Andrianna coughed a few minutes before her eyes opened. She was safe in Francis's arms.
"Is my mother safe?" Andrianna managed to ask.
Francis' eyes were filled with rage. A form of rage that Andrianna had never seen before. Francis loved Andrianna was obvious. The young girl took care of Andrianna as her own.
"She is only a child!" she screamed.
"You want her gone? I will make that happen right now. I will call child services and report about this. She would be out of your life and I will raise her as my own!" Francis continued.
Andrianna now really wished she had not said that.
"Is that so?" the devil eyed man said. Amused.
He moved closer to Francis and Andrianna.
"Darling if you want to protect that spoilt little princess then you will have to go through me first"
Andrianna now saw a handgun in his hands. She was not sure from where it came. She saw Francis' eyes widen in fear. She moved to run away but the devil eyed man had the gun pointed to Andrianna.
"I would want to think before I did that? You might not only lose your life but I will also kill the child in your arms… unless… you set the child down on the couch. As long as you cooperate with me no one will be harmed. All I want is to have a good time. No harm needs to come to either of you. And I do apologize for choking the child earlier. Now?"
Francis reluctantly put Andrianna down on the couch. She thought better than to go on.
Andrianna saw her mother still standing naked.
"Want to take the gun from me my Susan?"
Susan nodded briefly and took the gun in her hand, pointing it to Andrianna's head.
The devil eyed man reached Francis pulling her by the hand and pressing her to his large body. Francis let out a scream, trying to push him away from her body. Andrianna tried to leap to Francis but her mother held her back.
The devil eyed man pushed Francis on the couch holding onto her neck. Holding her down with the weight of his body. His hands running along her body and his lips bruised hers. Muffling her loud screams.
He tore at the front of her nightgown cupping her exposed breasts, pulling roughly at her nipples. He finally traced his way between her kicking legs tearing at the fabric of her panties.
Her screams got louder, each shrill, each cry of help was merely an echo of the screams that would follow hers. An echo of what would be the fate of many women, an echo of her own fate. Andrianna would always hear these screams echo her own. She would feel helpless over and over again as she did this night. Unable to save her actual mother.
Francis continued to kick and push off the devil eyed man over and over as he held his big penis in his hand, lifting his waist just a few centimeters before entering in Francis' body.
The pain of such perverse invasion was beyond any pain a woman could take. She let out a roar much louder than she had before; as is the devil eyed man seemed to stab her with each thrust. Her roars of pain were so louder than the loud claps of thunder. Mother earth seemed to scream in pain at the pain of her child.
Tears escaped Francis' eyes as the devil eyed man moaned in ecstasy. His fingers tightly grasped her neck as his thrusts got harder. Francis' pushes became more feeble as she slowly choked to death.
Andrianna could image the burn again through her own throat that must be rushing Francis'. The black spots in front of her eyes as he finished invading her body. Until she fainted.
Francis no longer was breathing.
Her body lay limp, lifeless. Her blue eyes that were otherwise always warm now were glassy. Her lips had stopped screaming from the gross invasion of another man's body, or even gasp for breath. Her warm skin was cold, as it lay half-naked from the exertions before.
Her leg hung loosely at the edge of the couch, her body swollen and bleeding.
Through blurry eyes, Andrianna registered that her true mother was dead. That Francis was dead.
And for the first time in the world, Andrianna was alone. That her fate was sealed. Her mother had let her go by now. Her and the devil eyed man had walked away laughing at the scene that unfolded.
Andrianna leaped to Francis, trying to wake her up. Her tears now traced Francis' skin. Shaking her violently until Andrianna accepted that Francis was dead. The devil eyed man had killed her Francis.
Andrianna slowly covered Francis' body, concealing her exposed skin. Andrianna might not know that what she had witnessed was rape but she knew to leave Francis like that was not right. That some shred of Francis' dignity must be restored.
Andrianna then held Francis's lifeless body in her arms, cradling her head to her body. Rocking it back and forth.
The body left lifeless yet, Andrianna could not make herself let go of Francis. Blinded by the pain Andrianna cried, sitting there, screaming all night long. Feeling the first ray of light hit her face.
Andrianna felt her eyelids grow heavy. She tried to fight the exhaustion. Tried to fight the urge to just curl up and sleep. Forget what had happened just a few hours ago.
Trying was all she could do. To try and fail.
Soon enough just like that, she had fallen asleep. Under the warmth of the day and the cold of the skin, she slept. Probably, the last time she did so.
Mrs. Anderson was an old lady at the age of 55. Her hair had once been a rich shade of brown that she would wear in a loose ponytail but that color had now long since been lost. Her previously rosy skin was now wrinkled had lost all the color. Her beauty was fading and she knew it. Perhaps too well.
She liked Francis and little Andrianna next door, she liked to go to their mansion every morning to have breakfast, and once after school to play with the little child. It seemed to fulfill her need for a child. A child her barren womb could never have.
It was 8 am which was breakfast time for her with the girls and Marshal.
Little did she know she would be met by a scene much different than the familiar smell of maple syrup and tea.
When Mrs. Anderson unlocked the front door today she smelt death. She smelt the rotting of a body and heard the soft whimpers of a child. She walked further into the house calling out to Francis, missing the scene that had unfolded in the living room. Until she turned and there it was.
Little Andrianna curled up against the cold lifeless body of Francis. She was sleeping, yet tears streamed down her puffy cheeks. Soft cries of help escaped her small lips. She was in distress even in her sleep.
Mrs. Anderson could not move for one whole minute. It was a scene so tragic that she could not comprehend it. She knew now that the little girl was alone. Andrianna's only true family was dead in her arms.
Her father did not bother visiting or taking care of the child more than once a month. If, Andrianna was lucky.
Andrianna's mother would not bother. She was too busy injecting poisons through her veins to care.
She slowly moved to the child and detached her from Francis.