Chapter 1

“Walters-Wheaton Wedding – 

Mr. and Mrs. Dominic Walters and Ms. McKayla Walters announce the marriage of their daughter, Shelbie Morgan Walters, to Frankllin Allen Wheaton.  Frankllin is the son of the late, Leiland Perez.  Shelbie and Frankllin will be married on November 12th, at the church in town.”

This wedding announcement for my best friend, Shelbie, and ironically Frankllin is my brother.  Shelbie and Frankllin met when they were six years ago, dated for a few years and then married.  Shelbie and I have known each other for the last twelve years, since we were six.

“Marra, it’s time to set the table!” my older brother, Frankie, hollered from the main floor of our house.  

I climbed the ladder down from the loft to the second floor, and then climbed the stairs down, and as I walked into the kitchen, I walked smack into Pa’s fist, which is par for the course of my life.  I don’t move fast enough for my Pa likes and therefore I am punished in whatever fashion Pa feels that is acceptable.   My punishments usually include fist in the face, stomach, throat, rip hair out of my head, broken bones, whatever he feels like at the time. 

Well, needless to say my lip instantly cracked open, blood trickling down my face, and knowing better than to wipe the from my lip or chin, for if I did, I would only be rewarded with another punch harder than the one previous.  

Frankie and Will (my younger brother) and mother all have that look of misery, anger, and hatred on their faces, like they do every time Pa cracks me.  Pa hates me for being a female and looking like our mother, and that mother deliberately made me a girl instead of another boy for him.  Any time that I am in arm’s length he strikes me, leaving marks that I have to lie about.  

“That, ya little bitch, is for not coming down immediately when ya’r brother called ya,” was all he said as he struck me again, splitting my lip open even farther.  

“Yes, sir, sorry sir,” I told Pa as I silently placed the blue flowered plates on the black placemats. 

“Damn straight ya’r sorry, but since ya a girl, ya’ll do it again.”  As Pa punched me in the eye, I kept a tight grip on the grip on the two glasses that I had just grabbed, for if I dropped them and broke them, Pa would put my hands in the glass fragments, and would grind my hands into the shards with his feet; crying out would only cause more punishment.  

While the blood trickled down my face from my nose and lip, I finished setting the table as my brothers watched in silence, even though we’re seventeen, Frankie and Will were an inch or two shorter than Pa, and ten pounds lighter, they knew that even between the two of them, they would be able to take Pa on, even when he’s drunk, he’s meaner and harder to take than when he’s sober.  

Frankie, Will, and I are triplets.  Frankie, whose full name is Frankllin Allen, is the eldest by two minutes, standing at six feet two inches, strawberry blond hair, and hazel eyes.  Will, whose full name is William Tyller, is two-and-a-half minutes younger than me, standing at six foot and strawberry blond hair and blue eyes.  Myself, I’m Marrallyn Gabrielle, and I’m five feet and eleven inches, strawberry blond hair that reaches past my ass, and green eyes.  All of us were graced with white smiles and perfect teeth, and a tan for being red heads, since Mother is half Hispanic, we got Pa’s hair coloring but her tan.  Pa (Waylland Wheaton) if you haven’t guessed is an abusive alcoholic and Mother (Leiland Perez) is afraid to leave Pa, even though they are not married, she’s afraid he will hurt us or her, or worse if she leaves.  

God, I cannot wait until this school year is over, after graduation, I’m gone, I just hope I can make it out alive and before then, eight months is a very long time.  The school keeps questioning and sending CPS out because of the bruises and broken bones, but they never do anything about Pa.  

Tomorrow is Friday, where most kids look forward to Fridays; I dread them because it’s two days of hell with Pa.  If I don’t have a lot of homework and Pa is home more instead of closing the bars down, I tend to have more beatings by Monday morning.  

As Frankie, Will, Shelbie and I walked around the corner to our house from the bus stop; there was a family moving into the Johnson’s old house across the street from us.  Shelbie and her dad, Dominic, and step-mom, Connie, live next door to us, her mom, McKayla, lives one street over from us.  Whenever Pa doesn’t want me around for a few days, I’m allowed to stay at Shelbie’s.  

The couple who were moving in across from us have a very handsome young son, who looks to be about our age.  He’s tall like Will, muscular build, tan skin, short pitch black hair and a wonderful smile.  His mother looks white and his father must be Hispanic, making him like me.

Damn would I love to get to know him but why would he want to give me the time of day?  I’m not pretty, and let’s face it; Pa will never allow me to talk to him.  

