Keep Our Secrets

24

"I told you!" Mom hissed. I sprinted up the stairs, only to be stopped by a pair of hands grabbing me.

"Jake. Stay out of it." Sam spins me around to look at him. "You'll just make it worse."

"Get off me." I slap his hands away.

"Jake!" He yells. I stomp away, following where the voices were coming from. Josh and mom were standing in the front doorway, while bailey sat on the couch.

"Bailey." I kneel down in front of her. "Bailey. Hey. Look at me." Her hands and cheeks were red, and her fingers were bleeding. I hold her hands tight, kissing them. "It's gonna be okay." She finally looks at me. Her green eyes, blood shot red, all wet and puffy from crying. "I'm gonna be right back." I kiss her hands again, squeezing them when I leave. I stand behind mom and Josh, and see Baileys mom.

"She doesn't belong to you!" Her mother screams.

"You don't take care of her!" My mom yells back.

"Your a crazy bitch! How do you know if I take care of her or not! Your boys are probably lying to you just so they can sleep with my daughter!" Ann spats. I see my moms eyes go wide.

"Mom. Don't." Josh goes to put his hand on her shoulder, but it's too late. Mom bolts down the porch steps and Ann backs up horrified.

"You!" Mom stomps up to Ann's face and shoves her finger into her chest. "If you ever, talk about my children that way again, I will have your ass locked up."

"You can't do that!" Ann screams. "She's my daughter!"

"Doesn't matter if she's your daughter or not." I finally find my voice.

"Jake." Josh turns to me, but like mom, he's too late. Dad always said I have my mothers temper, so just like her, I march my way down the steps, and right into Ann's face.

"If you loved your daughter, you would realize the hell you put her through." I snap. All Ann does is gasp.

"How dare-" she starts, but I quickly cut back in.

"You tell Bailey awful things. You tell her she's not good enough, that she's the reason you and Paul aren't together anymore, that she will never have a life. You disregard that she's there unless it is to make you look good in front of other people. You abuse your daughter in more ways in one. It's pathetic." I huff. Ann goes to say something again, but mom jumps in.

"The amount of times, she has called for one of the boys to come get her is ridiculous. She has been picked up by them, with bruises, cuts, scratches, and probably more, because of you and Paul. You leave her for weeks on end, with no food for her to eat, and you expect her to survive. Well let me tell you something," Mom gets real close to to her, and I see Ann gulp. "That is no way to raise a child. And if I ever, EVER, see another mark her body, or to see her go thin again, I will personally, beat. Your. Ass." Mom stands up straight, and crosses her arms. Go mom!

"Bailey is going to stay here." I hear from behind me. I turn around and see Dad, on the phone with someone.

"You can't make that call!" Ann yells.

"CPS said I could." He mockingly smiles at her. I turn around and see her face go white. I watch as Ann stands there for a moment, and then nods.

"Well then. Let me at least speak with her." She puts her hands on her hips.

"Like hell we will." I scoff, turning around to head back inside. But before I reach the steps, I see the dark green converse, covered with little doodles step out onto the porch. I look up and see Bailey standing there looking at her mom. "Bailey." She doesn't look at me. "You don't have to talk to her." I walk up to her, grabbing her hand. "She can leave, and you won't have to see her again."

She bites her wobbling lip, still looking at the devil spawn she calls mother. She squeezes, but doesn't look at me. I nod, knowing that there was no way of stopping her. I step aside, looking at her. Her face is all red, and she's trying to take deep breaths, but she just can't. I know she can be strong. But this isn't worth it. I watch as she walks past me, all the way to mom.

"It's okay Karen." She says. I can tell in her voice, she's breaking inside. Mom just shakes her head, and walks back to stand on the porch.

"Alone. Please." Ann yells. Mom curses under her breath, but walks back inside.

"Come on Jake." Dad tugs my sleeve. I hesitated, but unfortunately walked inside. Everyone watched Ann and Bailey talk from the living room windows, but I snuck downstairs and out the basement door. I quietly creeped my way to the side of the house to hear what was going on. I watched as I saw Ann crying.

"My Baby!" Ann cries. "Please. Just come back home!" she tries to hold Bailey, but she steps out of Ann's grasp. "Bailey!"

"It's done. You've fucked up way to many times. You and Dad put me through hell, and even when I'm not at home, you still manage to put me through it." Baileys shoulders begin to shake. What I wouldn't give just to hold her. Just to make sure she's okay. "You've brought this to the Kiszka's. You are pulling them into a mess they don't want to be in. You," her voice begins to crack.

"Stay strong bales." I whisper. I see Baileys hand clench up, and a small line of blood drip from her palm.

"You need to leave." Bailey spits. "Get the hell out of here."

"Bailey! Please! I'll do better! Your father will do better!" Ann grabs baileys arms and I see red. I stand up, about ready to run in and save Bailey, but I hear a slap. I see Ann kneeling on the ground, holding the side of her face.

"If you ever lay a hand on me, or my family, I will have you arrested. You and Dad." She turns and walks away.

Ann sits there in disbelief. Deep down I know Bailey never wanted to hit her mother. But maybe it was for the best. Maybe Ann needed to know what it felt like. How it feels to be let down, time after time, and to see a possibility of hope, but then have it beaten out of you. Maybe she would finally learned what it was like to be Bailey.