Hiding in the Darkness

Night is always the worst time for me. The shadows seem to jump off the walls the entire time, making shadows of monsters leap across my room. Each night I close my eyes tight and try to pretend I'm someplace else, but it never works.

I hadn't always had this problem at night, night used to be a fine time for me, before that one moment.

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I was no older than six years old when the accident happened. It was like a fairy tale gone completely wrong. I understand that at night the bad things in the world seem to come out, but I never dreamed they would enter my home. Well I never dreamed it, until mother brought him home.

His name was Steven Daniels. He was a well-known person in our small town of Stan Hines; even I knew his name at least. His smile was whiter than a sea pearl and his eyes were to die for. His eyes were the one thing I remember the most. They had this light green tint to them but overall they were an extremely light shade of blue. Everything about them seemed perfect, and well that's what got everyone's attention, his eyes.

Now don't get me wrong, he was nice, at first, and he did treat me well, but only me. I had an older sister, her name was Annabel Marie and she was seventeen. Now Annabel Lee was a beautiful teenage girl with a friendly personality, sometimes to friendly. Everyone around town knew her and I was known as Annabel’s little sister Kathy. I was six so it didn't bother me, nothing really bothered me then. I guess that's a six year old for you.

I was coloring in my Dora Explorer coloring book when mother brought Steven in. I paid no attention really to this man because I was used to mother bringing in random men after our father had died a year ago, this new man didn't faze me.

"Kathy, come say hello to Mr. Daniels." My mother cried from the living room. I pushed myself to get up and to go meet the man. Once I got there my mother smiled big and introduced me as Kathy Lee, which was what most people normally called me after my father Lee John.

"Nice to meet you little Kathy," Mr. Daniels said.

I looked at him and said nothing.

Mother let me go at that moment and yelled for Annabel Marie, who I knew, was already not in the mood to meet another one of mothers boy toys. However, after seven or eight calls Annabel Marie emerged from the stairs and came into the view of Steven. From the moment he laid eyes on her I knew something was not right.

He gawked at her like a seagull does shiny objects. No longer was his attention pulled toward my mother who was in a most flattering top and a short skirt. It was now turned to Annabel who was in the slimmest dress she could fit into, for she was getting ready to go out with her friends.

The way he was looking at her was not right and I knew nothing good would come of it, even as a six year old I felt scared of his glaze.

Mother introduced Annabel Marie as the bell of the ball and excused her as a car honked outside for her. In a rush Annabel Marie left, maybe it was because she knew Steven had an awful weird look, or she was just in a rush, either way I was happy she had left.

Steven and Mother drank some that night and they called it quits around midnight, the time Annabel Marie should be getting home. I watched from my bedroom window as Steven left our house and sat in the shadows of the great oak tree in our front yard. I was curious to why he was out there, and why he hadn't gone home yet. Leaving the safety of my room I went downstairs and went to our back door. I didn't want Mr. Daniels to know I was spying on him so quietly I opened the back door, closed it, and made my way to the front of the house.

I just rounded the corner when I saw Annabel Marie leave the car of her friends and say goodnight to them. After they drove off she started to head toward our front door, but she never made it.

She passed Steven and he grabbed her by her neck and made her crash down on the ground. Covering her mouth she whispered something to her I couldn't hear but I knew it wasn't good. Annabel Marie struggled to get away from Steven but she was no use. Holding onto her mouth and her throat he picked her up and made her walk.

I followed them.

Two houses down from ours he stopped and forced her back onto the ground. Then he slammed her with such force I even felt the pain. I wanted to cry out, to help my sister but I was frozen in place. All I could do was watch as he ripped her clothes off and raped her.