SOCIAL STUDIES, Book Two - Shattered and Broken - an excerpt

 SOCIAL STUDIES, BOOK TWO

SHATTERED AND BROKEN

An excerpt from one of twelve short stories - THE SILENT STAR - Page 177 - 179

The next thing I remember I woke up in a hospital bed. When I opened my eyes I could see that Father MacFarlane was there sitting in a chair next to me. "I'm sorry, my boy. Poor wee lad all alone in this world again."

It hurt my face when I tried to talk but I had to know. "Father, what do you mean alone in this world again? What happened Father?"

Just then the doctor came into the room. I saw the shake of the doctor's head and the sadness in Father MacFarlane's eyes. I didn't cry when he told me what had happened. I was frozen inside. I huddled deeper within and found the quiet spaces that lurked around outside my lonesome heart. I refused to let the pain come into my heart. I was the Silent Star. My ears burned when they received the words. "There was an accident, Andrew. Willy and Fiona are both in Heaven now, son, and they've taken young Gordon along with them."

Words failed me but the kindly priest must have been able to read my thoughts. He answered my question without me having to ask. "Catherine and Mary are here in the hospital. They will be okay, God willing, and so will you, son. So will you.

I don't know if I was okay or not but in time I was released from the hospital and placed in another foster home. I was nine years old, soon to be ten. Catherine and Mary were not there to help me celebrate my birthday when it finally rolled around. To this day I don't know where the girls are. I hope they are okay but it isn't something I ever asked about or talked about. I knew how to keep my thoughts to myself.

I was the only child in this new foster home. I don't know who made the decision to put me into the house with Ike and his wife, Marta. I don't know why this happened to me but it did. I lived with the old couple for five years until I was fourteen years old. That is when I was finally able to take things into my own hands and do something about what was going on in that godforsaken place.

Marta was a very wise woman; an old crone; a spiritual woman who inspired me to believe that there was purpose in all things. I guess she was kind of like a grandma to me because she was a lot older than the mothers of the other kids who attended my school.

I couldn't tell her what Ike was doing. How could I?

SOCIAL STUDIES, Book Two - SHATTERED AND BROKEN  is the second in a series of short story anthologies focused on social issues.  It is available with all my books on my Amazon author's page at https://amazon.com/author/audreyaustin or directly at https://www.amazon.ca/SOCIAL-STUDIES-Shattered-Broken-Eleven/dp/0978023897/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2YE2Q44JWIRHF&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.BHL2BIlsT2nos8agrwG9-t5_hnvwpopNBNTAtHilSCA.tJPQ5GQsS3Nl6k9kYqldIcN7xHScgS88TxgHA-Wb1h0&dib_tag=se&keywords=Audrey+Austin+social+studies+book+two&qid=1768922246&s=books&sprefix=audrey+austin+social+studies+book+two%2Cstripbooks%2C132&sr=1-1