Souls of Sisters (Chapter 1: Shattered in Silence)

Strip

Strip away all shades of me, use me as droplets of your imagination

diluting your pockets of all capital inflation, I strain to be worthy

of the instrumentals playing between your legs

mastering beats of pleasure more explicit than bedroom escapades.

I esteem self-made scenes, fading inhibitions

wasting by my unperfected climax, I seek for favors of love

by rhythmic anatomy swaying on cold steel to hard floors

formed through years of meticulous labor, men pleasing

trips of fantasy-flayed geographic maps folded in my nakedness

I disrobe every marker that bridges the walls of my dam

flowing uninterrupted rivers of sin, for you I strip.

Neveah performed her first routine on stage as an old classic strip-joint anthem played in the background. Friday paydays were always the most profitable day of the week, men flocked in cashing their checks and indulging in the fantasy of pretty faces and nice assets. Neveah effortlessly attracted attention and money, as if her brokenness could heal the holes inside the men. The venue was packed, with people standing because there were no additional seats. Neveah's evening was already a success, with three private dances booked and two VIP events scheduled. As Neveah performed a side split, the crowd erupted, showering dollars onto the stage. Neveah twirled into a demi grand plie and sank to the floor slowly, taking the money into her mouth as she flicked her hair seductively. She knew even on slow nights she could walk away with almost a thousand dollars. As she finished her performance, the owner motioned for her to come to his office.

"What is it?" she asked. "Can't this wait? I need to cash in my money and, I gotta get to my first booking."

With a look of distress, Steve pressed the remote to the surveillance monitor. Neveah immediately became horrified as she saw herself on the screen.

“No, no, no, Steve, let me explain!” Neveah desperately shouted.

“Neveah, you are on suspension effective immediately.” Steve boomed!

“This is some bull-type shit, Steve.” Neveah rambled.

“This is not up for discussion. You’re lucky I’m not firing your ass. Pulling this shit, I could lose my licenses.” He said, gesturing toward the screen.

“But,” Neveah tried to interject.

“I don’t want to hear it, Neveah. Pack your shit. You have to go.”

“For how long?”

“I don’t know, three maybe four weeks, when I know you are not a liability to my business.”

“Fuck you, Steve. Why are pulling this shit NOW ?” Neveah roared. “Like I’m the only female to do a little something on the side. REALLY? now you want to be god-damn self-righteous, fuck you, Steve. I’m out.” Neveah tore out of the office like a bull seeing red.

On the other side of town, Breniya and her adoptive sister Tina delved into a heartfelt conversation. They reminisced about their shared past and current events in their lives. Throughout their chat, their discussion consistently circled back to Neveah.

"Breniya, after everything your sister puts you through, why do you allow her to stay here?" Tina questioned, her voice edged with concern and frustration.

“I can’t let her live on the streets,” Brenya replied.

"Why? Her reputation is already in the street. No, it's beyond that. It's in the gutter at this point. Bre, you don't owe her anything, and you definitely don't need all that negativity constantly around Lillianna," Tina persisted.

"Dang, Tina cut her some slack," Breniya sighed. "You know how rough it was for her. She went through some incredibly messed up stuff. It's not easy for her."

"Yeah, both of you did, but for how long are you going to keep playing this same sappy song on your violin? Just be honest with yourself, you're enabling her. Stop making excuses," Tina insisted.

"Tina, I hear what you're saying. I really do. I just feel like I have to be there for her. She has no one else right now," Breniya replied, tears welling up in her eyes as she tried to explain from her perspective.

At that moment, the sound of screeching tires filled the air as a car skidded to a rapid stop nearby.

"That's my cue," Tina said, rising from her seat. "I really don't want any drama tonight with sister girl. But hey, I love you, and I'll see you on Sunday. Oh, wait, no, I'll see you tomorrow at Momma's."

Breniya hugged tightly and bid her goodnight as Neveah, still seething with anger, stormed through the front door.

"Hey, Nea," Tina greeted as she headed toward the entrance.

“Bitch,” Neveah snapped.

Tina shook her head and walked out the door.

“ Uh uh, Don't do that, Nea. What is your problem?"

"Why is she always over here?" Neveah exploded in frustration. “With her fake self, Hey Nea," she mimicked.

“I just can not with you, Nea. Tina has been nothing but kind to you"

“Oh my God, here you go. I'm wrong and everyone is right. I'm scum, Happy?” she said dramatically.

"Nea, you're just looking to argue for no reason. I don't know why, but I'm not playing these games with you tonight."

Nea knew she was wrong, but the sight of the strong bond between Tina and Bre only intensified her irritation. With a roll of her eyes, Nea turned abruptly and stormed off to her room.

