Chapter 3

The loud knocking on the door rang through the small cottage. " Honey get the door", Mr May, Edith's father yelled as he sat on the sofa with his legs up reading the newspaper and smoking his pipe," I wonder who it could be at this hour?"

Mrs May wiped her hands on her blue and green apron and walked out of the kitchen. She walked hurriedly to the door and peeped through the little crack. She saw her husband's rain coat laying on the ground and opened the door with one big swing. She gasped at the sight that lay before her. She screamed in panic kneeling down, clutching Edith in her arms.

"Oh, my poor baby", she cooed as the tears streamed down her small face. Mr May got up of his one seater couch, knocking over his afternoon coffee and ran to the door. He looked at Mrs May clutching Edith and sobbing hard. For a minute he thought his daughter was dead until a small moan escaped her lips. He picked up her limp body and carried her to her room which she shared with her younger sister Eleanor. They were three years apart, Edith was sixteen and Eleanor thirteen years old but they were like chalk and cheese.

Eleanor was popular and stylish, outspoken and sometimes rude . But her rudeness was never shown to her parents. Her parents adored her while Edith was quiet and withdrawn. She was often bullied at school. Bullied for being different.

Eleanor lay on her bed looking at a fashion magazine. She was fantasizing about herself being the next Marilyn Monroe until there was a commotion. She was so self absorbed, she didn't bother herself to go and check even though the noise annoyed her, she lay in bed indulging herself. As he burst through the door, Eleanor picked up her head and looked at her father. He walked past her and lay Edith on her bed. The raincoat slipped off her body revealing a naked Edith. They all gasped and her mother ran in an covered her up again. She could see the redness on her daughter's most intimate parts. Some dried blood matted to her inner thigh and her swollen flesh in between her legs suggested she was now a victim of rape. Something that was taboo in their community. Mrs May sobbed hard as Mr May held her shaking body.

"What do we do?", Mrs may cried.

Mr May held her as he walked her out of the room. He sat her down in the living room and got her a cup of tea. Her little hands shook as she held the cup to her lips.

"We need to report this, it could be the wolves", Mrs May said shakily.

"Wolves?", Mr May laughed,"if it was. A wolf our daughter would be mutilated beyond recognition. But here she is on our door step. Cold, deflowered and unconscious".

"We need to alert the authorities", Mrs May said without thinking.

"And have our daughter embarrassed. The talk of the town?", Mr May now growled.

"We were entrusted with her. What would the council say if they knew that we failed?", Mr May added.

Mrs May now thought of the repercussions of their fault. They had failed to protect Edith. This would not sit well with council. It could be a death sentence. They had one job. To give Edith a normal life. To protect her and her identity. They knew it was compromised now. They did not know what power or powers she possessed, but she was important.

"Please clean up Edith,make sure she is okay", Mr May said as he held his head in his hands,"I need to find the perpetrators".

Mr May got up off his chair and walked to their room.

Mrs May did not question her husband. She got up and warmed some water, dunking a cloth in the water, she walked up to their daughters room.

Eleanor was still absorbed in her magazine. Mrs may sat on the edge of the bed and dabbed Edith's body. Her pale white body was now getting warm. The blood was now circulating in her veins and she looked alive. Mrs May dug through her drawers, she found the warmest pair of pajamas and slid them on for Edith gently. She brushed Edith's hair slowly and tucked her under the blankets, kissing her forehead she left the room to continue with dinner.