Through It All

TWELVE

"Don't you dare touch her," he yells as he grabs Sophia by the arm and pulls her away.

"Father please don't hurt him..."

"Go home at once," he screams not allowing her to finish. He grabs his rifle and hits Adam across the face making him crash against a table and down to the ground.

"No, stop!" Sophia screams trying to pull his arm back but he pulls away and kicks Adam on his stomach, leaving him breathless. Adam winces on the ground with pain.

At the sight of blood dripping from his mouth, Sophia gains the last of her strength and pulls his father away from Adam as he attempts to strike him again. "Stop!" she cries and rushes next to Adam. She turns him around and tries to wipe the blood from his lips with her handkerchief. He looks up at her with his tender eyes; she sees that his whole left side was starting to swell.

"Oh, no. I'm sorry," she whispers as she places her cold hand on his face hoping that it would make it feel better.

"Sophia. Get away from him," she hears her father from behind her.

"So you can kill him?" she replies angrily.

Adam turns and spits blood from his mouth. "Do as he says," he whispers weakly.

Sophia starts shaking her head when she feels his father's hand tugging on her arm harshly making her wince in pain.

Adam stands weakly as he screams, "Let her go!" but her father ignores him.

"Get home right now," he says through clenched teeth as he shoves her towards the door.

"No father, please stop!" she screams as she sees him walking slowly towards Adam who struggled to his feet.

Her father holds the rifle under Adam's neck, Adam doesn't move. "You steal my daughters' virtue and expect to get away with it?" He walks closer without leaving his gaze. "I don't want to see you near my daughters, understood?" he orders and before he steps back, he hits him once more throwing him back.

He walks away and takes Sophia with him dragging her out to the streets. "Father please listen, he didn't do anything..."

"Don't defend him Sophia."

"He couldn't have taken advantage of her, he is incapable of such thing..."

Her father comes to a halt and shakes her violently. "How can you be so defending over that stupid man, he abused Lucia, your only sister."

"But that's not what happened!" she screams. "Can't you see she lied to you?"

In that moment she feels his stern hand hitting her across the face. She feels the shooting pain from her father's grip as he lets go of her. As he notices what he had just done, he starts hurriedly, "I'm sorry Sophia, I shouldn't have done that." He attempts to hug her but she pushes him away.

"I can't believe you refuse to see what is right in front of you," she retorts and heads firmly back to her house.

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She runs up the stairs, directly to Lucia's room. She bursts inside and finds her brushing her long blonde hair serenely. Sophia feel her anger rise up to her chest wondering how she can be so calm. She wants her to feel what poor Adam felt, she wants her to know what pain is, to know that not everything could be done with such a malicious manner without consequences.

"Oh, Sophie, what happened to your face?" she asks with a patronizing tone.

"Why would you tell such a wicked lie?"