Ever Heart
The nineteen year old blinked gently her left eye twitching slightly, The bruise around her eye covered only by a pair of sunglasses but the cab driver in the front seat kept looking back at her. She was on her way to her father's house after fifteen years with her mother and four with her now ex-boyfriend she felt the urge to go home. She needed to see her dad, to just be with him.
She took a breath thinking back to the years past. After her mother and father got their marriage annulled she went with her mother, but Kathryn never kept her from Steve. But when Stephanie was born her father's new wife Jeannie decided that he didn't need her anymore and made the choice that the girl wasn't allowed to come see her father anymore.
By the time she reached thirteen she was hanging out with the wrong crowd they stole a lot and vandalized, she spent her first night in jail at fourteen when she got caught drunk in public. At fifteen she moved in with James her boyfriend at the time, after the first time she made him mad he slapped her, he spent the next two days apologizing to her promising it would never happen again. He was right on one point he never slapped her again, he would punch her and kick her instead.
He most recent bout was her reason for returning to her father's home, in hopes that Jeannie wouldn't mind her staying there until she could re-find her mother. "We're here." The man in the front said, she handed him the money and got out of the car pulling her overly large purse with her she slipped the strap over her shoulder wincing from the stinging in her arm. She slowly walked up the driveway coming closer to the ranch house her father lived in.
She looked around the porch a small smile in place on her battered lips she knocked on the door and heard the dog bark she couldn't help but wonder if it was Jed she heard. "Back Jed, hush." She heard the man inside the door opened and he stood there in shock for a minute.
She pulled the sunglasses from her face looking up at him. "Hey daddy."
"Bree… who did this to you?" He asked taking in her busted lip, her bruised eye, her arm was fractured and paining her, he could tell it hurt by the way she held it. She had a large bruise across her right thigh a scar running through the middle of it. Her jaw had a large bruise on it as well he reached out touching her cheek carefully so he wouldn't hurt her.
She felt her jaw quiver tears formed in her eyes as she threw herself into his arms sobbing. Steve wrapped his arms around her, this was his baby… his oldest girl, how could this have happened to her? "Breenna, how did this happen?"
"James…" She said softly trying to get herself under control. "Daddy can I stay here a few days until I can find mom again? I know Jeannie won't like it but…"
"Bree, Jeannie and I divorced a few years ago. I tried to get a hold of you but your mother she would never put me through to you." He said shaking his head.
"She never said…" She started to shack her head, "I… I don't understand, was mom trying to keep you from me daddy?"
He looked down at her, "I don't know sweetheart. I just don't know… Stay with me here as long as you want."
"Daddy." She said looking up at him he looked down at her, "I don't want to be hit anymore… I want to learn how to take care of myself."
"You'll get more then you can handle then. That is after you go to the hospital to make sure you're healthy enough to learn." He told her, she nodded the only reason she hadn't gone to the hospital already was because she didn't have the money to do so.
