Deadly Silence (complete) Chapter 94

“What did you say?” The voice that spoke was soft, almost sweet, but she knew, even at six, that the sweeter the voice the more dangerous the situation.

Vivian slowly looked up to see a sharp smile, then cold, blue eyes watching her like a hawk. She gulped, hunching her shoulders in an attempt to take up as little room as possible. “I’m sorry,” she whispered, voice hitching as she fought the tears that wanted to spill from her eyes. If she cried it would only make things worse.

He hated crying.

“Tell me what you said.”

“Paul, please,” her mother began, but he’d whipped his head around to give her a look that stopped the words in her throat. Annie pursed her lips together, as if to prevent any more sound from escaping as she looked on with a troubled expression.

“She needs to learn everything has consequences,” he snapped, turning his attention back to Vivian. “What did you say.” It was no longer a question, but an order.

“I… I said…” Vivian stuttered, voice growing softer with each word. “I don’t want to—“

A slap rang out as pain bloomed where his hand at struck her cheek. The force of the hit had Vivian on the ground. The tears she’d worked so hard to keep inside were leaking out and she hastily attempted to wipe them away before he noticed.

Too late.

“Why are you crying?” He snapped, grabbing her arm and pulling her back to her feet. “You said what you said, didn’t you? Why are you crying about it now? Next time you’ll know better than to say things that’ll make you cry later.”

Vivian nodded vehemently, not daring to say anything in fear it would only make things worse.

“Paul! Please—“

“Shut up, Annie,” he roared over his shoulder, causing the woman to shrink back against the counter she’d been standing near. “This isn’t about *you*. It’s about our daughter learning to respect me!”

Paul pulled on her arm, dragging her towards the hall closet. Realizing what was about to happen, the little girl began to dig her heels in as tears began to fall in earnest. “No. Please. I’ll be good, Daddy, I swear!” She told him, voice rising higher the closer they got to the dreaded closet. “Please! I’ll be a good girl!”

“Shut up,” he hissed as he threw open the door and shoved her inside. “You know the rules and the punishment when they’re broken.” Paul slammed the door shut and Vivian heard the deadbolt he’d installed on the outside click into place.

The closet was so dark with only a small band of light coming from under the door. Vivian had always been scared of the dark, even before the closet. She couldn’t see when it was dark, couldn’t keep herself safe if she didn’t know where the monsters hid.

The first time she’d been locked in the closet she’d spent a long time pounding her fists against the door to no avail. The screams she’d made gone unanswered. A few times her mother had tried to talk Paul into lessening the punishment or letting it go altogether, resulting in what sounded like a beating.

Still crying, Vivian moved into a corner and hugged her knees against her chest. Tears continued to run down her face as she fought the empty feeling in her chest that grew with each passing day. She didn’t know what it was, only that it ate away at the warm feelings she’d once had; it would be years later that she’d realize the empty feeling was hopelessness, and just how close it’d come to consuming her completely.

There were sounds coming from the kitchen. Shouts, bangs from furniture being forcibly moved until finally silence settled over the home.

Whether it was a few minutes or a few hours — time had no meaning in the closet — Vivian heard the swish of fabric as a portion of the light coming from under the door was blocked by something.

“Hey, sweetheart,” she heard her mother say. “How you holding up?”

Vivian whimpered, her arms tightening around her knees. “Mom…” she hiccuped, unable to say anything else.

“I know, sweetheart. I know. I’m so sorry.”

“Why does he do that?”

Annie let out an audible sigh. “Paul is… complicated. He doesn’t understand that a child says the truth no matter what, even if it’s not a fun truth. You did nothing wrong, hun, but you need to learn how to not say things that might anger him.”

“But…”

“No, sweetie,” Annie interrupted, voice gentle. “I know it’s not fair. It’s not fair at all.” Vivian heard her mom take a deep breath. “Remember how I’m always telling you that silence is the strongest weapon of all?”

Vivian nodded. It was something her mom said often though she didn’t really understand how not saying something could be considered strong.

“If you’d said nothing… he’d have never known how you felt. He wouldn’t have been able to use it against you. Do you understand? It gives you something, a secret, that he will never know. Doesn’t that sound nice?”

Having something her father couldn’t take away from her, that he knew nothing about was an enticing thought.

“If there’s something you have to say,” her mother continued after a few seconds, “you can tell one of your stuffed animals when he’s not in the house.”

