A Day After Tomorrow

A DAY AFTER TOMORROW

Based on a true-life story...

A DAY AFTER TOMORROW

Based on a true-life story...

Cindy Massey-Hicks

Copyright © 2017 Cindy Massey-Hicks

Published by Cindy Massey-Hicks Publishing at Smashwords

First edition 2017

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or any information storage or retrieval system without permission from the copyright holder.

The Author has made every effort to trace and acknowledge sources/resources/individuals. In the event that any images/information have been incorrectly attributed or credited, the Author will be pleased to rectify these omissions at the earliest opportunity.

Published by Author using Reach Publishers’ services,

P O Box 1384, Wandsbeck, South Africa, 3631

Printed and bound by Novus Print Solutions

Edited by Frankie Kartun for Reach Publishers

Cover designed by Reach Publishers

Website: www.reachpublishers.co.za

E-mail: reach@webstorm.co.za

Disclaimer

Although this is a true-life story based on actual events, names have been changed to protect the privacy and identity of individuals involved.

Introduction

I chose to write this novel, not only because of what I have been through and experienced in my life, but in the hope that it may help someone else who may be going through, or who has endured similar or other hardships in their own life, or perhaps help to change a person’s heart toward an experience that he or she simply can’t let go of.

Life is not easy, nor do we get a manual of what to expect in life, or how to deal with certain events that happen, but what we do have is Hope. I believe the richest blessing is family and special friends who choose never to leave your side, who empathise with the emotions you experience and love unconditionally.

Firstly, I give the Glory to my King, Jesus Christ, Who called me by name, who writes down the days of each and every person’s life. There were times I turned my back on Him, but He stood by my side. His Grace is sufficient for me and I live for Him. I am humbled by His Love, His Truth and the realisation that the King of Kings loves me unconditionally, no matter what happens or how I have dealt with my past. His Mercy is renewed every day.

Acknowledgements

I have been blessed with both precious family and special friends.

To my father and mother: Thank you. Thank you for loving me the way you do. You have been my support and strength throughout my life. I love you both so much and there will never be enough words to describe how blessed I am to have you as my parents. You never gave up on me, not once. In your own moments of fatigue, you encouraged me to go on, your love strengthened me, your jokes and laughter kept me sane and gave me peace to sleep at night. Dad and Mom, I honour you and love you both with all my heart.

To my beautiful children: It has been an honour to have you as my children. In you alone is proof of how awesome our God truly is. He chose me to be your mother. I live for you. I live my life to protect you forever and to teach you the Love of Christ, who gave us life. May your lives always be full of laughter – above everything that we pray for, my hope is that you never forget how to laugh, from the pit of your tummy – for joy will always be your true strength!

To my beautiful sister, my brother-in-law and your three gorgeous children: I love you more than you will ever know. You have been my rock and support. Your help, your devotion, your kindness, your support, words of wisdom and prayers have taught me so much. Your values as a family have given me the reason to strive to be the best mother I can possibly be to my own children.

To my awesome brother: You have been my ‘safe place’ when times were tough. In my moments of loneliness, I was often reminded of our nights out in our ‘younger days’ and wondered what you were up to. Those thoughts would just comfort me with a huge smile. Thank you for the visits, the phone calls, the messages and just being you – I love you!

To my ‘other family’ – my friends: There are too many names to mention, but each of you know who you are. You made me realise my worth as a friend to each of you, because you never gave up on me. Your encouragement lifted me up on my good and bad days. My life has been full, with all of you being a part of my journey. I have known some of you almost all my life, and then there are my few new friends who have known me for only a short while. Words can’t describe my gratitude to you all, but I hope my actions will always remind you of how special you are to me.

And finally to my darling husband: As long as we persevere and endure, we can get anything we want. We need to go through the shockingly hard times in order to rise from the ashes. You sent me these words when we became friends. Little did I (or we) realise, those words would become our reality in the future. Thank you for being a part of my walk for so long. You never left my side. My rock, my place of peace, and the laughter we share – you held me up, you walked with me, even when we never realised it. I thank the Lord for you each day. I thank you for taking care of me, and loving me and our family the way that you do. My partner, my lover, my best friend – my husband. You inspired me to complete this novel, and I will always be grateful to you for that and for never letting go of us. You have my heart, always and forever.

Thank you, Lord, for Your Love and Your Promise, which has never been left void.

Chapter 1

The sky was grey and it was a cool afternoon as Leah stood patiently, waiting to greet and wish her grandfather happy birthday. As she stood looking up at him while he was working on the roof, she called to him to hurry up, otherwise his party would start without him! At twelve years old, Leah was maturing and her body was changing into that of a young woman. After a few more yells, he eventually put down his tools and hurried down the ladder to greet his granddaughter. He kissed her on the lips and hugged her, but the hug did not end. As he leaned forward to kiss her again, he opened his mouth and kissed her as lovers would kiss, with passion. He just looked at her, as she stared at him in silence, not sure how to respond. As she stood there awkwardly, just looking at him, he whispered to her, Let that be our little secret, okay? Being immature and not wanting to offend anyone, she decided to keep the secret and then left him to go and play with her cousins.

After the lunch and birthday festivities were over, he decided to go back outside.

