My phone buzzes with a text from Terrence.
Smash: Where you at, babe? Thought you were going to come over after your thing.
Me: It’s taking longer than I thought.
Smash: What ARE you doing? Is it illegal?
I send him a bunch of eye roll emojis.
Me: It’s just something I have to do.
Smash: One day I’ll get inside that head of yours, Penny.
I decide I’ll text him back later because I’m not about to get into it with Terrence about the stuff I have to do. He’d freak the hell out if he knew. Maybe one day he’ll have Zella all the time and he won’t have to know about my vigilante babysitting. Zella’s a great secret keeper and hasn’t ratted me out yet. I shove my phone into the pocket of my backpack on the floor so I can avoid the guilt that always infects me whenever Terrence broaches the subject of what I’m keeping from him.
“Again!” Zella shrieks.
I laugh at her excitement to run Ken over. “You’re out of control, child.”
The bedroom door slings open, making both of us cry out in surprise. Jack’s face is purple with fury, the stench of liquor quickly permeating the air around us. I don’t like being at a disadvantage on the floor, so I spring to my feet.
“You’re back so soon?” I ask, hating the slight quiver in my voice.
His lip curls up and his eyes narrow. “Been back for a while. Zella knows better than to scream and carry on.” He starts to unbuckle his belt and I panic.
“W-What? Stop, Jack. It was my fault,” I stammer, my heart beating hard in my chest.
“I know what I heard,” he snarls.
The belt whips out of the hoops of his jeans with a menacing swoosh. I stand in front of Zella, unable to let him unleash on her for just being a kid.
“You need to get some coffee and sober up,” I spit out at him.
He wraps the leather around his fist. “And you need to get the fuck out of my house.”
“Not until you calm down. I’ll take her to her dad’s.”
Wrong thing to say.
Hatred burns hot in his eyes for Terrence.
Whack!
Stars burst across my vision as pain sears over my cheek. Tears automatically form because it really hurt to be hit in the face with a belt. I tenderly touch my cheek, gaping at him in shock. He prowls my way and I nearly stumble over Zella.
“Move,” he growls.
“No!” I yell back. “You don’t get to hurt her. You’re drunk. Let me take her to her father—”
“I’M HER FATHER!” he roars, backhanding me hard.
I knock over Zella in my fall, my head smacking the dresser hard enough everything goes black in an instant.
It burns.
It burns.
Why does my back burn?
I’m groggy and in a state of confusion as I try to make sense of my surroundings. Jack is dragging me by my ankle down the hallway. The carpet burns my back as my shirt rides up from being dragged.
A whine escapes me as I try to find my voice.
Move, Penny.
I squirm, but my head hurts and I can’t find the energy to escape his grip. Until he makes it into his bedroom. His hold on my ankle releases and he turns to slam the bedroom door shut.
Oh God.
I need to get out of here.
His malevolent eyes flash as he rakes them over me. “What did I tell you about running, Lacey?”
Lacey?
What the actual fuck?
I try to stand, but I’m too woozy. His fist swings at me and I narrowly dodge the hit. I scramble on my hands and knees past him toward the door, the world around me spinning out of control. He tackles me to the carpet, knocking my breath from my lungs.
“Stay still,” he grinds out as he tries to get ahold of my arms.
“No!” I screech, twisting and fighting. “Get off me!”
“Goddammit, girl, I said stop fucking moving!”
He starts ripping at my sweatpants, baring my ass in the process. I claw at the carpet, trying to escape him.
This isn’t happening.
This. Isn’t. Happening.
“I said stop it or I’ll bury you in the backyard next to your mother!” he roars, grabbing my ponytail and yanking me back.
I’m no match for him. I screech and howl, trying desperately to free myself from his evil clutches. When I hear his zipper go down, I panic. Everything inside of me goes numb. I can feel myself retreating, erecting walls faster than I know how. My skin grows cold as he nudges me with his dick.
It’s soft.
His dick is soft.
I almost sob in relief. His inability to get hard pisses him off, though, because he slams me to the floor. I start crawling away again when he kicks me hard in the ribs, knocking me into the dresser. Pain lances through me, making me gag. He grabs me up by my hoodie, hauling me to my feet.
Bam!
His fist is hard and painful. I black out again only to find myself his punching bag. Like he’s possessed by the devil, he wails into me. The assault is too much to bear. I shut down, my body growing heavy and fatigued.
“Wake up, bitch!” he snaps, shaking me.
His movements rouse me, but I let my head lol to the side. Maybe he’ll leave me alone if I play dead. After a few more hits, he throws me to the floor. He clumsily shoves his limp dick back into his jeans. As soon as he moves his hand away, I rear back and kick him hard in the balls.
“Fuck!” he cries out, landing on his ass and cupping his balls. “You fucking psycho!”
I look for a weapon. Anything. I settle for a lamp, yanking it from the wall. While he howls in pain, I smash it down hard over his head. Glass shatters everywhere as he crumples.
My body buzzes with adrenaline. I have to get away from him. I have to get out of here. I fight past the pain to drag my sweats back up my ass. The room spins, but I manage to stumble out of the room on a mission for Zella. I find her sobbing in her room.
“We…” I wince and take a deep breath. “C-Can you carry my backpack? We h-have t-to go.”
She nods, snatching up my bag. I wheeze as I unzip the side and grab my keys. Before we exit her room, I check to make sure Jack’s not lurking. One quick peek around the corner tells me he’s still sprawled out on his bedroom floor.
“Come on,” I whisper.
Zella holds my hand as we make our way out of the house. Everything keeps spinning around me. I have to stop just outside the house to puke. Zella cries harder, reminding me we have to get the hell out of here.
“C-Can you buckle yourself in really fast?” I choke out.
“Yes!”
“Good g-girl.”
I get the Jeep door open and Zella scrambles in. The effort to shut the door makes me black out, but I quickly blink it away. Hauling myself into my Jeep is difficult. Eventually, I manage and get it started. One of my eyes is swelling shut, but there’s no way I’ll stop. Not now. I back out of the driveway, narrowly missing the mailbox, before I throw it in drive. It’s a slow trip, me wheezing the whole time and Zella sobbing, but eventually we make it to Cal’s cabin.
“Let’s go see Daddy,” I whisper as I open her door once we’re stopped.
Zella clings to my side as we make our way into the cabin. My head hurts and I think I might puke again. Terrence is going to kill me, but right now, I just need to make sure we’re safe from that monster.