1 Prologue

The boy had always been afraid of thunder. Its explosions and shrieks tearing through the storm above his house always shook his weak bed. He would hide underneath his cover, tiny fists clasped together praying to the same person his mother always prayed to. Hoping and praying the storm would go away. But he wasn't in his bed tonight. He wasn't in his dark room in the basement. His face was pressed against his mother's bony chest tonight.

The abuse had been worse today. His father hadn't used his fists like always, he used those brown bottles with the foul smelling liquid inside.

This beating was the worst so far.

This beating had left glass in his cheek.

This beating had blinded him on one side.

His blood soaked his mother's brown dress, her long fingers pressing his face into the cloth to slow down the bleeding. It wasn't slowing down.

She rocked back and forth on the cold wooden floor of the attic, stroking the boy's black hair. His shrieks of pain knives in her side. She wanted to go down there and scold the man, argue with him, make him understand what he'd done. But she would just get the same beating. So she remained in the dark, cradling her bleeding child.

"We'll run away together, I promise." Weak words a rope around her neck, binding her to a promise she couldn't keep. She kissed the boy's forehead, pale pink lips turning crimson in the dim light of a lone candle.

"I promise, Dan. I promise."