Leah, come with me. I want to show you the chicken hock I’m busy building.

She ran out to meet him so as not to offend him, while her cousins continued playing, and the two of them walked toward the hock. He worked hard for an old man and took pride in everything he did. As some of the other cousins met up with them, he made every effort to exclude them from the exclusive grandfather-granddaughter tour. Eventually he had her on his own once more. There was no one else around, just him and his 12-year old granddaughter. As he leaned forward to meet her lips again, his tongue entered her mouth. His hands slid down the little shirt that she was wearing and his actions started gaining momentum. He was not letting her go. Leah stood frozen. This was clearly not happening, but in reality it was. In her mind, all she could think was, This is our secret. After a few minutes, or what felt like a lifetime, he stopped and walked away, as the sounds of the other children had intervened with his actions and Leah hurriedly walked back to the house, alone.

Her mother was in the lounge, chatting to the family and enjoying the afternoon. Never in a thousand years would she have imagined what had just happened moments before to her daughter. As Leah went and sat at her mother’s feet, she heard her grandfather’s voice as he entered the house. He did not care to sit down, he was not too interested in his family, who had come to share his special day with him. He seemed agitated. Leah rested her head against her mother’s legs and waited for him to leave the room. She didn’t want to get up to go and play outside, but remained near her mother, where she felt safe and secure. A little while later, Leah’s sister came running in to call her. She got up and followed her sister outside. The children seemed happy and carefree, the garden was any child’s paradise and the kids were having a great time. However Leah, could not stop thinking about what had happened to her. No man had ever touched her like that before. No man had ever made her feel so frightened. But she could not tell anyone, after all, it was a secret, and a secret is meant to be kept safe and hidden forever.

By late afternoon, it was time to go home and Leah could see her mother and father getting their things together to say goodbye. As she went to say goodbye to everyone, the person standing last in line was her grandfather. Nervously, she put her arms around him to say goodbye, clearly he could not do anything while there were so many people standing around, but he did. As she leaned in to hug him, his hands swooped up to fondle her little breasts. She could hear him groan and his action towards her was engaged and fierce.

As time went on, and visits to her grandparent’s house became more regular, the alone moments with him increased. Leah was always being called to see one thing or another that he was busy doing around the house. His hands were constantly on her little body somewhere, his mouth would invade her little face with kisses that were lingering and sickening in his passion. Whenever he could not hear the other children, or could not be seen, his hands would be on her, touching her wherever he could. His whispers were discreet and his eyes fierce as he touched her and looked into her eyes.

Remember, this is our secret. You are my favourite and I don’t want anyone to know about our secret, okay? You don’t want your cousins not liking you because I love you more, do you Leah?

Leah hated him. The scent that lingered on his body, repulsed her. His unshaven face hurt the soft skin on her face, his hands were always dirty, as he was always working on his house, with cars, or in the garden, and the white part of his eyes were grey. Everything about the visits to her grandparent’s house was becoming a living nightmare for her. His rough hands hurt her as they wandered over her little body, but he was determined to continue with his newfound pursuit. After all, no one would find out and Leah, he knew, would not tell. His son would never stop visiting him and, as his grandchildren were all still so young, Leah would be included in the visits for several more years to come.

One Saturday afternoon Leah’s mother came to tell her to get ready. We are going to visit Ma and Pa for tea.

Please, Mom, Leah replied, can I rather stay home? It’s so boring there.

Her mother would not hear of it, she was far too young to stay home alone.

I understand there’s not much to do there. Pack some puzzles and toys for you, your sister and brother, so you don’t get bored, but we can’t leave you at home on your own. I will talk to your father so that we don’t stay out too late.

Leah packed every game she possibly could to entertain her siblings and keep them with her in the lounge, so that they could all play together.

When they arrived, her grandmother and grandfather greeted them with broad smiles and hugs. Leah stayed close to her mother’s side, but she could not hide under her wing throughout the visit. She kept a close eye on her grandfather’s whereabouts, however, until the call came, Leah, come walk with me outside. I want to show you the new chickens. They have been laying so many eggs. Let’s go and look for some.

Leah did not respond.

Leah!

As Leah remained in the lounge, he came in to call her. She could not ignore him now.

I really don’t feel like it, she said. I will look next time we come to visit.

As she looked back at him, he stared at her with his grey eyes. He was ugly. He walked passed her and sat in a chair in the lounge. The adults chatted and her grandmother went into the kitchen to make tea. Leah followed her into the kitchen. She loved the gorgeous smell of baked biscuits. Her grandma loved baking and cooking, it was her known trademark amongst the family. As Leah sat in the kitchen sorting out the tea cups and plates, they spent time talking about all the different biscuits her gran had baked during the week. Then Leah stood up and asked, What’s that you’ve got in the pot on the stove?

It’s butternut soup! her gran responded. But your daddy doesn’t like butternut or pumpkin, so we won’t tell him! she added, laughing quietly.

She was a kind old lady, very quiet and softly-spoken, but Leah always enjoyed their friendly chats and hearing the enthusiasm in her grandmother’s voice when it came to baking and cooking.

They carried the trays through to the lounge, handed out biscuits and returned to the kitchen, where she sat with her