The following morning, before leaving for the barbecue, Breniya went to Neveah’s room, hoping to have a conversation about the events of the previous night and to understand why Neveah was so upset. To her surprise, she discovered that Neveah had already left. At that moment, she shifted her attention to her daughter and implored her to hurry.

“Come on, Lillianna,” Breniya called to her daughter, “you ready to go to Nana’s for the barbecue?”

“Yes, I’m ready, but Mom, where is Auntie?” Lillianna asked, peeping into the room.

"I don't know," Breniya sighed. "She must have left before we got up. Go load your stuff in the car while I get the rest of the food into the car."

As Bre pulled into her mother's driveway, she couldn't help but smile at the sight of the bustling crowd of relatives gathered in the yard, the sound of laughter and chatter filling the air with the aromatic scents of grilling food.

“Mom, why doesn’t Auntie ever come with us to Nana’s house?” Lilliana asked innocently, her eyes searching for an answer.

"I'm not quite sure, darling. Maybe you can ask her yourself and find out."

“Mom, is Daddy coming?” Lillianna asked with a hopeful look in her eyes.

“I don’t know Lilly. But how about you hop out of the car and go find your cousins? It's time to enjoy some family time together."

Tina hurried out to the car, bringing in the food. As Breniya made her way through the house, she passed her youngest sister, Alexis, engaged in a heated phone conversation.

“Joey, you said you were on your way an hour ago…. Don’t talk about my family like that… Okay, just bring me my car!” she exclaimed frustatedly.

Brenya shook her head as she continued back toward the kitchen.

As she went to the kitchen, her mom greeted her.

“You hear your sister out there, begging that man, I don’t know whose worse, Alex or Nea," She said, shaking her head. “I don’t know where she gets that from; these young girls just lay down and take anything from these men.”

“It's carnality when you're in the world without the Lord, you're liable to do anything.”

“Amen,” Lynette said as she reflected on her children's situations. Lynette emphasized the power of prayer and the importance of seeking refuge in faith, she expressed her hope for a positive change in the lives of all the family members.

They stepped out just in time to witness the children kicking off a spontaneous dance competition, their synchronized moves erupting in laughter and claps. But it all came to a sudden, uneasy halt as the heavy bass of an approaching vehicle thundered down the street like a warning shot.

A collective sigh rippled through the family as Joey’s car pulled up—his music obnoxiously loud, windows tinted dark, like a shadow swallowing the evening sun.

He didn’t bother turning the engine off. From the cracked window, his voice pierced the gathering like a curse.

“You’ve been blowin’ up my phone all day. Get in.”

Alexis, standing by the porch steps, flinched. Her body stiffened, lips pressing into a thin line. She looked like she wanted to disappear, like she'd hoped maybe this time, he wouldn’t come.

Before she could answer, her father Keith stepped forward with the weight of years in his voice.

“No, sir,” he barked. “He's not going to speak to Alexis like that in front of me.”

“It’s fine, Dad,” Alexis mumbled, head bowed, already moving toward the curb. Her voice cracked like something fragile inside her had given way again.

Joey, seeing her hesitation, jabbed his finger out the window, face twisted in anger.

“Why can’t you get it through your thick skull? When I say I’m on my way, I’m on my way! You don’t have to call me a million damn times. Get in the car!”

A ripple of movement stirred among the family. Tina’s son, Luke, stepped forward, his muscles tense, jaw tight, every ounce of his tall frame bristling with protectiveness.

Though Alexis was technically his aunt, their dynamic had never reflected traditional roles. Tina had given birth to Luke at just 17, and Alexis came nearly two decades later—an unexpected child born to a mother in her mid-40s. With only four years separating them, they’d grown up more like siblings than aunt and nephew. They played together, fought like kids close in age, shared secrets, and leaned on one another during the hard years. Luke had been fiercely protective of her since they were little. That bond hadn’t faded—it had only sharpened.

“Bruh,” Luke growled, his voice low but dangerous, “you need to step back from my Auntie.”

Joey leaned forward, ready to say something reckless, but caught the sharp edge in Luke’s eyes. He was still a teenager by age, but in that moment, he didn’t look like a boy—he looked like a man willing to fight.

Alexis turned, catching the moment just before it escalated.

“Luke,” she said, her voice tense but urgent, “I’m good. I’m good.”

She hurried to the car, her hand brushing Luke’s arm as she passed. It wasn’t much, but it was something—a silent thank you, a whispered apology, a cry not to make this worse.

The car door slammed shut and in seconds, Joey and Alexis were gone, tires screeching as they peeled down the road.

Luke stood frozen, fists clenched at his sides, his chest rising and falling with unspoken rage. Keith came beside him, placing a firm hand on his shoulder.

