*****WARNING*****
This chapter contains graphic abuse. Skip if you do not want to read.
Mercedes heard the grinding of metal on metal as the 55 tried to cut the subway car up to get them out. She just sighed.
"You remember when you joined the Army?"
"Yeah. Ma was so upset at me for joining."
"So was I. I didn't know if I could make it without you near me, escpecially for that amount of time."
"You did though."
"Yeah, barely. I was 13 and Dad was still around. God that was hard on Mikey and I. He started drugs right after you left. He couldn't handle dad anymore."
"Are you blaming me for Mikey's drug abuse?"
"No, I blame dad."
"Good."
*****Flashback*****
"Mercedes! Get your ass over here!" Anthony Boscorelli screamed. She was in her room doing her homework. It was the day Maurice was due to go to Boot Camp. Mercedes walked out and looked at him, the pen in her hand.
"Yeah, Dad?"
"Come here, sit on my lap."
"Umm." She didn't know what to do. In her 13 years her father has never said that to her.
"Now!" He yelled pointing to his lap. She moved to him and sat on his lap. His arms went around her as he hugged her. She felt a sense of love for a moment, before the shock of pain searing through her back. He had punched her right against the spine. She cried out in surprise and pain and the threw her to the floor. She looked up at him in shock.
"What did I do?"
"You were born. Go get dressed so we can go to you waste of space brothers departure." She ran into her room and got dressed. She heard a knock and Mikey walked in slowly. He was 16 and covered in bruises that could be seen through his wife beater.
"Hey, Mikey. He got to you too, huh?"
"Yeah. I don't know if he's doing it because Mo is leaving or because he just wants to."
"He hit in me in the back. We can't let Mo see, or he'll flip out."
"If we let him see, maybe he won't go away."
"I don't want him to go anymore than you do, but it's something he wants to do. We have to let him be himself. He can't always come to our rescue anymore. He's 18, an adult."
"I can't live here without him, Merc. I can't. He was our stronghold and now he's going."
"I will be here. We are strong."
"I started doing Coke, Merc. It was the only way out of the pain he inflicted." Mercedes stared at her brother and dropped the dress she held.
"What?"
"I started doing Coke."
"Awe god, Mikey!"
"Don't tell Mo!"
"I won't, but why? Because of Dad?"
"Yes, I couldn't take it anymore. I have been doing it for 3 months now."
"God damn it Mikey." She sat on her bed, and hugged him as he cried on her shoulder.
"I don't know if I can make it alive without Mo."
~*~*~*~*~*~
Mo, Mikey, Mercedes, Rose and Anthony stood at Grand Central Station, waiting for Mo's train to arrive. Mercedes was crying with Rose as Mikey held it back. He was about to snap and needed a fix, bad.
"My trains about to come. Who's going to say good-bye?" Mo said, looking at Mercedes.
"I will." She moved up to him and he dropped his bags, hugging her tightly. He hit the spot her father just hit and she bit her lip, trying not to cry out.
"I love you Mercedes. You're my girl." He said softly into her ear.
"You can't leave Mo. Please don't go."
"I have to. I enlisted. I'll be back in 8 weeks."
"No, we can't survive that long without you."
"Come visit me. In 1 month I can have a visitor, I want it to be you."
"I love you Mo." She started to cry on his shoulder. Seeing him in fatigues made her want him to stay more than ever. Everyone said their good-byes as he got on the train and Mercedes fell to her knees, sobbing.
"Oh get over it you stupid bytch." Anthony said, walking towards the car. Mercedes ran down the platform after the train, crying
"He's hitting us again! Mo, please! Come back!" As the train went out of site she felt something grab her hair. Her father had grabbed her dark ringlets and moved her, taking her to the car and looking around, he threw her in the trunk
"Stupid Bytch. Had to scream that out loud, didn't you." He got in the driver's seat and drove off. Mikey sat in the backseat, holding his hair in his hands, trying to block out the anger and hurt.
~*~*~*~*~*~
That night Mercedes got the beating of her life. She sat in the closet, once again, except this time, Mo wasn't there to get her out. Mikey was too high to even hear her getting beat and had passed out. She sat in the closet, crying, hysterically for days. Her mother had found her, and broke the padlock, and let her out. Mercedes was rushed to the hospital and held for 48 hours. She told the doctors that she fell down the cellar steps and broke the banister, and that's how her back got messed up. Mikey had disappeared for days, and knew nothing of what had happened.
Maurice had called to talk to them, but Rose told him she was at a friend's house. She couldn't bear to tell her eldest son she had been beaten within an inch of her life and left in the closet for almost a week. All she told him was that she had kicked her father out of the house and had him arrested.
*****End Flashback*****
"Dad did that to you? Why didn't you tell me before I got on the train?"
"I knew it was something you wanted to do. And I couldn't stop you. I wanted to. I wanted to keep you by my side my entire life, and you wanted to do that. I couldn't stop you from following your dream. You made sure I was protected, it was he least I could do."
"Mercedes! I-" Jimmy running in cut him off
"You two still all right?"
"Yeah, just get us out of here." She stood up and leaned on Jimmy and Maurice stood up and followed him. Jimmy got them to the ground and the paramedics ran over. Carlos grabbed his wife and looked her over, then embraced her, hugging her tightly. She kissed him deeply, looking to Mo, who was sitting in the bus, sighing.
"Come on, Love. We're going to take you to Mercy to get checked out."
"I'm fine hunny."
"Do it for me?"
"Only if Mo does too."
"If I don't, Swertzky will have my ass."
"Then it's settled. Come on Love." Carlos led her to the bus and sat next to her. She looked at her brother and smiled.
