Decode Me

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Prologue

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I couldn't breathe, but yet I pushed myself faster.  Every limb in my body protested the lack of rest, but I didn't care.  My brain was dominant now, and it told me to run.

My bare feet slapped the ground hard, surely embedding rocks and shards of shattered beer bottles in the sensitive soles of my feet.  The glass wouldn't be a problem if my neighbors weren't too drunk to remember that glass laying on the streets could pop a wheel of a car- not that they were ever sober enough to drive anyways, but still.

Or get stuck in an escapee's foot.  I winced as a large, sharp object impaled my foot.  The blood came in earnest, and I knew without a doubt that once I was at my safe haven, I'd be trying to clean up my foot for days.

Once again, I didn't give a damn.  I was escaping the place I'd once called home.  A smile spread across my face as I revelled in my triumph.  If I weren't only just down the road from my house, I'd be whooping and hollering like I'd just won the Superbowl.

But, I hadn't won yet.  I still had four miles left before I was semi-safe.  Then, I'd have to convince the police of what they had done.  What they stole.  My chest started a dull ache at the thought.  I'd grown accustomed to this type of pain just as well as complete physical pain- emotional and mental pain.  I'd endured it for two years.  I could keep up until I reached my destination and then I'd be free to sob like I'd done the first few times.  But, then I'd stopped when I realized that my obvious pain gave them pleasure.

How sadistic.

I cringed and shielded my eyes, as I reached the highway and some idiot with their bright lights on passed me.  Once the spots cleared from my vision, I continued blindly down the sullen streets.  There were no working street lights- only the glow of the moon led me.

I was nearly thrown to the side by a gust of wind as a black truck passed me, coming dangerously close.

But, then again, my whole life had been nothing but getting knocked down- and also kicked while down there- and danger.

I came to a stop light and paused, trying to decide whether to take the short cut or go the longer, safer way.  The street was dead silent, nobody anywhere to be seen.  The only semi-working street light flickered quickly, illuminating the small convenience store across the street.  Long forgotten trash blew across the street, rustling wildly as the first snowflakes of the winter began to fall.

I looked up at the starry sky and asked myself what I had done to deserve a life like this.  Snowflakes fell steadily in my grimy, flattened ringlets, on my face, remaining on my eyelashes. 

If everything and everybody was as gentle as snow, the world would be so much better off.

I would be so much better off.

Instead, I was broken.

My heart leaped as I heard the faint hum of a car coming closer.  I turned to see a pure white Prius pulling out of my neighborhood.

My older sister, Lillian.

I tried to run, I really did.  My feet dragged painfully, weak from the morning I had endured.  I didn't even have the strength in me to put my hands out in front of me when I fell.  The ground was wet, so the fall had little impact.

I distantly heard a car door opening and closing.  She must have parked at the Stop 'n' Shop.  I desperately wanted to run, but I didn't have anything left.  I had no clue if she'd bring me back home or if she'd just call them to come get me.  I honestly wasn't sure which was worse- waiting and wondering what would happen next and crying over my failure or just getting it done quickly.

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