As we stopped at the end of our driveway, Shelbie looked at my backpack and sighed.  “You don’t have much homework, do you Mar?”  

I glanced at my B.F.F., and wished I was more like her, a little shorter, around five feet five inches, skinny, but not too skinny, long brown hair with blond highlights, with pale blue eyes that men love.  “I wish.  I have a feeling it’s going to be a very long weekend.” 

“Hey!” from across the street.  We looked over to find the guy walking toward us with a smile on his face.  “I’m Jason Austin,” he said with a smile so bright and wide that it would light-up the night sky and make my knees feel like jelly.  

Frankie, Will, Shelbie and I introduced ourselves to him as well.  When his eyes rested on mine, his smile grew even bigger, making me blush, then his eyes widened as he got a better look at my face, making me excuse myself before I had to lie to a man I just met and I needed to get inside before Pa started raising hell for me not being inside right after school.  

About twenty minutes later, when Frankie and Will came inside, I was picking myself up off the floor with my lip busted further, an eye that was already blacking and red marks finger marks around my throat because I took longer than I should have coming in and for talking to that boy outside.  Pa said that I was trying to be a whore just like Mother. 

I wandered upstairs to my room in the loft, silent as a pin, afraid to breathe too loudly, stopping at the bathroom on the second floor to wash my face and neck off.  Crap, my face and neck red and swollen and bruising already.  “Forget this shit, I’m gone.” 

As I plugged my left nostril with toilet paper, I decided that I’m leaving tonight after Pa makes his last check at three when he gets home from the bars.  I’m not allowed to leave my room, except to do my chores, food with the family and bathroom visits.  After climbing the ladder to the loft, I hurriedly, but silently packed my clothes, my few pictures of my brothers and me taken by Shelbie and ones of Shelbie and I, and my few bathroom belongings into my three duffel bags, and stashed them into the back corner of my closet, then laid out my books as if to study. 

There was a soft knock on my door, and then it slowly opened, I glanced up from my floor as I tried to make it look as though I was studying to find Frankie and Will, looking worried and scared.  They quickly came in and shut the door silently behind them as they weren’t allowed to be alone with me because Pa doesn’t want me to taint his perfect children.  

“Let me see,” Frankie whispered as he gently lifted my face to look at my neck where the bruises were becoming dark blue and black in finger shapes.  While he was looking, I studied their faces, taking in everything I could between now and after dinner.  

“I’m leaving tonight after Pa makes his last check on me for the night.” 

Will and Frankie glanced at each other, nodded, “We’re going with you, then,” Will say in an anxious whisper. 

I shook my head violently at them, I would love for them to come with me, but it’ll be easier to do this on my own.  “No, it’ll be easier if I leave on my own, and I don’t want Pa to be angry at you two for leaving with me.”  When they started to argue with me, I cut them off with a glare.  “No, I go alone.”

Pa hollered for us to come down to set the table for dinner, I prayed that I can pull this off later.  I set the table and listen to the dinner conversation that Mother and I were not part of, without Pa’s anger and fist at me.  As we ate, I prayed that Will and Frankie can hold it together and not follow me when I leave.  Pa told me to do my chores before going to my room for the night, but he didn’t look up to see my answer, which was normal, it makes him feel better when he slaps me, because he doesn’t have to see my answer then he can smack me for not answering for I’m not allowed to talk at the dinner table just like Mother isn’t. 

“Did ya hear me, bitch?” he demanded as he got up and backhanded me hard, knocking me and my chair over backwards.  I smacked my head into the cupboard door handle, splitting the top of my head open, blood trickling down to my neck. 

Frankie got up quickly, “She will Pa, I’ll make sure of it.”  Pa nodded and headed for his recliner and demanded another beer, that Mother hurriedly took him two.  Eventually he’ll make his round to my room and then head to the bar.  Tears no longer flow, for tears cause his anger and more punishments.  

Mother and I silently cleaned the kitchen while Pa drank his beer and watched the basketball game.  While we were doing the dishes, Mother whispered as Will and Frankie sat at the table, “Leave tonight, out your window after your Pa leaves.”  She glanced over her left shoulder, worried that Pa heard her.  “Go to Shelbie’s, I cleared it with Dominic.  Please?” there was desperation in her voice.  

I gave her a quick hug, and told her I loved her and that I would, and quickly stole off to my room.  I laid quickly on the floor surrounded by my books and homework and got to work.  At ten o’clock sharp Pa banged up the stairs, then the ladder and flung my door open with a bang, grunted and slammed the door shut, heading off to the bar.