"Jadelyn? Sweetheart where are you?" He walked around the bedroom searching for the little four-year old. A gasp escaped from under the bed. He smiled as he crouched down and looked under the little bed. There was a small mound shaking under a blue blanket.
"Sweetie I know you're there, come out." He leaned over and tickled the little mound. A little face appeared out of the blanket with a big smile on her face. She crawled out from under the bed into her father's arms. "Where's Mommy?" she asked as her father picked her up and carried her downstairs.
Edward West ignored his daughter's question as he set her down at the end of the staircase. His assistant, Susan, walked up to him and whispered something in his ear. He nodded and looked back to his little girl who was staring up at him innocently.
"I'll be in my office, don't disturb me unless it's an emergency, okay?" Jadelyn nodded. Edward and Susan went to his office and closed the door.
Jade stared around the huge house. It wasn't unusual for her to be by herself. Recently her father had to talk privately to Susan and her mother was out.
She considered going next door to Cat's house. Cat's parent's were always around and very kind to Jade and her mother. Then she remembered that the Valentines' had went away for the weekend. Jade walked into the kitchen and opened the fridge door. There was nothing that Jade fancied. Her stomach started to gurgled. Deciding that this was an emergency she skipped up to her father's office. She opened the door and gasped at what she saw.
Her father was on top of Susan passionately kissing her. They immediately stopped at the sight of the little girl. Quickly her father got himself together and grabbed Jade's arm and marched her out of the room. He turned her towards him.
"You are not to repeat what you saw, do you hear me?!" Jadelyn started shaking, her father had never used this tone with her. "DO YOU HEAR ME?!" Jadelyn was in such shock she couldn't make a sound. Edward hit the girl across the face. Pain spread through Jadelyn's face. She screamed in pain. Edward shook his head, he had just hit his little girl. Sure he's hit her mother, but at least she could fight back if she wanted. A little four-year old is powerless. He stormed out of the room leaving Jadelyn in the hallway, crying her eyes out.
The crying died down. Jadelyn felt her little face, it was burning hot. She could hear the front door open. She quickly ran into her own bedroom and shut the door. Grace West, her mother, slammed the front door. She had seen Susan's car parked outside and was furious as she had caught on to Edward's little game recently. Jadelyn heard her dad and Susan go downstairs. Short sharp words were used. The front door closed and a car pulled out of the driveway, she assumed it was Susan's.
Jade sat down with her back to the door, she held her knees to her chest while she listened to her parents yelling at each other.
'Four years old with my back to the door
All I could hear was the family war...'