No Spring Can Undo This Winter

The internet went up in flames.

"Shameless, honestly! Bad enough she gets special treatment, but this cruel on top of it?"

"I heard she bullied her own sister every single day. Drove her to the point she couldn't take it anymore."

"Ran over her own sister over a birthday present? Her heart must be made of stone."

Every comment was uglier than the last.

They locked me in a detention cell.

My parents watched them take me away, their eyes cold, like they were looking at a stranger. Not once, from start to finish, did they speak up for me.

I was pushed into a cramped little cell.

It was cold and damp, black on every side, my hand finding no wall when I reached out.

When we were kids, Flora pulled a prank and shut me in the basement for eight straight hours. That time my heart nearly stopped.

The old fear came flooding back, and I huddled in the corner, shaking uncontrollably.

I don't know how long it was before Edmund came.

Light stabbed in, and I lifted a hand on reflex to shield my eyes.

His voice was cold.

"Effie Pruitt, you hurt Flora. You should pay the price."

I was trembling all over, terrified he'd leave me alone in here.

"Edmund, I was wrong… once I'm out I'll apologize to Flora to her face, I'll do anything you want… please don't leave me in here, I'm scared of the dark…"

When he'd heard me out, he suddenly let out a laugh, like he'd just heard the biggest joke in the world.

"Enough, drop the act. You pulled all this, and now you're putting on a show for who? Sit in there and reflect for a few days."

My throat closed up, my voice so hoarse it was barely there.

"You used to say you'd protect me. Was all of that just a lie?"

He paused, his voice lower than before.

"Effie, you did something wrong. Taking some punishment is only fair. You'll be out in a few days anyway. Look after yourself."

He turned and left, and the light vanished again.

I curled up in the corner, tears falling without a sound.

I thought that was as bad as it could get.

But I was moved to another cell, and the women I was housed with fixed their sights on me.

They beat me until my head was split and bleeding.

And kicked three of my ribs until they broke.

"Let me be straight with you. Somebody on the outside told us to take real good 'care' of you!"

I clenched my fists, hatred surging up in me.

Edmund, I hate you.

The guards came in once, said I started it, said I had it coming.

With broken ribs, all I could do was lie stiff on the floor, unable even to turn over, kept awake by the pain at night.

For seven whole days, I barely closed my eyes.

Only when my body gave out completely did they carry me out and take me to a hospital.

I lay in the hospital bed, and my phone screen lit up.

"Heard you're out. Come apologize to Flora and we'll put this behind us. She's soft-hearted, she doesn't blame you anymore."

I looked at that line, and a sharp pain shot through my ribs.

I didn't reply with a single word. I just blocked him.

Not long after, my advisor called. The Western program was going ahead as planned, and my place hadn't changed.

But I had to leave immediately.

I gritted my teeth and pulled the IV out of the back of my hand.

Got dressed, called a car, and headed straight for the airport.

I brought nothing. My backpack held only my ID and my phone.

Before boarding, I threw the phone straight into a trash can.

On Edmund's end, after that message went out, there was never any reply.

He waited three days. Nothing.

He went to the Pruitt house to ask, and they said I'd never come home.

My roommate said I'd cleared out all my things and never shown up again.

He started to feel something was wrong, and turned and went to the department office.

"Excuse me, has Effie Pruitt completed her enrollment paperwork for the university? Where is she now?"

The teacher looked up at him, pushed his glasses up.

"She gave up on the university ages ago. You didn't know?"