Secrets Behind the White Picket Fence (eBook)

Joan Anthony, Ava St. Martin (Autoren)

eBook Download: EPUB

2025 | 1. Auflage
332 Seiten
Bookbaby (Verlag)
979-8-3178-0421-3 (ISBN)

Infos

This is a story about healing from trauma, which clearly illustrates the work and dedication one may choose to undertake in pursuit of recovery. Grueling struggles are shown, rather than hiding from or pushing them 'under the rug.' The reader is offered hope that healing from heinous, unthinkable trauma is possible.

Both authors have experienced trauma and loss throughout their lives. They each started therapy early in life and continue to address their own personal issues with ongoing therapy. This is their first co-authored novel.

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Secrets Behind the White Picket Fence isn't just a novel about abuse-it's a story of survival, silence broken, and the fierce power of reclaiming one's voice. Through the darkness of family secrets and betrayal, emerges a message of hope, courage, and healing. For anyone who has ever felt unseen, unheard, or unloved-this book is a reminder: you are not alone, and your truth matters.

Textauszug

Chapter 3

Left Next Door

Sophie sat in her playpen in the living room and played with her blocks, while Luna lay beside her on the floor. Marge kept her in the playpen, knowing that two-year-olds were curious and constantly explored their surroundings. Sophie was no exception. She stood up, gripped the wooden bars on the playpen, and cried to her mother about her empty sippy cup.

Under her breath, Marge muttered, “You are so demanding. I never wanted another baby. You’re just too much.” Irritated, she told Sophie that she would take her next door to her grandparents’ house.

Helen had returned to her part-time job as a store clerk while Bill, who had retired, was always home. As Sophie’s screams grew louder, Luna stood up and barked, and Marge decided to take Sophie next door. This was the only time she could find some peace. With Paul and Liz in school most of the day and Sophie at her grandparents’ house, she could finally drink her highballs in solitude.

Sophie looked terrified as Marge gathered her and her belongings to take her next door to her in-laws. Marge knew Sophie didn’t particularly like her grandfather and would come home upset after being with him, yet she wasn’t sure why, nor was she concerned. Regardless, if Helen wasn’t at home and Bill was alone, she was relieved to have somewhere to take her demanding daughter. Marge suspected it was only because her grandmother wasn’t there to spoil her rotten. So, if Helen was gone, Sophie would usually come home crying.

Whenever she returned home upset, Marge harshly said, “If you’re going to cry, go to your room. If you miss your grandmother so much, I can leave you there more often.”

This threat always made Sophie cry harder, and she would run to her room, taking Luna with her.

Bill and Helen’s home was also a tri-level with wood siding and an attached garage. The lower level had a rec room with a long bar for family gatherings, and where the grandchildren played. The main level had a kitchen, living room, dining room, den, and bathroom. Upstairs, there were three bedrooms and one bathroom. Bill’s pride and joy were outside in his backyard where he had a huge fruit and vegetable garden, a tiny vineyard for vinification, and a greenhouse the size of a single-car garage. Downstairs in the greenhouse was the wine cellar where he stored wine that he made from the red grapes he grew in his yard. This was off-limits for the grandchildren unless they had his supervision. Sometimes, when he was watching Sophie, he brought her there.

Marge stood before her in-laws’ home, knocked lightly, and opened their front door. She saw Bill standing alone, and after going inside, he confirmed this with her. Knowing her grandmother was not home, Sophie threw a fit, screamed, and looked at him like he was a monster. When Helen was home, he was a different person. He was on his best behavior around the children and had been careful not to show his obsession with Sophie. Marge ignored Sophie’s fuss and handed her over to Bill like a sack of potatoes. She told him she’d pick her up later and left to return home.

When Marge left, Bill comforted his granddaughter, putting his arm around her shoulder and leading her to the dark, musty den. Across from the couch was a television where Helen and Bill watched TV.

He had an obsessive adoration for Sophie, looking at her possessively and desiring her all to himself. He never minded her coming to the house, as it allowed him time alone with her. Sitting on the couch, he placed her next to him while she sat there, emotionally paralyzed. Bill would pull her close, wrapping his arm around her and stroking her brown hair. Sometimes, it went further. In her fear, Sophie gazed intently at the green brocade fabric of the couch, focusing on just one area to block out her fear and forget what her grandfather was doing to her.

