Dark Heart

Simi's world came crashing down when her father joined a new club. Will she ever be able to escape what she fears the most, her future self?

It is 1:30 am in the morning, 24 years old Simi sat down on her prison bed recalling how she ended up here. Simi has been sent to a private separate prison cell away from other prisoners because of her rough unpredictable behavior. Simi blames her father for her present state but deep down she never expected to turn out like her father because she never wanted it...she never imagined she will turn into a monster like her father. That was exactly how she saw him while growing up. A monster!

11 YEARS AGO

Thirteen years old Simi stared outside her window watching the rain pour down heavily and wondered where her mom was. Her parents has had a fight about something and it ended up in her mom been sent away from the house in the middle of the night under the pouring rain. Going to the sitting room where her father sat sleeping on the rocking chair she tried to wake him up to beg that her mom be called back to the house but her father ignored her pleas.

Simi hated the fact that her father treated her mother like this, but there was nothing she could do about it she was the only child and she had no one to talk to. She ended up staying up all night begging her father before finally falling into a troubled sleep at the dawn of the day.

The next day at school, in class Simi finds it hard to focus on what her teacher is saying because she keeps remembering what happened last night. She pictured her mother coming back home meeting her father who was still angry and decided to take his anger out on her again.

"Simi Simi!" her friend Rosy shook her trying to get her attention....."What are you thinking about" Rosy asked....Simi just ignored her friend and gave her a smile to let her know everything was okay with her. Even though Rosy was Simi's best friend she couldn't tell her what was going on in her house her parents forbade it. Her parents were well known in the community so if people got a wind of what was happening at home, it will be a disgrace to the family name.

Simi never expressed any emotion or behavior that may seem that everything is not okay at home. She did well at school and interacted with people in a normal way but at home she wore a different face.

"Ding dong" the school bell rang indicating that school was over...anxious to know what was happening at home Simi rushed out of the class to get home.

As she approached the front door of her house, Simi felt her heart beating fast, hands and legs shaking as she walked to her front door to unlock it....As he unlocked the door, listened to see if she would hear any shouting or things breaking or a loud sound that indicated her parents were fighting. When she heard nothing, she got curious and an unpleasant thought ran through her mind. Simi quickly dismissed it and opened the door.

Simi walked to the kitchen and saw her mother cooking. Simi greeted her mother and as her mother came forward to hug her, she saw the black eye her father gave her from the previous night.  Simi's mother served Simi her food and then told her that she waited till her father went out to work then she came back home....Simi smiled just to comfort her mother, but she knew in her mind that she won't have another good night rest tonight because her father will be furious that her mother is back home without his permission. 

Simi couldn't remember the last time she had a peaceful family it seems all her life her parents have been fighting. The loud noises, hitting are made by her father while the screaming and crying are usually done by her mother...she remembered when her father started getting physical with her mother. It was after he joined a club which consisted of men. Simi remembered one day, her father took her to one of the meetings and when she went downstairs to eavesdrop on them, she heard a man saying something about disciplining your wife...she didn't understand what the man meant then but now she does.

Its 9:30pm and as the darkness drew nigh, Simi knew her father will soon be back.... praying that nothing happens tonight she heard a knock on the door and ran to open it. Her father stood there with a male friend of his this made Simi happy because it means if any trouble happens her father's friend will be able to help and also separate her parents if they tried fighting.

Simi quietly went into her room after greeting her father and his visitor. Just as she was about to close her door she heard her father say in a loud voice "what are you doing back here woman". She then heard footsteps which she imagined to be her father's footstep rushing to her mother to probably hit her. Simi stood there holding her breath and was glad when she heard her father's friend voice "stop it calm down you don't need to hit your wife".  Simi’s parents stayed up most of the night talking with the visitor who tried to resolve their differences. After that night, her parents were peaceful once again.

Weeks passed without Simi's parents having a fight although they had little quarrels but it didn't escalate. Until late one night as Simi slept she heard a loud sound it was the balcony door that was slammed. She quickly jumped out of the bed and ran to her mother's room to find out what was going on. She found the room messed up, things were scattered around, the bed was torn and she could see traces of blood on the bed wood. Scared and unable to breath she walked outside and found her mother pinned down at a corner with her father above her delivering series of blows and slaps to her face. Simi rushed forward and tried to stop her father from inflicting further pain to her mother but he looked at her with bloodshot eyes and pushed her away.

So, Simi ran outside the house and screamed for the neighbors to help her...."help me help me" Simi screamed with tears running down her face. But no one came to her rescue...returning to the house she saw her mother fighting her father back trying to get away..."please stop it" Simi cried trying to come between her parents "Simi get out of here her father roared "so you support your mother having boyfriends and them calling her late in the night"...as her father spoke, her mother used the chance to escape further pain and ran out of the house.

"Simi" her father called for her two days later after the horrible night "tell me about the man your mother has been seeing". Simi knew who the man was, but she also knew that if she told her father she knew the man she will be in trouble and her father might not allow her mother to return. So instead she told him "I don't know any man"...Simi's father looked at her not believing her. Then, with a calm voice he told Simi of how her mother challenged him and how rebellious she was he also called her lots of bad names. He then told Simi that she shouldn't grow up to be like her mother because if her husband decides to hit her he will support her husband so she should always be an obedient wife to her husband.

