Suffer the Little Children: Prologue

The angel cradles her charge, gently rocking, while tears stream down her face mixing with the silent tears of the child.1

The dove quietly sings its grievous song of mourning for the lost innocence of this precious tot.2

There is no peace this night.3

Extract taken from ‘There is no peace....’ 4

by Pamela Prentiss-Harrison5

6

Prologue7

The little girl was so very sleepy, yet she resisted the almost overwhelming urge to let her leaden eyelids fall shut.8

She sniffed once. 9

Her room smelt musty, old, unkempt, as if it hadn’t received a proper clean for a very long while. 10

Not since mummy and daddy… 11

The still raw pain of that thought halted its completion. 12

Listening, the child could hear faint, stray sounds occasionally drifting in from the world outside; the whispering wind that passed her window on its way to mischief; a lonely tree branch nudged in to a weary creaking sigh. 13

With her little face full of trepidation, she peered out over the top of the pulled up bedding in to the all-encompassing night inside her bedroom. She hoped against hope to find something, anything of comfort. But there was no comfort to be found in this place anymore.14

For this room had become the darkened tomb of her childhood. 15

She could see a hazed glow coming from distant street lamps. The ghostly yellow birthing twisted, grey shadows that slipped their way through the darkness. Ever moving, ever-hungry shadows, eating at the night, eating at the light, crawling their way in to her room from behind the lightly curtained window. 16

Through eyes that were emerald pools of liquid fright she watched those intruding shadow forms begin to writhe hideously across the floor. They squirmed across the walls, across the ceiling. From their vile perches they reached out to the child, grabbing at her. Icily bitter spirits they were, seeking to punish her for her sin of being alive. 17

She watched in mute horror as those wicked shadows clawed there way slowly, purposefully towards her. Closer they came, ever nearer. Her little mouth quivered in fear, wanting to cry out. But she stopped herself. 18

She had learned not to cry out.19

Suddenly, a shadowy tendril flew her way. 20

There came a tiny squeak of terror as she ducked down beneath the bed covers, curling herself up in to a tight little ball; the protective shield of bedding pulled around in a tender cocoon of warmth. 21

With breath suspended from fright, the child awaited the cruel shadow spirits attack. 22

And she waited. 23

And waited some more.24

Nothing happened.25

The whispered wind outside continued to make its way past her window. The distant suffering branch sighed vainly in to the night once more. 26

Maybe the monster won’t come for me…27

At this hopeful thought, she allowed the smallest light of relief to begin glowing within. Weighed down by the need for sleep, unable to fight the urge any longer, her heavy eyelids started to fall. And soon her mind began its welcome journey towards the place where dreams of better days awaited.28

‘BANG!’29

Her eyes flew open. 30

That small light of relief was instantly doused by an old, cold, smothering fear. 31

The sound had come from downstairs. It was soon followed by a couple of quieter more muffled banging noises. She knew all to well what they meant. She knew they came from the back door being slammed shut, from heavy work boots being roughly discarded. 32

She didn’t move so much as a millimetre for fear of making the slightest noise. 33

And for a few long minutes all was quiet. 34

‘THUD, THUD…’ 35

She flinched. 36

‘THUD, THUD, THUD…’37

These were the sounds of purposeful footsteps climbing the steep wooden staircase. 38

Her little heart pounded harder, faster in her chest, almost in a perfect unison with those ever-closing footsteps. She squeezed both eyes tightly closed as two tiny diamond tears escaped to her cheeks. 39

The footsteps had reached the top of the stairs. 40

They paused. 41

She hoped against hope they would turn right. 42

A couple of heartbeats later she heard them move again.43

No…44

They had turned left.45

She heard the evil squeak of the handle to her room being turned. 46

She heard the brushing whisper of her door being pushed slowly open across the old, worn carpet.47

She would pretend to be asleep. She would be as quiet as a little mouse, not so much as twitching a single whisker. And yet deep down she knew it would do her no good. She knew that once here it would want to play its unkind games.48

The monster had come for her.49

Please no…50

She heard the slow, steady footsteps approaching.51

Curled up in her beds motherly warmth, the little girl began to shiver from the new and dread cold within. 52

Every single time this monster had come, her frightened childish mind had called out silently for help. She had called for someone to come. For someone to make it stop. 53

But there was never any reply. 54

There had never been an answer to her many desperate pleas.55

And here it was again. It had returned. This thing she feared, this monster that played its bad games with her. She wished someone could hear her wordless cries for help. In the beginning she had believed they would. She had believed that someone would come for her. Her mummy had always told her that she would never be alone, that she would forever be watched over and cared for no matter what. All she had to do was to call out, and she would be heard. 56

But that was before. Before mummy and daddy had left her. Before the monster had taken her. Before her life had descended in to a seemingly bottomless well of despair. 57

She no longer believed in her mother’s words of comfort. 58

Her flame of innocence had almost burned itself out. 59

She knew no one would come. 60

She knew nothing could help her. 61

But what else was there for her to do? 62

And so, silently, hopelessly, her desperate mind called out once more, even though she expected nothing in return.63

Please, someone help me. The monster, it's gonna get me again…64

Only this time she thought she heard a faint reply.65

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