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The clean-shaven man lets out a smile. “I’ll be back to take you to the boss in three days. Pleasure doing business with you,” he says.
The men walk to the door as I crawl to my mother and sister, blinded with tears.
“Also,” the man says, stopping in his tracks, “don’t think of running away. We have eyes on you, so don’t even think about it.”
As soon as they leave, I crawl to my bleeding mother and sister, scooping them up into my arms as we weep.
“I am so sorry, I tried to pay them,” my mother says. “I really did,” she groans.
“Shhh, it’s okay, mama, it’s all right,” I say softly, holding back my tears.
I manage to guide my mother to the bathroom and I help her to wash up first. I take her to my bedroom in the attic, the only part of the house that isn’t in ruins.
When she finally falls asleep, I run Laura’s bath and make her tea.
“You’re not thinking of going with them, are you?” she asks as I sweep up the shards from the broken furniture.
I swallow and smile. “You don’t have to worry about that. What’s important is that you’re strong enough to take care of Mama.”
“Alyssa, you can’t go with them. Heaven knows what they’ll do to you,” Laura cries. I can hear the sorrow caught in her throat.
I don’t dare look at her, because I know that I’ll break, and I can’t let her see me cry.
“Laura, finish your tea. You have to rest and try to take a nap so you can be up to make dinner before Mama wakes up,” I reply instead.
“What about you? Are you going somewhere?” she asks.
I nod. “I have to clock in for my shift,” I say.
“You just got back,” she says.
I turn to her. “Can you just stop asking questions and do as I say?”
She purses her lips shut quickly, and I feel guilt sting in my chest as I watch the tears build up in her eyes again.
“I’m sorry, Laura. I didn’t mean to yell,” I say softly.
She swallows. “You’ll be back for dinner, won’t you?”
I force a smile and nod. She shrugs and returns to her tea.
It takes an hour of cleaning to get the house back to what it looked like before the men broke in.
I go to the attic to check on Mama, and I see that Laura has crawled into bed with her. They have their arms wrapped around each other, fast asleep.
I smile through my tears as I look at them. I have to protect them, but I barely know how. I hate that I am going to have to leave them, but there’s nothing else that I can do to keep them safe.
I go downstairs and change clothes, my mind full of plans that I’m not sure will work. The only step I’m sure about is the one that I will take before I head to work.
“Hey, Ray,” I call out to the man standing in the corridor as I lock our door.
A tall, scrawny man covered in tattoos turns to me. I knew he would be there. He’s often just hanging around, as he doesn’t have anything else to do. I’m not sure what Ray does to earn his keep, but he’s always up for an odd job when there’s money to be earned.
“Alyssa baby, I haven’t seen you in a while,” he says, smiling. He’s missing a couple of teeth, and he looks far older than his real age.
I smile. “The club’s been busy these days,” I reply.
“That’s good news for you,” he says.
