The Cellar - S01 E20

6 months ago

The Cellar - S01 E20

Read Story: SEASON 1 EPISODE 20

Clover

(flashback from Clover's past)

Clover's POV

I sat on the floral sofa reading the news paper and trying to ignore the sound of shouting and banging coming from the cellar downstairs. The dirty prostitute hadn't stopped screaming since last night and I was getting really agitated now, Mum wouldn't be home for a while though. She started keeping them for a day or two last month, she liked dragging it out, hearing them beg for days before we finally finished it.

I glanced up at my one and only birthday card, surrounded by vases of fresh flowers. Yesterday was my twentieth birthday. Mum made it special; we spent half of the day as a normal family but she couldn't keep it up long, by seven o'clock at night we were out on the street getting that screaming bitch downstairs.

The front door opened and I stiffened, she was home but not alone. I heard muffled screams and the sound of something smashing on the floor. I jumped up and ran out in the hall. My Mother was pushing another girl roughly through the house; she smiled almost warmly as she saw me.

"Deal with this, Colin," she said emotionlessly as she shoved the girl towards me and walked off upstairs, probably to bed.

The girl looked young, much younger than usual. She was crying and begging me with her eyes to let her go. I held her still and just stared at her for a minute, she was beautiful, surely she wasn't a prostitute? I pulled her into the kitchen and made her sit at the table.

"What's your name? And how old are you?" I questioned, standing above her in case she decided to try and run.

"H-Hayley," she whispered, "I'm seventeen." I clenched my jaw and tried not to show any reaction.

"Where did she find you?"

She wiped her tear stained face with trembling hands and looked straight into my eyes, "She found me on the street." She was a prostitute.

"What are you doing on the street at seventeen?" I growled, feeling the anger building. They're getting younger.

"I-I don't want to, he m-makes me." She was sobbing so hard I could barely hear what she was saying. I rubbed my forehead roughly. We couldn't hurt her if she didn't want this, if it was forced on her.

"What the fuck is she doing in my kitchen," Mum screamed, glaring murderously at Hayley. I unconsciously moved so I was blocking my Mum's view of her. Why do I feel so protective of her? Mum's eyes snapped to mine. "What was that?" she spat, her hands shaking in anger.

I held my hands up trying to calm her down so I could talk to her for a minute. "It was nothing. I just found something out, someone is forcing her into this, she doesn't want to. We can't do this, can we just let her go," I said pleadingly.

Her eyes seemed to turn darker. I ignored Hayley's crying and concentrated on my Mother. "She's still one of them, a dirty bitch! You deal with her," she said with an evil smile, knowing I wanted to let her go.

I turned and looked at Hayley who was crying and shaking her head. "Please no," she sobbed. "I won't tell anyone I promise, just let me go. I'll leave town, get away from him and I won't do it again I swear." I wanted that for her, I wanted her to get out but how can I get her out of here first? "Please, please."

"Stop begging," Mum shouted, slapping Hayley across the face making her cry out in pain.

"Enough," I said sternly. Mum looked furious that I'd spoke to her like that; I'd never answered her back or raised my voice to her before but I couldn't help it. I lowered my head so I wasn't looking at her; she was going to make me pay for that.