Simi thought about what her father said and prayed that none of it happens to her. She also thought about her mother, she knew the reason why her mother stayed and endured the beatings and curses from her father were because of her. She knew her mother would never allow only her father to bring her up. Simi felt bad for her mother and she wished that she could something.

It was a bright Saturday morning and even though Simi’s mother was not back to the house, Simi had little peace because her father was out of the house. As Simi stood in her room looking outside the window, her phone rang. Looking at the caller id it showed "mom"....excited Simi answered the phone. Her mom asked her if her father was around to which Simi told her no, her mother told Simi to prepare because she and Mr. Tee were coming to take her out. Simi quickly prepare and waited for her mother she hasn't seen her mother for two weeks after she ran away to escape her father. Simi knew that her mother was safe with Mr. Tee.

Mr. Tee was the man that took care of her mother, Mr. Tee has been trying to get Simi's mother to marry him and move in with him but, she declined because of Simi.... she knew if she moved in with Mr. Tee, Simi's father will never allow her to take Simi.

"Why don't we go get ice cream" Simi suggested as they drove to the museum...Simi liked hanging out with her mother and Mr. Tee. Mr. Tee was a nice man he was sweet and caring towards Simi and her mother. Simi made sure she had fun in this outing..... She laughed, and tried to forget about her worries as she spent time with her mother and her friend. After Simi got home, she went to her room to do her assignment and waited for her father to come home. A knock on the door indicated her father was home...he looked tired and Simi thought this was good because it means that he won't ask her any question or whine about how her mother was a bad person.

The next day was a weekend her father has still not said anything about her mother returning home so Simi decided to speak up and ask him but she only got a sound slap as an answer...going to her room to cry she called her mother and told her what happened...her mother comforted her and told her not to ask him that she is going to be at the house in the evening with her father's brothers so they will settle the matter. Simi knew that will only work out for a little while and then her parents will start fighting again. She knew her father was a hard man that was influenced by the club meetings he goes to also, he was a quick tempered person and her mother was a woman who liked to challenge him because she also want her opinion to be heard.

Simi's life remained the same till the day she went to college...she was really scared about leaving her parents alone together because she feared that the worst will happen. The worst did happen the news reached Simi and she came rushing home to find out that her father had gave her mother a sound beating because she came home late one night and her mother couldn't take it anymore she tried to pack her things and move out finally but her father refused and then beat her to death he was arrested.

Going to the prison to see her father Simi felt no pity for him she was happy he was away where he won't hurt anyone again. Simi mourned her mother and wished she was home when it all happened. Somehow, she thought her presence would have made a difference. She could have separated them as usual and given her mother a chance to leave the house.

Simi began having nightmares about her horrible childhood....she could always hear her mother crying she could see the beating marks on her body. Simi didn't have a happy life in college until she met Nate the love of her life....at first Simi expected Nate to be like her father because she has grown up to believe that all men where like that but Nate proved to be different he was the sweetest guy in the world he knew about Simi's past and tried to make her safe. Happiness started to return to Simi's life once again...she finished college, got a job and got married to Nate.

"Cheers, to our fourth anniversary" Simi said to Nate in the Italian restaurant where they dined. Getting home the phone rang it was the prison telling Simi that her father had gotten into a fight with a prison guard and was killed in the process. Simi didn't feel anything for him in her heart he deserved it she started to think if maybe she had killed him all those years then her mother would have still been alive she could have had a happy childhood with her mom and Mr. Tee.

Later that week, a phone call came for Nate....Simi answered it and the woman at the other end accused Nate of cheating on her....Simi asked who she was the woman said she was Nate's wife....Simi felt her heart drop the love of her life wasn't the love of her life anymore. She waited for him to get home and then told him what happened. Nate looked surprised and told her he didn't know what she was talking about because he has never been married before but Simi didn't believe him and she then slapped him and accused him of cheating on her Nate tried to explain to her but she was too angry to listen. Simi felt her blood boiling her anger sky rocketed in a swift moment she thought about how she has been a perfect wife to Nate she never challenged him like her mother did her father so she couldn't understand why he would do something this horrible to her. She had tried as much as possible not to be the person her mother or father was.

She went into the kitchen picked up a knife and stabbed Nate where he stood going through the phone records. She then went into their room and picked up Nate's baseball bat and smashed his head continuously after that she felt her heart turn black she had turned into the monster her father was. Simi’s eyes were bloodshot as she felt a new feeling of darkness come over her. It seems as if the years she spent trying to avoid the darkness she experienced suddenly took hold over her.

Simi later found out that Nate's younger sister was playing a prank on her. She was the one that called. Nate never had another wife...Simi thought that if only she had waited to hear Nate's explanation, maybe she won't have killed him but she couldn't help it, the anger that came over her was just too much she felt betrayed that the first guy she loved will hurt her.

BACK TO THE PRESENT

Simi knew she should have known that one day she will become like her father, because even though she never wanted to become her father directly, indirectly she learnt her father's ways because she has been exposed to violence many times and she never got a chance to talk about it to anyone even her mother who she was close too. And now after killing the love of her life there was no going back her heart has turned dark forever.

Author's Note

Any feedback you have is very much welcomed and appreciated