“She’s not ready to leave him,” he said quietly. “But one day, she might be. And when she is, she’ll need us. Both of us.”

Luke nodded, but his eyes remained fixed on the end of the road, long after the car had vanished.

“I swear, next time he puts hands on her…” Luke’s voice broke.

“I know,” Keith replied. “But the best thing you can do now… is be her safe place when she’s ready.”

Gradually, laughter and conversation slowly faded into the gentle evening breeze as everyone dispersed and the day came to an end.

Later that evening, in the comfort of their familiar surroundings, Breniya and Neveah settled into their favorite spots in the living room. As they sipped on mugs of warm chamomile tea, they delved into their customary exchange.

"Neveah, I had to forgive Mom, not for her but for myself."

Neveah shook her head, her expression filled with bitterness. "I can't, no scratch that, I won't. She is a monster."

"All this rage you’re carrying around is causing you to self-destruct."

Neveah's voice trembled with anger. "I'd rather self-destruct if it means that she will never have a moment of peace."

"Nea, I would probably feel the same way if it wasn't for God, his peace, his healing, his mercy. It's why I can feel compassion for Mom and pray she repents, and pray she finds God."

“Damn, here you go. Every time I talk to you, it’s God this and God that.”

“Neveah, I'm sorry it's just who I am, and I know the power of God is real. He can turn this hurt into a testimony I can use to give others hope.

“I'm good, yo. How could god let a mother do those things to her children? Why would god kill our Dad? How could god let me get molested and raped over and over again? I'll tell you why, because there is no god, just evil monsters roaming the earth. ”

“Nea, you know nothing that I could say to you right now would make a difference, but I would read Romans 8:31 whenever I would question why things are happening, the bible says none of these things could separate us from the love of Jesus Christ. God didn’t promise us that he would stop every bad thing from happening to us. He did promise that he would never leave us or forsake us.

Neveah, her face contorted with frustration, forcefully pulled away from her sister and exclaimed, "I don't know why I even bothered talking to you!" She then yelled in a mixture of mix of anger and dismay as she stormed out of the room.

Dying is easy, living is hard

When I wrestle with the pain, I am tormented with blame that I am too weak to sustain my own thoughts from bleeding out tears of insanity, spiraled into hopelessness.

I am told to pray to a God whom I have no faith in to deliver me from this pain because,

Living is hard; when living is to live with the scars of past mistakes, too far to see myself falling beneath the slivers of my shattered heart, this earth has become my hell, I I I I am looking for something that will guide my feet to something more than this. Who do I seek? when I just want my body to go where my mind has already guided the rest of me, because,

Dying is easy; when every day is a repeat of today, I live a lie masked as I am fine, teetering on madness, believing this darkness oozing from the inside-out won’t crush the withered pieces of the shadows of my former self, to hear

this God you speak, of amazing power; the one that breathes life into this worthless body, as I wonder when will time stand still for me just a little while, where my heart doesn’t beat, I’m so weak.

I am broken, daily becoming unhinged from who I was meant to be, I can’t find myself. Small fragments of regret held together by whispers of, “You’re not good enough”, I just want to be made whole. Someone, please get ahold of me.

Tell me how I can be shielded from disaster pressing upon my soul, life has turned my heart so cold, why must it be this way?

You say I must pray, but dying is the easiest way to tear my heart away from all the hurt that violates my body to endure such pain. What will living gain but desperation to elevate myself from this agony, I weep because I can’t speak those words that will give me peace.

I finally kneel, my heart wants to heal.

God please hear my pleas. This is not the person I want to be, save me from my cataclysm will that I must perish in order to feel the weight crushing me lifted. I cannot do this by myself! I don’t have the strength I don’t have the will, somehow, some way I want to deal with voices that tell me dying is easy, living is hard….

Neveah went to her room, still reeling from her emotions. She didn’t want to think about that stuff anymore.

“I know what would make me feel better, she thought. I’ll call Christian; he knows how to trix a bitch off.”

Christian was married with a child; Neveah had met him at her job, The Garden of Eden. After seeing her dance, he’d become a regular until watching her wasn’t enough. He’d made it clear that he’d never leave his wife, but Neveah only needed him to scratch that itch every once in a while. Neveah had run into Christian’s wife on several occasions and didn’t see anything this woman had to offer; she wasn’t all that pretty, she was thin as a rail with yellowing teeth. Nea punched in Christian’s number; it made her smile to see he answered on the first ring.

“I was just about to call you,” he lied.

“Who is that?” an angry female yelled in the background,

“Are you on lockdown tonight?” Neveah asked condescendingly

“Nah,” Christian answered, you trying to link up?” he asked two octaves lower. “I gotta drop some dead weight, but I can be that way in ten.”

Nea giggled, “Bring some of that gush with you, I need ta smoke.”

