The Witch of White Lady Hollow by C. David Belt

Author:C. David Belt
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Ink Smith Publsihing

* * *

Beulah hugged herself and wept.

At the sound of her bedroom door opening, she curled into a fetal position and quieted her sobbing. But silent or not, tears continued to water the rumpled sheets of her bed. With one hand, she pulled the blanket more tightly around herself. With the other, she quickly and futilely attempted to flatten her puffy hair.

“Y’all did good, baby girl.” Her father’s voice came from the doorway. “Proud-a you. Praise Jesus, but y’all make me so proud.”

Go away. Please. Leave me be.

But she heard his footsteps approaching. “So proud.”

Ain’t I done enough tonight?

“He was very pleased, I’d say. Liked that cheerleader outfit o’ yours.”

Beulah felt his weight press down on the edge of the bed. “We’re talkin’ a six-station contract, baby girl. Six TV stations, carrying’ the word o’ God. Every Sunday. ’Course, only one’ll be live. The rest’ll be delayed a week. ‘Tape delay,’ he called it. My, what wonders the good Lord has wrought. All those souls comin’ to Jesus through the miracle of the boob tube. ‘A marvelous work and a wonder,’ indeed. Praise His holy name.”

Beulah felt his strong, heavy hand through the blanket as he rested it on her thigh.

She didn’t recoil.

She knew better.

It only gets worse if I flinch.

“So proud-a y’all.” He slid his hand down her leg. “’Course, I don’t much care for the sharin’. But what you did for that fellow? It sealed the deal. And we do what we must in the Lord’s holy callin’. But y’all’s mine, baby girl. Mine. The good Lord gave y’all to me. To comfort me.”

As he began to slide the blanket up her thigh, Beulah resisted the urge to clutch at the thin covering.

What the hell does it matter? Whore. Slut. Sleep with any boy I want. But when I want. When I choose. That makes a difference, doesn’t it?

Not this. Not you, Daddy. Not tonight. Not after you made me… Please! Ain’t I done enough?

“Yes, the Lord gave y’all to me. Like the daughters of Lot, preservin’ the seed o’ their father, when Lot’s wife abandoned him and became a pillar o’ salt. Y’all know the story, don’t y’all, baby girl? Don’t y’all?”

Whore. Filthy whore.

“Yes, Daddy. I remember.” I always remember. Every time.

“Then say it, baby girl. Say the holy words.”

And just as she had done so many, many times, she repeated the scripture, her voice as lifeless as the final exhalation of a corpse. “‘And the firstborn went in, and lay with her father.’”

As he unbuttoned his silk shirt, the Reverend Billy Martineau bowed his head in prayer. “Amen.”

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.