It was a bright and sunny day. A Tuesday. I
was coming to Ella’s house as a friend. Chantel’s eyes tracked me as I moved
around the house with my tools. Her gaze rested on my back. Her fridge was
damaged. There were dents all over it and glass shards under it. The inside
light had stopped working and the cooling mechanism barely worked. My fingers
twitched and I picked up my tools. I liked machines more than people. Machines
were warm and efficient. If something went wrong, you could fix it. There were
clear instructions. If it couldn’t be fixed, it could be replaced. Simple
rules. Chantel’s fridge needed to be replaced. I was able to fix her toaster. The
lights flickered as I worked. Those would take longer. I went outside for a
smoke. The grey paint chipped and splintered as I leaned against it. Puffs of
smoke hung like clouds.
“Mister Daniel, what are you doing?”
I opened my eyes to find Ella staring up at me. So curious and innocent.
I wanted to keep her that way. She wrinkled her nose.
“That smells bad.”
I immediately stomped the cigarette out. I didn’t want Ella to think
less of me in any way. Maybe I should stop smoking. My fingers twitched and I
patted Ella’s head. Her hair was so soft. It reminded me of my mother’s. My
mother was worse than my father. She just stood by and didn’t do anything. She
quietly cleaned up the broken glass bottles on her hands and knees. She would
lie to my teachers when they asked if everything was “all right” at home. What
a stupid question. I hated societies niceties. They should’ve sent a S.W.A.T.
team if they even suspected something. Unlike my mother, Chantel had teeth.
Maybe the blood under her fingernails wasn’t hers. I was sure she didn’t lie
back and wait to be bruised like fruit. Ella tugged on my arm and led me inside
where Chantel had made some lemonade. Ella’s eyes sparkled like ice and she
practically chugged the glass. I thanked her. It was tart and sour. I liked it.
Chantel cut ham sandwiches. The only thing clean in this house were the knives.
They gleamed as if they were brand-new. They weren’t. The wooden knife block
was worn and starting to splinter, sitting next to it was a sharpening stone.
Chantel caught my gaze and smiled. Her bright red lips reminded me of a wolf
with blood on its mouth.
“I like knives,” she said.
“I can see that,” I said. Her fingers tightened around the handle. My
taser was at my waist. I always carried one. You never knew when you would need
to shock somebody. Her grip relaxed and she gently put the knife in the sink.
If she liked knives so much, why didn’t she stab her husband? Ella put her
dishes in the sink.
“Mr. Daniel, do you want to play catch?” Ella asked.
“Sure. Why don’t you go grab the ball and I’ll meet you outside,” I
said. She ran off. I leaned against the sink as Chantel washed the dishes.
“I know what you’re thinking. Why didn’t I just kill him? Why put Ella
through that?” Chantel said.
“Yeah, why didn’t you? Since you seem to have teeth,” I said.
“I put up with a lot when I was younger. You have no idea how hard my
life was, and believe it or not, when Hersh and I met, he was a really nice
guy. He saved me from a really bad situation. He was sweet and loving and
caring. He loved Ella. But he always had that dangerous streak. He loved to
fight and gamble. He would disappear and come home at odd hours. He got it into
his head that I owed him. That without him, I’d still be in that bad place. He
said he rescued me. He said because I owed him my life, he owned me. Then the
drinking started and I’m sure you can imagine the rest. You seem to be familiar
with that sort of thing.”
Damn. She was perceptive as hell. My finger twitched for my taser. “I
have some experience with bad fathers and bad friends. How did you know?”
“You weren’t surprised to see the broken bottles when you checked out
the fridge,” Chantel said.
“Yeah, well your husband got arrested. I assumed he did some pretty bad
things,” I said.
“That’s exactly why I didn’t kill him. If I got arrested for murder,
then what? How would it have been for Ella to lose two parents?”
“Why’d you wait so long to call the police? You’re right. I recognize
the signs. He had only been abusing you. He didn’t touch Ella.”
Chantel looked down. “That’s why I waited, because he didn’t touch Ella.
He was always kind to her. But Hersh killed the happiness inside me. I wish I
killed him when I had the chance. At least I would’ve been happy.”
“You would diminish Ella’s light?” I asked. My voice was as sharp as her
knives. Killing Hersh Waters would’ve been devastating for Ella. I would not
let anyone hurt Ella, including her own mother. If the mother didn’t know what
was best for her daughter, I would take over. I would protect Ella no matter
the cost. I would’ve taken Mr. and Mrs. Waters out of her life. I would make
sure Ella never felt pain. She was my sunshine.
“It doesn’t matter what I wanted to do. I didn’t harm him. That’s what
matters,” Chantel said.
“Mr. Daniel!” Ella yelled from the yard.
Like a summons from a Goddess, I turned my back on Chantel and went to
Ella.
Everyone knows electricity and water don’t mix.