A Child Called "It" (Dave Pelzer, #1)

by Dave Pelzer

Finally, she asked me if Mom ever beat me. Before answering, I looked up at Mother, who smiled politely. I felt as though a bomb had exploded deep in the pit of my stomach. I thought I would throw up. It had suddenly occurred to me why Mother had changed the day before; why she had been so nice to me. I felt like a fool because I had fallen for it. I was so hungry for love that I had swallowed the whole charade.

When I fell asleep, my soul became consumed in a black void. I no longer awoke in the mornings refreshed; I was tired and told myself that I had one day less to live in this world.

I simply told myself that I wasn’t going to take anybody’s crap anymore.

I felt as if I were a man on death row, not knowing when my time would come.