23. THE END OF US

I was tired of the berating.

“You have gone insane. I never should have let you leave! You lied to us! Turned yourself into a whore!”

My father stopped, five minutes passing before he began again. Answering him only enabled him more so I resigned to closing my eyes and leaned on my mother’s shoulder. The fact that I was twenty four and could make my own decisions did nothing for my dad.

“You are never leaving the farm ever again!” It felt like the drop of prison bars.

I imagined running back to the police station and opening a case against my own father. Imagining it was all I could do because I felt so hopeless as my father threw out one life sentence after another.

I still couldn’t understand Peter’s words. What did he mean he wanted me to leave? He literally gave me away. He didn’t come to get me at the police station. I tried prolonging the departure from the police station but as soon as my father realized they weren’t opening a case against Slade, he blew a fuse and dragge