Chapter 451

Fred got up from his seat and walked over to Sharon before she had a chance to start crying. It was times like these, when she was thinking of her past, she could not control her emotions.

He said, "Girls, would you leave us alone for a few minutes."

Sandy ran up to her room with Cindy inches behind her. Debbie and Danni were in Sandy's room seconds later.

Sandy cried, "Why am I so stupid. I never meant to hurt mom, but I did. How could I do that to her? How could I dredge up those hurtful memories?"

Cindy leaned down against her sister, and tried to console her. "I was 16 years old, and dad was hitting mom. I was old enough to say something, or to do something about it. I was so frightened of him, I did nothing. I was so ashamed of myself; I went into our closet and cried, because I was a coward."

Debbie said, "Cin, you are not the only one. Danni and I hid also. We are only one year younger than you are, and cou