-4-
The Aunt's house
I sat at the attic door that night keeping watch. In case Agatha tried to hurt Stanley again and I sat there talking to him about the world, his real aunt and uncle. I told him about my powers, my visions and my empathic abilities. He giggled when I told him jokes and funny poems.
My cousin had lived in that dark attic for six years. How did he find the strength to go on?
"Prudence, you will get me out of here, won't you?" He started crying and I cried with him silently
"I promise, here are some more nutrition bars and a flat carton of orange juice. You must keep up your strength for me. If I had the strength I would open this door myself and walk right out the front door with you. I saw a woman at the riverbank. Her name is Lisa, she is the high priestess of a pagan society. She has promised her help with your escape. I don't know if I could trust child welfare in this small village but I will try to seek help from them if all else fails."
"I believe in you, cousin" he paused "Goodnight, I love you"
"Goodnight" I replied and descended the stairs in my blanket and night dress, crept into my bedroom and into my bed.
It was about 6am when I got up to relieve myself, I saw Agatha taking a tray of fruit up to the attic and I saw a hot steaming bowl of porridge. She whipped him yesterday and now she is feeding him! But then I saw it, the key to the attic door. And Stanley's only chance to be free. I made a swipe for it but Agatha spun round and backhanded me. "How dare you, you little bitch! I give you food, shelter, a lovely bedroom." I walked up to her, stared straight back at her "Give me the key, Agatha" She stood back from me as if terrified of me then she pointed her finger at me and yelled "Witch!" I held my hand out and said again "Agatha, I am not a witch. But you are one bitch to lock your own nephew up in the attic." She went into her pocket and then handed me the key then she spat in my face "Go ahead, rescue your innocent little cousin but I warn you, his power is not earthly" I walked up the stairs with her watching me and I put the key in the lock. I took a deep breath then and turned the key to hear a loud click. I pushed open the door but Stanley thinking his aunt was back to punish him cowered in the corner and in the shadows. "No please no! Aunt" I picked up the tray and virtually ran into the attic. I held his stick thin arms down as I tried to calm him "No, stanley, it's me, prudence." I wrapped a blanket around him and started spoon feeding him the porridge but he soon started to sick up the little food he had eaten.
"It's alright, you'll be alright soon" I said as I cried with him. I lifted him up and I took him out of that awful place. Agatha was nowhere to be seen and I took it that she had run away rather than face the consequences. Lisa was there and her son that I had never met and an older man at the bottom of the stairs. They were all pale at the sight of this beaten starved innocent child. Stanley looked at them all and started weeping into my shoulder.
