Reborn

Introduction + chapter 1:

DEDICATION: To me, my mother, and to every other woman and girl who fought her own battle and no one knew about it.

"We don't choose darkness, it chooses us. We don't choose to be evil, but circumstances force us to. In this life, in order to survive, we must fight, avenge ourselves, and give up our morality and innocence. At some point, we will have to be one with the darkness, because only a monster can deal with another monster."
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Chapter 1: Once upon a time, on a terribly cold and dreary evening, she was running fast with heavy tears falling from her blue eyes.
It was the fastest sprint she has ever done. She couldn't see where she was stepping, and the rain over her ginger hair and the darkness made her endeavour even harder. She could hear them in the back laughing and calling her name. And at that time, the only thing she could think of was surviving...
Far out in Bolzano, a city in the northern Italian province of south Tyrol, lies a cosy home in a valley amidst mountain vineyards, filled with love, support, kindness, and trust. There lived Alysha with her sister Anna, her mother Lori, and her step father James. Alysha was 13, ginger, with blue eyes like her mom, small and pure like a butterfly. She was fond of fairy tales and fiction books.

Every week, James would take her to one of these big libraries and would buy her a new book of her choice. And every night, before she falls asleep, they would read some pages together. She really loves him because he treats her like a princess. She was happier than ever at that time as if she were living in a fairy-tale herself.
Anna was 16. Unlike her sister, she had brown eyes and hair, and a strong personality. Added to that, she was adventurous and fearless. Whenever something bad happens, or whenever her parents have a big fight, she would handle well the matter. Neither does she cry in such situations, nor does she weaken.
On the contrary, the flaws and the problems gave her strength. All that can be said about her is that she was one of a kind, and so was the bond between her and Alysha. She was her protector and her only best friend.
Three years ago, the two sisters used to live with their biological father and their mother Lori, their lives back then were full of quarrels, turmoil, cruelty and hatred.
Robert, was tough and troubled. Most of the time he would be angry, yell at Lori and the girls. Other times, he would calm down and take them for walks and picnics. The biggest damage was for lori both mentally and physically. She thought that, by marrying the man she loves, she would live happily. But easier said than done. Since the second year of marriage, Robert has been showing another face. He became very moody, he would stay out most of the day, then he would return back home late at night when he would find Lori waiting for him with red eyes and ached head.
They would argue a lot, and their arguments would usually end up with breaking something in the house. As for Lori, she kept forgiving him and giving him chances for the sake of her daughters. After Anna and Alysha were born, she devoted her life to them, took good care of them, was affectionate towards them and did her best to make up for their father's cruelty.
One day, the two girls returned back home from school to find their mother laying on the floor of the kitchen. She has been fainting a lot lately. They immediately called their father who came quickly and took her to the hospital. Surprisingly, she was diagnosed with cancer. The good news was that it was in an early stage and it would be easy to eradicate. She just needed to stay a few weeks at the hospital because she was weak and her body was lacking some vitamins and iron. The poor woman did not know how to react. She felt death inside her weakened body. Anna kept encouraging her mother and took care of her. The doctor also was very helpful with his reassuring words. Robert, deep inside, knew that it was his fault, so he disappeared as soon as he heard what the doctor said.
As for Alysha, she couldn't look at her mom in the eyes. She kept running away to gardens and empty places to cry alone constantly. She couldn't bear the idea of loosing her beloved young mother.
Days passed by, and Lori regained her health, yet Robert was still not there. But that didn't really matter. In fact, if Lori has recovered, it was only because her husband was not hovering over her head and bothering her with his endless insults.
For her, those two and a half weeks at the hospital, were the best moments she had since long time. She even forgot about the cancer and the surgery. Her doctor was such a nice young gentleman. He took really good care of her. He knew what kind of a  man her husband was and what kind of life she and her girls used to have, so he tried to make it up to them. Also, he couldn't hide his attraction and admiration towards Lori. She was so beautiful with her blue eyes, ginger hair, and angelic smile.

He was waiting for the right moment to take a step.

On the night of the mom's discharge from the hospital, James went to a florist he knew and bought a bouquet of tulips, which symbolises love, to give to Lori.

Meanwhile, the latter was in her room getting dressed while the girls helped her. Suddenly, Robert appeared out of the blue. He entered the room and closed the door. Alysha turned towards the sound and gasped when she saw her father standing there. The latter set his red eyes on his daughters and smiled. His steps were unsteady as he approached Alysha trying to hug her, but Anna yelled at him: " Don't touch her. " and rushed to stand between them, hiding her sister behind her.
"Oh girls, I have missed you," Robert said with a vain attempt to sound kind, "come give daddy a hug." Anna pushed him, so he got mad and slapped her. At that moment, Lori pulled the girls behind her and addressed Robert:
" Stop! What do you want ? "
" Lori honey, I see you're doing well. You're getting ready to leave the hospital? Oh perfect timing then. Let's go together to our home." He said.
" Are you serious ? We are not going anywhere with you." Lori exclaimed.
" Oh please, not now. I'm not in the mood to argue." Robert said annoyingly.
" Where have you been the past weeks? " Lori asked angrily.
" At the bar, drinking. I couldn't see you in such a sorry state, my dear. And I was collecting money here and there to pay for the hospital's expenses. Look, I know I messed up many times, and I'm sorry for what I've put you through. Now, let's go back to our sweet home, i missed you so much." Robert advanced to kiss Lori but she pulled his hand away and said: " Get your hand off me, there is nothing binding us anymore. And, there is no such thing as "our home". I gave you countless chances. I endured your beating and screaming and didn't tell a single thing to anyone . My mom called three days ago, and I lied to her, I said we are all doing well. But enough is enough Robert. I want a divorce right now. "

Robert stepped back, holding his head with both hands and mumbling: " No.. no.. no. " Then suddenly, he grabbed his wife by the shoulders and shouted, shaking her violently: " No! You won't do this. I won't let you separate from me. I love you.. "
Lori was trying to escape his grasp, and both Anna and Alysha were trying to separate them as well:
" Leave her! Get away from her, you monster. Help! Somebody help us!"
The nurses opened the door and got surprised by what was going on and immediately called the security. At that moment, James reached out to their screams, so he ran into the room and grabbed Robert and punched him several times until he fell to the floor in pain. James then rushed to Lori and the girls to check on them. They were shocked, hugging each other and crying.