You ran away, thinking I won't find you but, here you are.” he said through gritted teeth coated with dried blood.
“Allow us to go!” Ethel summoned courage to speak
“Never! You deprived me of what I rightfully own!”
“How?!” she glared at him, furrowing her eyebrows.
“You! I own you!” he shook her vigorously still holding her neck.
“You don't! I belong to someone else. The Potter owns me!” she yelled at him, trying to free herself from his grip on her neck.
“No! You belong to me, I own you, you are mine and forever mine.” he cried infuriated, spit dripping from his mouth like an angry lion as he spoke.
“That was before I met the Potter but now, the Potter rightfully owns me because I am married to him, he fixed the shattered pieces of my life and made me whole again.”
Rex roared angrily like a lion, pushing her forcefully to the ground.
“How dare you?!” he raised up the human skull wanting to hit her with it but, Thelma screamed stopping him.
“You are the cause of my problem, Thelma! I wish I never married you, I wish I  never knew you!” he cried like a frustrated man, charging towards Thelma as she stood trembling as if she was being electrocuted with her hands covering her mouth in awe.
“I am sorry.” she managed to speak through trembling lips.
“I hate you! I hate you!” he grabbed her neck choking her. Thelma was coughing profusely, her eyeballs rolling back and forth in the eyeball's socket, it looked as if she would pass out any moment.
“Stop it!” Ethel yelled at him, struggling to her feet. She jumped on his back, biting  his neck so that he will release his grip on her mother's neck.
“Get off me!” he wiggled his body vigorously so she can fall off. He used the skull he held in his  hand to hit her hand that was wrapped around his neck. Ethel shrieked in pain as she fell to the ground, holding her right wrist.
“And as for you Thelma, it's too late to apologize…” he used the skull to hit her face.
“Goodbye Thelma, go and dine with the devil.” he whispered into her ears and then smashed her head with the human skull. Blood splattered all over, some droplet splashed on Ethel.
“No!” Ethel screamed her lungs out, terrified at what she saw. “No!” she screamed again.
“Ethel,” Ethel's bleary eyes flickered open as she laid down in bed, sweating profusely. The sunlight seeped through the window in the room, blinding her vision. She rubbed her eyes, trying to see who was standing in front of her.
“Ethel, are you okay?”
Ethel sat up abruptly.
“Where am I?” she asked herself rhetorically, looking around.
“You are home. Did you have  a bad dream?” the feminine voice answered, touching her forehead affectionately.
“Miss Sebastian.” Ethel eyes cleared and she hugged her tightly. She had travelled back to London a few days ago to spend the Christmas and New year holiday with the only people she had as her family– The Okoye's.
“I heard you scream so I rushed in here to check on you.” Mrs Okoye sat down on the bed and cupped Ethel's face in her hand, stroking her cheeks with her thumb.
“He killed my mom, my stepdad broke her head with a human skull.” she narrated the nightmare she had, sobbing and Belinda hugged her, stroking her back. “Dear lord, I decree peace in Ethel's family in jesus mighty name, Amen!” she prayed and Ethel mumbled ‘Amen’ too as she rested her chin on Belinda's shoulder.
“Have you heard any news about your Mum?”
Ethel sniffled wiping tears away from her cheeks. “No, all I hear is bad news. Some people say she's dead or she's traveled out of the country or probably in jail. I'm just confused.”
“Don't worry, God will make a way.” Ethel smiled faintly, nodding her head.
“Cheer up principessa, it's Christmas day. Merry Christmas!” Belinda touched her chin.
“Oh wow! That's true.” she grinned.
“Remember my brother, Bernard, the one I always talk about?”
“Uh…yes, your one and only brother.” Ethel smiled.
“Exactly! He is here already with his family, so hurry up and come downstairs to join the family celebration.” Mrs Okoye said standing up from the bed.
“Seriously?!”
“Does it look like am joking?” Mrs Okoye faked a frown.
“No! I am super excited…” Ethel removed the duvet covering her legs, swinging her legs out of the bed and stood up. “I can't wait to see him!” she said excited as she rushed into the bathroom to have a warm shower and brush her teeth.