Forgotten Lie

Written for https://lifeafter50forwomen.com/category/what-do-you-see/

‘You okay?’

‘Yea,’ Mandy said, peering into a perfect pristine coating.

Twenty years, where the reason for running felt hollow as a forgotten lie. Hauling her duffel bag over her shoulder, she stopped. She scratched at her red cheeks; the wind biting into her face. A few steps, and she would be home.

‘I get you’re nervous, but you’ve spoken on the phone. Mum wants you to visit. Explain why it was so difficult to leave Dad. She was terrified of him. We both were.’

‘What if …’

‘She doesn’t blame you, neither do I.’

‘It was awful watching. Being bullied, her excuses for the latest bruise blamed on the door. I should have stayed, like you, perhaps persuaded her to do the right thing.’

‘Not sure, that’s the honest … I thought, if I were there, stood up to him, he would stop.’

‘What happened? I mean, not the story you told the police.’

‘He drank too much … as usual … I couldn’t let him hurt her.’

‘Never again,’ she said.

She strode into the snow, the footprints in the white leaving no trace of his admission. Her mum was finally safe, and they would look after her together.