Page 1 of Splintered Memories
Prologue
Emersyn
Six Years Old
Mytummycramped,twistingin on itself. I thought I’d gotten used to the feeling, but hunger vibrated up my spine. My mouth filled with saliva as the lingering smell of dinner wafted into my dark room.
The sounds of clinking dishes and the splash of water met my ears as Mommy started on the dishes. I screwed my eyes closed, rolling my lips between my teeth and biting down hard enough to distract me from the thought of food. I counted to ten, and then tried to count backward from ten, but it was hard and I gave up.
“Emy?”
At my sister’s soft whisper, my eyelids snapped open. I turned my head. Delainey knelt next to my bed, her face shrouded in shadow, but enough light leaked in from my open door to make out her expressions.
She let out a sigh of relief. “I thought you were asleep.”
I shook my head, my eyes flaring wide. “What are you doing in here?” I hissed. My gaze shifted to the open door. “If Mommy finds you in here—”
Delainey cut me off with a shake of her head. “It’s okay.” She shifted, pulling something from her pocket. “Here.” She pushed it into my hand. “It’s a little squished, but it’ll taste fine.”
My heartbeat quickened. I swallowed hard, my stomach twisting again. It was a biscuit. “Lainey,” I whispered in both relief and fear. “You can’t take food from the table.”
Delainey’s mouth set into a hard line. “So?”
“You’ll get in trouble…”
“I don’t care.” She threw back her shoulders. “Eat it quick.”
I stared at the biscuit, desperately wanting it, but also terrified of it. “Mommy will know.”
Delainey huffed. “No, she won’t. Not if you eat fast.”
I didn’t know whether I believed her or not. Mommy always seemed to know everything. My eyes burned uncomfortably as tears welled. I wasn’t sure why they had come, but they spilled down my cheeks before I could stop them.
Delainey reached for me, her warm hands soothing down my hair. “Don’t cry, Emy.”
I shook my head. “Do you think Jake will be okay?” My voice broke on our big brother’s name. “It’s so cold outside.” I wasn’t the only one being punished right now.
Delainey stiffened before giving me a curt nod. “Yeah,” she said, but her voice was too tight to be comforting. “He always is.”
“It was snowing yesterday…” I trailed off, thinking of my poor brother outside in the cold backyard. “She doesn’t even give him a blanket or pillow.”
My sister gritted her teeth. “He’ll be okay. Dad will be home tomorrow night.”
My chest eased, but only a little. Daddy wasn’t home a lot, but Mommy never did the worst things when he was around.
And Jake always seemed to get the worst of the punishments—of the discipline—and I hated it. A fresh wave of tears gushed from my eyes. “I’m—I’m scared.”
“Don’t be scared.” Delainey gestured toward the biscuit. “Just eat. It’ll make you feel better.”
“I’m not hungry.” I was, but I didn’t deserve the biscuit. I just wanted to cry.
My older sister grabbed for my free hand, squeezing tight. Her eyes met mine, and they were hard and heated. “Emy,” she said, voice fervent. “You are hungry and you will eat. I already took it, and if it doesn’t get eaten, Mommywillfind out what I did. There’s no point in leaving it.” She leaned in closer. “And stop crying.” She didn’t sound mean but was firm. “She likes it when we cry.”
I shivered, but I couldn’t stop the tears. “I don’t know how.” My frail voice shuddered on a sob.
“I know that it’s hard, Emy. Just try.” She pointed to my chest. “Hold it all right here. Don’t let it loose.”
I didn’t understand. My head whipped back and forth. “I can’t.”