As stated, Christian showed up in a little over fifteen minutes. Although Nea rarely used it, Christian knew to come in through her private entrance to the house. Together they giggled and laughed as they watched a movie and smoked. Nea felt every joint in her body tingling; it felt like there was surround sound all around her, and the different tones were massaging her entire body.

“Come on Nea, don’t be no pussy the blunt is almost gone, take it to the head”

“I can’t, I can’t even move,” she slurred as the effect took hold.

“I’ll give you a shottie,” he said, inhaling a large hit and blowing the intoxicating fumes until it filled her lungs. “That’s a good girl,” he purred as she coughed out smoke. He did a couple more until she not only couldn’t lift her head, much less keep her eyes open.

“Nea,” he sang, “Are you high?” Nea tried to focus on him but found that she couldn’t, and the fact that she couldn’t, she found unbelievably funny. Her mind continued to float in the clouds until she felt a warm sensation down below. She didn’t realize that Christian had stripped her of all her bottom layer of clothing. She felt him stroking and massaging her with his tongue; she rotated more into his advances; she didn’t want this feeling to stop. He licked all her cracks and crevices until Nea couldn’t hold on to her sanity; she grabbed his face, pushing him deeper between her legs as she erupted. Amid her spasms, Christian folded her legs around his waist and began to thrust inside of her. This intensified Neveah's response as she reached her climax. Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime, Nea began to feel as if her pearl was on fire. Surprisingly, she felt the fabric of her canal begin to tear.

“No!” moaned Nea, unable to stop this assault.

Waves of nausea formed in her throat. She tried to exhale but felt restricted, panicking, she began to claw at her neck, only to find hands holding her firmly in place. She slowly started to lose consciousness

“Please,” she tried to beg, “stop,” were the last words she could think of before she blacked out.

Penetration

Internally united in one flawless motion

ecstasy in which I become enslaved to the idea that I need you.

Manipulate my mind to the point that I can’t find myself,

alone, only you are my home, so use me as a way

to make me feel brave enough to sell out the rest of my dreams,

to give you my future, suffocate my independent thinking

so that I’d rather be responsible for your happiness

I feel enraged,

but I can’t escape the need to feel you internally,

so I plead, please, penetrate me, pierce through

to open my emotions, break down any future

forever abused but indoctrinated to the idea that I need you.

Use me up, till I have nothing left to give of myself

but to be a reflection of my former self.

Christian laughed as he watched her sink into a darkness that he'd inflicted. It made him feel powerful to see her lifeless in his hands, to see her broken by his sheer will. He thrust harder as he saw blood trickle from the shredding of her pearl seeping down her legs as if she were a virgin touched for the first time. Christian was mesmerized by her lifeless body; she was so beautiful, but something in him wanted her to become as ugly as the pain he inflicted. He raised his palm and smacked her across the face, but she didn’t stir. Christian did this repeatedly until he felt his hand warming, showing bright pink shades across her cheek. Christian rolled her onto her back and entered into her vagina again he thrust very forcefully and maliciously, her body involuntarily quivering in response. He continued to thrash violently until he could no longer stand the sight of what he was doing, finally allowing his seed to flow. Christian watched as Nea whimpered and grimaced in pain, unaware of the assault he’d wreaked upon her body. He quickly got dressed without wiping off any of her feminine juices, ashamed.

Hours later, the air was so quiet. Nea jolted from excruciating pain, her face her, her vagina and anus both in shreds, She hurt all over. She tried to get up to go to the bathroom to survey the damage, but found it hard to walk. She turned on the lamp a long side from her bed and was astonished to see her sheets filled with blood stains, tarnished with brown. On herself, she saw blood dried on her legs; she felt ripped. She felt torn from the inside out. All the hurt and anger came out in a hoarse scream! "Why"......

***The first chapter is yours to enjoy at no cost, offering a glimpse into a world filled with raw emotions, deep challenges, and real-life experiences. Each subsequent chapter will be available for just $2. Join the sisters on their extraordinary journey of hope, a tale woven with profound moments of growth and redemption, and restoration. I hope their story captivates your imagination and resonates with your heart as much as it has with mine. With a subscription to this book, you will unlock a wealth of exclusive content and community engagement. One of the key benefits of your subscription is access to the members-only forums "Testimonies" and "Prayer Request", where you are able to share personal stories of faith, transformation, while allowing you to witness the powerful impact of community support. You can also submit your own prayer requests, inviting others to join you in prayer, fostering a sense of unity and collective strength among the members. Your subscription grants you access to the Souls of Sister discussion group, a unique platform where you can delve deeper into thought-provoking conversations and explore open dialogue about each character and their trials, the incorporated poetry, and your own journey of healing.