Chapter 120 The Past (Two)

• “Oh, for fucks sake! You want her to keep quiet and you’re hitting her? Why would you hit a little kid, for crying out loud?” Sandra asked, wishing that she had not taken the sleeping pill. It felt as though she were trying to swim through mud, and she could barely keep her eyes open, never mind defend her child. This was the first time she was seeing him hit Amy, even though he always yelled at the baby. Sam set the child on a couch and continued to slap and beat her up, drawing more cries from her, while Sandra sat down for a while, trying desperately to get herself, and begging him to stop the whole while. Now, the child was starting to sound choked, as though she could not catch her breath with the force of her crying, yet Sam did not let up in his assault and screaming.
• Finally, Sandra could not take it any longer, so she got up again on terribly wobbly legs, and snatched Amy from Sam. Surprisingly, he let her take the child, and she started up the stairs slowly with Amy, intending to go back upstairs to sleep with Amy in her room and hoping Sam wouldn’t follow.
• He didn’t follow them, but stood at the foot of the stairs, beginning to cry and beg, as usual, saying that he did not know what had come over him. Amy, who had gotten her breath back, was crying very loudly now, calling for her dad and she was struggling fiercely as well. Sandra had almost made it to the top of the stairs when the unthinkable happened. She lost her grip on Amy, and turned immediately, trying to catch her, even though she knew it was a futile effort. She watched as though in slow motion as the child fell from her arms and landed, headfirst. Sandra shrieked in horror and froze in place, her reflexes still slow, but she could see that Sam had rushed to pick up the broken body of the child, and then he was rushing up the stairs to catch her as everything started becoming really fuzzy.