All Susan knew was the darkness under her bed. Every yell or angry word out in the hallway racked her body with fear. Tears streamed down her face, and she greedily licked at them with her parched tongue.
Silence was her only talent. Making no noise meant no attention being drawn to her. As if in protest, her empty stomach rumbled loudly doubling her over. When it finally stopped, she held her breath and listened for any pause in the argument outside her room. It still streamed endlessly accentuated with loud bangs or breaking glass.
Susan glanced over at her older sister, Missy, who also sat as quiet as the dead. She desperately wanted to shimmy over and hold tightly to her. Her sister was her lifeline, her only reason she made it this far if you could even say five years old was far.
Times like this, Susan retreated into her mind. She thought of how lucky they were not to be hit or beaten. Their parents never touched them. Sure, they broke everything in the house including their toys. They yelled at them and blamed them for all their misery. But they never once hit them. Hunger and thirst were constant companions. Dirty clothes and faces, too.
If they did get food, both would eat a little and store the rest under the safety of their beds. Each bed sat side by side with drawers facing out. This created a nice sized cubby hole under them. It was large enough for both girls to sit together and hide away from their parents. Of course, the beds were a gift from their grandmother. Anything they had was from either her or their aunt.
Susan shook herself back to the present. That is when she noticed the silence. With a loud boom, their door slammed open surely creating a hole in the wall. “Where are they?” Their mother screeched. “Probably running the streets! Those little brats.”
Both sisters held their breath. A small gap gave them enough room to see each one just inside the doorway. Susan was terrified her pounding heart would give them away.
“You know they’re not. Probably just out back playing.” Their dad still sounded angry, but when his eyes met Susan’s, they were filled with sorrow. He wasn’t going to give them away. “Go eat your popcorn. I need to fix this door now.”
Barefoot stomping could be heard heading down the tile hallway and then a door slamming. Susan finally took a breath. She dared another glance through the slit. Her dad was still looking at them.
“You should probably sneak outside so we don’t piss her off any more than she is.”
The girls scurried out from under the beds and ran outside to freedom. Briefly as it was.
