1st page of my novel

In the Silent Darkness January 1977 Suspended in a hazy place in time, eyelids heavy as the morning fog over the bay, senses not quite awake, the young girl stirred. Far from her comfortable warm bed, her bare foot scraped along a dirt floor. A damp, penetrating cold surrounded her, creeping deep into her bones. Her mind searched in those last frantic moments before waking. What’s going on here? Rubbing her eyes and moving around as she did most mornings, she found things were wrong. All wrong, in fact. Her sheets must have come off in the night. Moaning, with her first tenative movements, she fumbled for the blankets to cover her ice-cold arms. Finding none puzzled her only to a degree. As she shifted, every muscle cried out as if she fought evil spirits in her sleep. Perplexed at the dirt collecting under her fingernails, her eyes fluttered open again trying harder to shake the morning cobwebs loose. Then, a feeling of dread flooded her heart. Piecing together fragments of the previous day brought some clarity to her morning horror. She was not tucked safely in her bed having a nightmare. Oh God. It’s not my imagination. I’m really awake. It wasn’t a dream. Panic, oh I can’t panic. What do I do now? What mother could lock their eleven-year- old in the cellar? Why? Why me? Am I really so horrid? Does anyone know I am here? When will she let me out? Wont they miss me at school? Oh God, please let this be over soon. I’m afraid. Tripping and fumbling many times in the darkness, not a speck of light to guide her, she half-walked, half-crawled along the rough cement wall to connecting wall of the single car garage. In less than a moment, her elation over finding the rough, wooden doorway in her dark hell-hole, was replaced. A hurried examination of the padlocked door found it secure as expected. Turning around she’d almost stumbled over the bottom stair leading up to the kitchen. No chance she’d get out that route. She’d heard the lock engage last night. Right then, a biting cold set in every muscle and joint as if the warmth had been sucked up the stairs with Kathryn’s final slam of the door. Still the optimist, she’d crept toward the steps several times, only to stop on the first or second step, gasping for air, fear causing her to hyperventilate. The only other way out, through a side door, seemed miles away. Not a sliver of light illuminated her path to freedom. Shoving, kicking and pulling at the door proved fruitless. It had been blocked. Always thorough, her mother, Kathryn left nothing to chance. Unable to escape, Beth shifted her focus to lighting up her private hellhole. Finding the string to the only light in absolute darkness had been an achievement. Oh thank God. Light. The devastation nearly knocked her over when the peaceful yellow glow didn’t appear. Feeling around on her tiptoes she’d discovered the bulb missing. You rotten bitch! Each frantic beat of her heart pulsed above her right brow. Ker-thump. Ker-thump. Tears welled up in her eyes. Struggling to control her emotions she let her mind travel back to the last few words her mother screamed at her in those brief seconds before slamming the door. “I will not have a common criminal living in my house!” “But… but…” “Criminals regularly served time in dungeons. I sentence you to the dungeon. Remove your clothing. Everything but your panties and tee shirt.” Sobbing uncontrollably she’d stripped down to her underclothes. For the first hour she’d thought her mother would break down. No, not in Kathryn's world. She would open the door when she was good and ready and not before. After waiting for her mother for what seemed like hours, Beth gave up waiting, she slumped down on the ground, began talking to herself and ended up crying herself to sleep. No. Kathryn had been deadly serious. She’d carefully laid out rules for Beth as the resident criminal: Absolutely no noise, no attempts to escape and of course, Bethcould never mention this “punishment” to a living soul. Beth knew trying anything would yield nothing but serious regret. For now, with no plan to escape, and no idea how long she would be imprisoned in a darkness deeper than midnight, her heart and thoughts raced as it slowly sunk in. I need to go to the bathroom. I hurt everywhere. I’m starving. God, are you there? I’m so afraid. Please help me. Her empty stomach growled. Sitting as still as a stone monument, she heard noises above her. She strained to hear, yet could distinguish nothing more than mumbles. The silence began to work on her, stealing pieces of her soul, draining away her confidence, her strength, and her convictions. Frustration and rage erupted inside her. Terror and adrenaline coursed through her veins. Frantic and discouraged, she plunked onto the dirt floor. A peculiar musty smell wafting up as the dirt settled. A smell she already hated. Alone, she rocked and whimpered, her face buried in her hands. Warm salty tears slid down her scratched and tender skin. Trapped in the silent darkness, her body shuddered. end Technorati Tags:WIP, 1st page