October 21st'1981

Winter was just starting to set in. It was raining unexpectedly tonight, the first rain of the season. Nell Thomas was sitting in front of the fire recovering unburnt pieces of pictures from the ashes, smiling faces of her dead mother and sister, the only remaining memory of them now scorched and charred. She wiped away the lonely tear from her cheek as two little arms wrapped around her neck.

“Nell, I can’t sleep. I am scared,” little Laura cried as she hugged her from behind.

She turned around to face the little girl. Her niece, the living piece of her dead sister. Could she blame this innocent little girl for all of her problems? No. This wasn’t Laura’s fault, none of it was. People always need someone to blame for their vile behavior, and Thomas found Laura to blame for his wickedness, but the truth is Nell was never happy with him to begin with. Thomas always had a reason to beat her up. And she always had a reason to not give up on him; sometimes love, sometimes hope, and sometimes mere need, the need to be seen by someone, need to be complete, need to be ok. But today he had hit Laura and as his massive hand had struck against Laura’s cheek and the poor little girl had pinched her lips to stifle her cries, something inside Nell shifted. 

She pushed him back, grabbed him by the collar and told him to stop. Thomas obviously reacted like a furious bull and grabbing her by the hair, called her nasty names and talked shit about her family, especially about Esther, Nell’s older sister who had run away with the man she loved. 

“This bitch will do your dirty like Esther did to your mama, foolish woman! She will run away with a man some day just like her mother. I cannot stand this piece of filth in my house.”

Nell looked at Laura who stood alone in a corner her tiny frame hugging the wall, trying to become invisible, like a little kitten whimpering in the street. Her heart shattered to see her like that. 

“Shut up Thomas!” She shouted over the deafening bolt of thunder outside. “One more word and you can get out of this house. But Laura stays here. With me.”

Thomas stared at her with cold eyes for a moment. Something flashed across his face for the briefest of second, and Nell could swear it was fear, fear of losing his false sense of autonomy. But he quickly composed himself and pushed Nell with so much force that she fell to the ground.

“You will throw me out of this house, are you in your senses woman?” He spat, emphasizing every word.

“This is my house. And I decide who stays here and who doesn’t.”

It wasn’t Nell’s voice, it was someone else who had overpowered her body and senses. And Thomas could see it too. And he knew he had lost.

So he left. And he took Nathan with him. That little boy held on to his mother’s hand for as long as he could. But Thomas dragged him out by his two legs, put him in the car and drove away. 

It was quiet now. The only sound was that of Laura’s shallow breathing as she peacefully slept in Nell’s lap. She got up slowly with Laura in her arms, careful not to startle her. As she made her way upstairs, she saw her reflection in the mirror. Her forehead was grazed from the fall, specks of blood oozing from the wound, little trails of tears lining her cheeks. But she had survived this, and no matter how painful this night was, Nell knew one thing for sure: she had done the right thing.