Meeting the Man (Revising)

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Chapter 5:

"See?" I released his hand and it fell to his side. His eyes softened and something- something I couldn't identify flashed across them. "You're not like those monsters. You're not your father." 

Andrew went rigid.

"I told you to shut up." He snarled and took a step forward, forcing me to step back. "What happens when you disobey?"

Fear wrapped it's cold fingers around my heart. My body still throbbed in time with my racing heart. He advanced again and I retreated further, tripping over the edge of the dirty mattress and landing flat on my rear.

"Do you know what you're going to do for me?" His voice was low, almost guttural. "You're going to lay on that mattress, and shut up." He dropped to my level and gripped a fistful of my hair. "If you make one sound I'll make you scream loud enough to wake the dead, understand?"

I nodded and he released my hair roughly. As he paced, he pulled his hair and ran his hands down his face. He stopped briefly to pick up the shirt he had removed earlier and pulled it on over his head. He paced for what seemed like forever before finally coming to rest beside me on the mattress, stiff as a board. His fingers toyed with the bottom of his shirt before he reached for me. I instinctively jerked away him and pressed myself against the wall.

"Don't!" I slapped him away but he came back without hesitation. He pinned me to the mattress by my shoulders and straddled my body.

"Slowly," he said to himself.

I lashed out with my fists, then clawed at his face wildly.

"STOP STOP STOP!" I shrieked, tears already welling up in my eyes.

He pinned my arms above my head. "You can't stop me."

I threw my knee into his groin with as much force my adrenaline riddled body could muster. A groan parted his lips and he doubled over to the side. I slipped out from under him and ran door. I fumbled with the lock, wasting precious moments while Andrew staggered to his feet. My hands shook too much for me to get a good grasp on the stupid thing, and when it was finally between my fingers Andrew's arms were around my waist, lifting me into the air. Kicking and screaming, he threw me back onto the mattress.

"Stop it!" He yelled. Rather than hard and cold, his face was pale and pinched. His eyes were wide and he glanced back at the door fearfully. "Just stop!"

We stared at each other. I tried to gather my frantic thoughts to formulate some form of a plan to get past Andrew and through that door. I would deal with Jerry and Skip after I got past Andrew. One step at a time. 

Loud footsteps climbed the stairs and Andrew scrambled away from the door as they came ever closer to the door. I pressed myself against the wall, willing myself to dissolve into the drywall. The door flew open and Jerry filled the doorway.

"Is there a problem?" He didn't look at Andrew.

"She tried to run again." Andrew's words were hardly above a whisper. Jerry barreled into the room and rammed one massive fist into my mid-section. I screamed and sobbed pitifully.

"You like to run?" Jerry roughly pulled me to my feet and threw me out into the hall. Before I could stand again, Jerry had yanked me up onto my feet and shoved me toward the stairs. I tried to make it down the steps before Jerry could catch another fistful of my hair. His boot connected with my spine between my shoulder blades and I tumbled down, down, down the impossibly long staircase. At the landing, I couldn't tell what part of my body hurt worse, nor could I discern my arm from my knee. Pain racked my entire frame and I barely felt Jerry pull me back onto my feet. Through the house and outside, I couldn't get my tortured muscles to attempt another escape. We rounded the house at a pace faster than my tired legs could keep and gravel scattered under my sloppy footsteps. A sizable shed half concealed by an unkempt bush came into view. As we drew near, the smell of feces and disease hit me like a brick wall. Jerry jerked the door to the shed open and threw me inside. The deafening barks of wild dogs  filled my ears, stabbing daggers into my already pounding head. They were all jumping around in a frenzied rage behind a chain-link cage that took up over half the space of the shed.

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