Submitting novel Chapter 4

Bang...

Bang...

BANG!

The deafening slam of the metal rod on the cold hard floor shook me every time he slammed it down. Sometimes he would do so with such force that the ground beneath would shiver under his wrath. Even that unmoving smirk on his face screamed volumes than his words or actions did.

"I remember the first time I saw you. With that small little smile and those big teary eyes, you looked so fragile and broken. Your need to hide everything behind that pretty face was what drew me closer to you." His calloused fingers slowly dragged from my right shoulder to my left as he came by and stood behind me.

I had no idea where this was headed to or what he wanted it to head to. His words confused me more by each passing second and no matter what, I couldn't find any memories of what he claimed had happened.

"It was Christmas Eve. You and your family came to our house for dinner. Shy and quiet with your head bowed down by an invisible weight on your shoulders; people hardly noticed you, although I don't blame them. You were almost invisible in those quiet shadows you chose to hide." After placing the rod against the chair, he placed both of his hands on each of my shoulders and started massaging them by drawing slow circles with his deft fingers.

Breathing was almost impossible for me yet I didn't want to give up, I didn't give up as I took a ragged breath inside my lungs and kept fidgeting my hands in hopes of somehow freeing them from the sharp bite of the zip ties. He knew that I was fighting back and somehow I wanted him to know that I was still alive and will be as long as I fought back. Yet he didn't stop me from doing so.

He removed one of his hands away from my shoulder and the next thing I heard was the rustle of clothes. Something was placed in front of my eyes, something square, that blocked the harsh glare of the spotlight falling on my face. Too scared and afraid of whatever it was, I clenched my eyes shut and tilted my head towards my shoulder as a feeble act of defense and waited for whatever was about to happen next.

When seconds turned into minutes and still nothing happened, I dared to squint my eyes open and see what was happening around. That square piece of paper was still held in front of my face for me to react and him to enjoy.

The strong beam of light made it very difficult for me to see the print on it but soon enough I realized that I was looking at a picture.

A picture of me when I was eleven.