Noel slowly raised his eyes to her. A part of him desperately wanted to tell her the truth. His injury hadn't come from a fall at all. It was Danica who had hit him.
That day, she had returned home in a terrible mood. She yelled at him nonstop, calling him useless, blaming him for his father's absence. She said it was his fault that his daddy never came to see them.
Noel didn't understand what he had done wrong or why that made his father stay away.
Then came the moment that still frightened him.
Danica had grabbed a wooden ruler and struck him with it. Noel had tried to protect himself, lifting his arms instinctively, but the blow landed hard on his forearm. Days had passed since then, yet the pain still hadn't gone away.
He hesitated. 'Can I really tell her?' he thought. 'Would she truly keep her word?'
If Danica ever found out that he had told someone about that day, the punishment would be far worse. The fear made his chest tighten.
