I watch as Lili analyzes the birds as they arch across the sky. She mimics them as they fold their wings and dive toward the earth then swoop back up. The smile on her face is one of pure wonder and delight. I follow her as she runs in the tall grass, her white-blonde hair swaying with every step. A sound from the back porch draws her attention, and fear flashes across her crystal blue eyes. Maddox strides across the porch in two large steps and has the little girl by the arm in seconds. He looks down at his young daughter with bitterness and disdain. I watch silently as he squeezes her arm tighter, no doubt leaving dark bruises behind on her porcelain skin. “Lili, I told you not to leave your room, get your ass back inside!” She quivers with fear and lets out a small whimper as he releases her arm and kicks her toward the house. She runs inside and scampers up the stairs to her room.
I scrutinize the man who calls himself her father. A tall, foul man with a beer gut bulging over his jeans, and dirty boots laced up to his ankles. He has the face not even a mother could love and is balding on the top of his round, egg-shaped head. He slowly saunters back inside the house and doesn’t notice when I quietly follow in behind him. He grabs a beer from the fridge and plops down in front of the TV and pays no mind to me. I soon get bored and ascend the stairs to look for young Lili. I find her crouched down in the corner of her room, crying silent tears as she longingly looks out the grimy, dirt encrusted window. I recall the day her mother died and left the poor child to be raised by her father. She died during childbirth, and Maddox never forgave the young child for taking away the only woman he ever loved. He blamed her from the very beginning and could never let go of the past. Lili looks so much like her mother, which only heightens Maddox’s rage for her.
When she is not being abused by him she is hiding from him in her room, day dreaming about anything but the life she inhabits. She sees princesses, dragons, fairies, and castles! She’s the ruler of her kingdom and lives with all of the lovely creatures that roam her dreams. I concentrate on her thoughts and slip seamlessly into her mind. The world here is a forest of green with pastel colors splattered across the canvas. Animals are jumping and frolicking through the trees, and fairies are lounging beside ponds, conversing with mermaids who are resting on large, warm stones. The sky is one vast rainbow of colors as painted birds glide with the evening breeze. Lili flies on top of dragons and relishes the warm, light wind throwing her hair every which way. She then lies in the grass and looks up at the sky and picks shapes out of clouds. “There’s a bunny! Oh! There’s a flower,” she exclaims. A rumble in the distance startles her, and as she scrutinizes the sky she sees it start to darken and grow grim. The animals move swiftly to find cover from the storm, but Lili knows that there is no use. The storm will come and find her no matter where she runs.
She gets shaken back to reality and looks up at her father glaring at her with such venom she wishes she could shrivel up and disappear. I get forced out of her head as she becomes more focused on reality. Her father is standing over her, screaming at her with spittle escaping his lips to land on her ashen face. She cowers in the corner and tries to make herself as small as possible. He yanks her up by her hair and smacks her small face with the back of his hand. She cries out from the pain and tries to wriggle out of his grip, but he is much stronger than she could ever be. His hand grips her neck as he crushes her windpipes and cuts off her air flow. Her face slowly turns from pink to blue, and I wait for the inevitable outcome. The sole reason for why I’m here. She eventually stops moving, and he releases her. She slumps to the ground with an audible thud. Maddox stands stiff with anger; he looks at her unmoving body and moments later leaves.
I slowly glide over to Lili and look down at her innocent face, so peaceful in death. After a moment she gets up, looks at me and takes my hand. I rejoice in the fact that she won’t have to cower in fear any longer because I am taking her to her own little kingdom; a kingdom where only beautiful souls like her go. We walk hand in hand into the light as I guide her to a familiar figure; a figure not familiar to her eyes, but to her heart. I wait until Lili runs and collides with her mother in a loving embrace to turn around and make my retreat. I slip back into the house Lili once inhabited to find her father, but this time when I wait for his moment I know that I’m taking him to a different kind of kingdom.