"Memories."
This chapter contains graphic abuse. Skip if you do not want to read.
Mercedes heard the grinding of metal on metal as the 55 tried to cut the subway car up to get them out. She just sighed.
"You remember when you joined the Army?"
"Yeah. Ma was so upset at me for joining."
"So was I. I didn't know if I could make it without you near me, escpecially for that amount of time."
"You did though."
"Yeah, barely. I was 13 and Dad was still around. God that was hard on Mikey and I. He started drugs right after you left. He couldn't handle dad anymore."
"Are you blaming me for Mikey's drug abuse?"
"No, I blame dad."
"Good."
*****Flashback*****
"Mercedes! Get your ass over here!" Anthony Boscorelli screamed. She was in her room doing her homework. It was the day Maurice was due to go to Boot Camp. Mercedes walked out and looked at him, the pen in her hand.
"Yeah, Dad?"
"Come here, sit on my lap."
"Umm." She didn't know what to do. In her 13 years her father has never said that to her.
"Now!" He yelled pointing to his lap. She moved to him and sat on his lap. His arms went around her as he hugged her. She felt a sense of love for a moment, before the shock of pain searing through her back. He had punched her right against the spine. She cried out in surprise and pain and the threw her to the floor. She looked up at him in shock.
"What did I do?"
"You were born. Go get dressed so we can go to you waste of space brothers departure." She ran into her room and got dressed. She heard a knock and Mikey walked in slowly. He was 16 and covered in bruises that could be seen through his wife beater.
"Hey, Mikey. He got to you too, huh?"
"Yeah. I don't know if he's doing it because Mo is leaving or because he just wants to."
"He hit in me in the back. We can't let Mo see, or he'll flip out."
"If we let him see, maybe he won't go away."
"I don't want him to go anymore than you do, but it's something he wants to do. We have to let him be himself. He can't always come to our rescue anymore. He's 18, an adult."
"I can't live here without him, Merc. I can't. He was our stronghold and now he's going."
"I will be here. We are strong."
"I started doing Coke, Merc. It was the only way out of the pain he inflicted." Mercedes stared at her brother and dropped the dress she held.
"What?"
"I started doing Coke."
"Awe god, Mikey!"
"Don't tell Mo!"
"I won't, but why? Because of Dad?"
"Yes, I couldn't take it anymore. I have been doing it for 3 months now."
"God damn it Mikey." She sat on her bed, and hugged him as he cried on her shoulder.
"I don't know if I can make it alive without Mo."
~*~*~*~*~*~
Mo, Mikey, Mercedes, Rose and Anthony stood at Grand Central Station, waiting for Mo's train to arrive. Mercedes was crying with Rose as Mikey held it back. He was about to snap and needed a fix, bad.
"My trains about to come. Who's going to say good-bye?" Mo said, looking at Mercedes.
"I will." She moved up to him and he dropped his bags, hugging her tightly. He hit the spot her father just hit and she bit her lip, trying not to cry out.
"I love you Mercedes. You're my girl." He said softly into her ear.
"You can't leave Mo. Please don't go."
"I have to. I enlisted. I'll be back in 8 weeks."
"No, we can't survive that long without you."
"Come visit me. In 1 month I can have a visitor, I want it to be you."
"I love you Mo." She started to cry on his shoulder. Seeing him in fatigues made her want him to stay more than ever. Everyone said their good-byes as he got on the train and Mercedes fell to her knees, sobbing.
"Oh get over it you stupid bytch." Anthony said, walking towards the car. Mercedes ran down the platform after the train, crying
"He's hitting us again! Mo, please! Come back!" As the train went out of site she felt something grab her hair. Her father had grabbed her dark ringlets and moved her, taking her to the car and looking around, he threw her in the trunk
"Stupid Bytch. Had to scream that out loud, didn't you." He got in the driver's seat and drove off. Mikey sat in the backseat, holding his hair in his hands, trying to block out the anger and hurt.
~*~*~*~*~*~
That night Mercedes got the beating of her life. She sat in the closet, once again, except this time, Mo wasn't there to get her out. Mikey was too high to even hear her getting beat and had passed out. She sat in the closet, crying, hysterically for days. Her mother had found her, and broke the padlock, and let her out. Mercedes was rushed to the hospital and held for 48 hours. She told the doctors that she fell down the cellar steps and broke the banister, and that's how her back got messed up. Mikey had disappeared for days, and knew nothing of what had happened.
Maurice had called to talk to them, but Rose told him she was at a friend's house. She couldn't bear to tell her eldest son she had been beaten within an inch of her life and left in the closet for almost a week. All she told him was that she had kicked her father out of the house and had him arrested.
*****End Flashback*****
"Dad did that to you? Why didn't you tell me before I got on the train?"
"I knew it was something you wanted to do. And I couldn't stop you. I wanted to. I wanted to keep you by my side my entire life, and you wanted to do that. I couldn't stop you from following your dream. You made sure I was protected, it was he least I could do."
"Mercedes! I-" Jimmy running in cut him off
"You two still all right?"
"Yeah, just get us out of here." She stood up and leaned on Jimmy and Maurice stood up and followed him. Jimmy got them to the ground and the paramedics ran over. Carlos grabbed his wife and looked her over, then embraced her, hugging her tightly. She kissed him deeply, looking to Mo, who was sitting in the bus, sighing.
"Come on, Love. We're going to take you to Mercy to get checked out."
"I'm fine hunny."
"Do it for me?"
"Only if Mo does too."
"If I don't, Swertzky will have my ass."
"Then it's settled. Come on Love." Carlos led her to the bus and sat next to her. She looked at her brother and smiled.
"Memories."