Paul and Liz returned home from school and noticed their mother sitting alone in the living room, drinking her highball and watching her stories. They greeted her and hurried down to the rec room to play together and look for their sister to join them. However, they discovered she was not downstairs or upstairs in her bedroom. They asked their mother if Sophie had come home from grandma’s house. Suddenly, Marge realized she had forgotten to pick her up. She yelled at Liz to go and get her little sister next door and asked Paul to come and see her. In her eyes, Paul could do no wrong. He was her firstborn and also had a different father, which gave Marge a special place in her heart for him. Knowing that Victor hadn’t offered him the same attention as he had to the girls, Marge overcompensated and gave Paul as much one-on-one attention as possible.

Liz ran next door to retrieve Sophie. Liz had always been the perfect daughter to her mother. She was old enough now to help with chores around the house, but her mother mainly used her to take care of Sophie. During that time, Marge could have her time with Paul. Liz never minded caring for her baby sister; it was like she had a living doll to dress up and play with. But deep inside, she questioned her mother’s intention, feeling more like a babysitter than a daughter. Because of that, a part of her resented this responsibility, but simultaneously, she saw how her mother acted coldly towards Sophie, which secretly pleased Liz.

Because of Marge’s indifference towards Sophie, Liz didn’t feel replaced; however, she knew Paul was her mother’s favorite child. It had been a different story with her father. Liz used to be her daddy’s favorite, but Sophie had taken on that role, leaving Liz feeling invisible.

When Liz arrived next door to get Sophie, Sophie’s grandmother, now home from work, embraced her as soon as she saw her. Helen loved her grandchildren and was especially fond of Sophie, who, in turn, adored her grandmother. Unlike Sophie’s mother, Sophie’s grandmother nurtured her. She was the only one who had offered Sophie the most focused attention. She also knew how disconnected Marge was from her youngest daughter, never bonding with Sophie but ignoring her. Whenever Sophie was at her grandparents’ house and her grandmother returned from work, Sophie raced into her arms, eager to leave her grandfather’s side.

When Liz returned home with her baby sister, Luna greeted them. Sophie ran upstairs to her bedroom with the dog, relieved to be away from her grandfather. Luna would lick her face while they cuddled together. Luna had always been there to comfort her, something Sophie rarely got from any family member besides her grandmother.

Every Sunday, Victor, Marge, and their children would have a family dinner at the grandparents’ home. Even though Edward was now in college and lived in an apartment, he would still attend Sunday family dinners. During these times, Sophie stayed glued to her father’s side out of fear of having to sit with her grandfather. Bill constantly tried to have her sit on his lap at these get-togethers, but she always refused. Her neediness, especially with her father, annoyed Marge, and she couldn’t understand what was wrong with her daughter.

Finally, Marge would say, “Sophie, what is wrong with you? You’re embarrassing me. Behave yourself and go sit down with your grandfather.”

Tired of constantly scolding her at the dinner table and wanting Sophie out of the way, Marge would punish her by telling her to go to the den to wait for them while they finished their dinner. Upon hearing her mother’s demand, Sophie cried as she went to the den. She hated the den. Not only was it dark, but it was where her grandfather had taken her many times over the last couple of years. What had happened there confused Sophie. Outside of the den, especially in the garden, her grandfather had always been kind and attentive towards her. But in the den, he turned into a different person and touched her in ways no one ever had, which made Sophie distrustful and unsure of him. The den was not a safe place for her.

Sophie wanted to erase these scary thoughts, so she gazed out the window into the fruit and vegetable garden. She daydreamed about the summer months she and her grandfather had spent there. Sophie couldn’t be happier in the yard and loved to help him tend the garden, which sometimes took all day. It covered most of the backyard and was about one-third of an acre in size. He grew every fruit and vegetable imaginable that could thrive in the Michigan climate. Sophie’s garden favorites were corn and raspberries, which she would bring inside to her grandmother to help clean and store them. Her grandmother’s favorite place in their home had been the kitchen. She loved to cook for her family and prepared their elaborate Sunday dinners most weeks. Sophie admired her grandmother’s cooking and baking skills, as she was a good cook and baker. Unfortunately, Sophie’s mother did not allow her in the kitchen. However, her grandmother taught Sophie some easy recipes and allowed her to prepare simple meals.

When her grandmother was home, Sophie felt safe and protected, but on the days when her grandmother had to work, and she was left alone with her grandfather, everything changed. He would refuse to let Sophie go to the garden even though she offered to clean and prepare the food herself. He would complain about not feeling well enough to work outside.

Sophie dreaded those days spent indoors,...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 18.8.2025
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Romane / Erzählungen
• ISBN-13: 979-8-3178-0421-3 / 9798317804213