Read Online Defenseless by Adrianne Byrd - Free Book Online Page A

sentences on these horrendous crimes and put more officers on patrol,” came his confident reply.
    â€œSergeant Freeman, Sergeant Freeman…” the reporters chanted in unison.
    Dwayne switched off the television. “Law and order at its best,” he mumbled. Dwayne agreed that crime in Atlanta was at an all-time high, but Sergeant Freeman’s suggestions wouldn’t do much to stop it. It was just the department’s way to let the public know that they were aware of the situation. Nothing else. Who was going to follow up to see if there were more men patrolling an area than there were last month? Nobody. Just a lot of talk and no action. “Hold it right there, young lady!” Dwayne bellowed, catching a glimpse of his daughter sneaking down the stairs. “Just where do you think you’re off to dressed like that?”
    â€œLike what?” Bridget asked, her innocent face carefully in place.
    â€œThat dress is to short and too tight, for starters. And you have on entirely too much makeup.”
    â€œDaddy, this is the style—get with it. Besides, it’s the last day of school. All the girls are going to be dressed like this.”
    â€œYou’re not. Get upstairs and put on something decent!”
    â€œBut, Daddy—”
    â€œBridget Elizabeth Hamilton, you get upstairs this minute and put on some clothes. Not something too tight or anything so loose it’s hanging to your kneecaps. Do I make myself clear?”
    Bridget sucked in her breath and nodded angrily at her father.
    â€œAnd wash that junk off your face. No daughter of mine is running out of here looking like the red-light special on Hooker Avenue.”
    Bridget flew up the stairs to her room, but not before Dwayne noticed the bright tears that glistened in the corners of her eyes.
    â€œDamn!” He realized he’d been too tough on her. At the sound of her stereo blaring, he knew she wouldn’t open the door if he went to apologize. Teenagers, he thought. They should come with an instruction manual. He finished his coffee and went upstairs to get ready to attend Curtis Durden’s funeral.
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    Sonya changed seven times before deciding on her black pantsuit. What did it matter, anyway? She would probably be the only one there with a dry face. Who would notice? Laura had been crying since her release from jail. In the beginning, Sonya was sympathetic, but now she wished that her sister would start thinking about her pending case. Everything, it seemed, sent Laura in a crying frenzy. Last night, the cook made the mistake of making mashed potatoes and steak. It was the same dinner that Laura had prepared for her husband the night he was killed. The next thing Sonya knew, Laura was crying a river of tears. Now Richard Durden, Curtis’s brother, had showed up at her doorstep, insisting that he overlook the plans for Curtis’s funeral. Hell, she thought, I didn’t even know the bum had a family, and frankly, Sonya hadn’t started any proceedings to bury Curtis.
    Laura went out of her way to avoid Richard, saying that she couldn’t bear looking into those familiar dark eyes. Sonya believed it was all in Laura’s head, since she didn’t see any similarity. However, that really didn’t mean anything. People had for years told her that she and Laura looked nothing alike. The fact of the matter was Sonya took after her father, and Laura was the exact replica of their mother.
    Sonya always hated her looks. Even now, looking back at her reflection in the mirror, she hated the face that stared back at her. As much as she wanted to forget, she knew she would always remember…
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    â€œShh, be quiet,” a younger Sonya whispered to her six-year-old sister.
    Laura nodded her head, yet Sonya saw fear reflected in her eyes there. Their parents had been fighting for more than an hour, and their mother’s screams were growing louder by the second. There were