Chapter 7

A Visit to the Basement

Nora

Once inside, he slammed the door and threw me to the floor. I fell hard on my side, hitting my hip bone. But I didn’t have any more time to dwell on the pain, because in seconds he was on top of me. He grabs onto my hair again, pulling my head back painfully. “WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? HA! WHERE WERE YOU, NORA? Saying this, with my hair in his hand, he shook my head from one side to the other. It hurt so much that my tears started to come out. Until he stopped. He let me go suddenly and got up. Then I felt a kick in my back, and then another in my legs. After several more, I got into the fetal position, to avoid being hurt, but it didn’t work. The blows kept raining. Then, he stopped. His heavy breathing and my sobs and groans of pain were all that was heard. He was looking at me from above but did nothing else. Until he squatted down and brushed the hair off my face.

He stood still for a moment, and after that, I could hear his teeth