Vivian used her sleeve to wipe the tears away as she sniffed. “I’ll try…”

“Good girl,” her mother cooed, giving Vivian a feeling of warmth in her chest. “Now how are we going to pass the time til he gets back?” Annie knew her daughter hated the dark and spent as much time as possible talking through the closet door whenever the girl was being punished.

“Can you tell me a story?” Vivian whispered.

“Hmmm. A story?” Her mother trailed off for a moment before letting out a small laugh. “Okay. I know the perfect story.

“Once upon a time… monsters lurked in the darkness. They were called monsters because people couldn’t see them — they lived in the dark, after all — and were scared of them. Any time they tried to shine a light on one to see what it looked like the monster would simply vanish — poof!

“One day, a little girl, who was terrified of those monsters, was playing outside. This little girl was a bright, cheerful person whose smile lit up even the darkest places. Her laughter was like bells, her voice like birdsong; she was a treasure.

“On this day she decided to play a bit in the woods around her home, where the forest animals tended to gather. She loved talking to them, singing them whatever song she made up on the spot, or simply sitting in silence and enjoying their companionship.

“She ended up wandering a bit too far into the woods that day and got lost. As day slowly turned to night, she began to get scared; night was when those terribly scary monsters were supposed to come out and feast on little girls just like her!

“The little girl didn’t know what to do and ended up wandering around until she happened upon a pack of wolves.

“Wolves had never been one of the forest animals she spoke with or sang to; wolves were dangerous creatures her papa had warned her about. They, like monsters, ate little girls for breakfast.

“The pack of wolves began to chase the little girl through the woods. She ran as fast as her little legs could carry her but tripped and fell. As she lay on the ground, she wished she could see her mama and papa one last time. She wanted to tell them how much she loved them and how sorry she was for getting lost; that she’d be the best little girl from then on.

“Just as the biggest wolf was about to pounce on her, something grabbed it and threw it against a tree. The other wolves took a step back, wondering what was happening as a dark shadow began to advance on them, too. It didn’t take long for the wolves to turn and run away, tail between their legs.

“The little girl, having watched the entire thing, slowly sat up and stared at the dark thing that’d saved her. ‘Who are you?’ She asked in a scared little voice.

“‘I am a monster,’ it explained as it moved to the little girl’s side and, with gentle hands, helped her back to her feet. ‘I scared the beasts away because I am scary.’

“The little girl was surprised. Monsters in the dark were scary, yes, but they were supposed to eat little girls, not save them and scare wolves. ‘Are you gonna eat me?’

“The monster laughed. ‘Eat you? Little girls don’t taste good at all,’ the monster told her honestly. ‘I like eating nuts and mushrooms. Those are tastiest.’

“‘But monsters eat little girls,’ she explained to him.

“‘Not this monster,’ it assured her. ‘This monster doesn’t like eating any little girls. Icky.’

“‘Oh…’ the little girl trailed off, feeling confused but happy she was safe. ‘I’m lost, mister…?’

“‘I will take you home,’ the monster replied, the shadow bobbing as it nodded. ‘You can call me whatever you want, little girl.’

“‘I’ll call you… my friend,’ she decided after taking a moment to think it over.

“The little girl’s new friend, a monster that lived in the dark, brought her back home safe and sound. From that day onward the little girl never feared the dark again because she knew her friend was there, keeping her safe from the real monsters.”

Vivian listened to the story in silence, her mind wandering a bit. “Who are the real monsters?” She finally asked. If the little girl eating monsters hiding in the dark weren’t the ones she should be scared of, then who?

For nearly a minute her mother was quiet. “That’s a good question, sweetheart. I think the real monsters can be anyone or anything; if they scare you enough, wouldn’t that make them a monster?”

“…does that mean Daddy is a monster?” She asked, voice trembling as though he’d hear and explode with anger.

Another long silence passed and Vivian wasn’t sure but she thought she could hear sniffing on the other side of the door. “Do you think he’s a monster?”

“He scares me…”

“He scares me too, sweetie,” Annie assured her daughter with a small, sad laugh.

“How do we beat the monsters, Mom?”

“I’m not sure,” she answered, sounding tired. “I know we have to be strong. Can you be strong for me?”

Vivian thought about it for a minute. Could she be strong? She was only a little girl and he was so big and strong; stronger than she’d ever be. But for her mom she was willing to try. “Okay.”