*Esmerelda*
Time seemed to slow down as I stared at my stepfather. He looked very much the same as the last time I saw him with his longish graying hair and stern face. The difference now was that he didn’t look livid as he beat me into a pulp.
I was so shocked that I forgot where I was for a moment. Rosalind was giving me an odd look. I felt panic seize my throat. I never expected to see my stepfather in the city like this. Heck, I expected to never see him again.
The memories from that awful night came rushing back. I thought about the conviction I felt as I violently threw my few belongings into an old duffle bag and literally ran from the house as if I were being chased. And if my stepfather had seen me leave, that probably would have been the case.
I thought that I was rid of him forever as well as the hellish days that he put me through when I was living with him.