Katya couldn't believe her eyes.

Is it truly Elsa?

The little girl's facial features were much clearer than before with the candle illuminating her face. She stared up at Katya like a lost puppy. Seeing the girl look like this brought tears to her eyes. Something about her made her feel emotional and Katya needed to know why.

She couldn't stand around there any longer. She had to get back to her house to ensure who she was seeing was true.

As Katya turned away to walk back up the stairs the girl grabbed onto her wrist. She was freezing cold to the touch. It was unnatural.

"Please come back."

"I will." Katya replied. This was the first time she'd answered the girl back and she didn't regret it.

Katya walked quickly up the rickety staircase which took her back to the hallway above. She hoped that she wouldn't bump into any sinister creatures as she made her way through the house and to the front door. To her luck she didn't.

The night sky was filled with stars that lit her way back. How had it gotten dark so quickly? She checked her phone which said it was ten o'clock but she was sure she entered the abandoned house around four.

When she got back home she couldn't see Jacob anywhere. There were no texts or missed calls on her phone from him. She sat down at the kitchen table and rang him but there was no answer. It was Friday night so maybe after work he'd gone out for a few drinks with some work mates. Or worse with Sara.

Katya rang him again and again but to no avail. She was starting to panic when she heard a large black car draw up outside. Jacob stepped out waving to the driver and saying something she couldn't work out. He staggered to the door and Katya opened it for him.

"Where have you been?"

"Sorry baby I went out for a couple of drinks with the guys at work." He slurred his words slightly.

"A couple?" She lead him over to the sofa where he collapsed.

"Yes. It was fun. I think I'm gonna chill here for a bit." He lay there with his eyes closed.

"Please come up to bed. You know I don't like sleeping alone." Katya knelt down so she was level with him and stroked his hair. He stunk of alcohol.

"Okay baby."

But he didn't budge. She gave up asking him and went up to bed when she remembered what she came back to look for. At the top of the wardrobe were a few boxes of things that she hadn't unpacked yet which didn't need unpacking in her opinion. One of them contained memories that she didn't want to resurface but she knew she would have to delve into them now.

She brought the box down and sat on the bed with it. After taking a deep breath she took the blanket off of it and looked inside. There were lots of photo albums and other small items from her childhood. She picked up a small teddy bear which had gotten less soft with age. It was her favourite toy when she was a child and it brought her comfort when her father hurt her.

From the ages of five to eight Katya was on the receiving end of abuse from her father who said he loved her in his vicious ways. No one knew that it was happening at the time. When no one was home he would lock her up in a cupboard under the stairs if she was naughty. And even if she wasn't. She would sit in the dark and cry for hours. But even worse before she went to bed he would assault her often. Sometimes sexually if he fancied it.

The scars that riddled her body were from these dark times in her past. None of them were self inflicted. She would never wish what she had experienced upon anyone.

She had no idea what was happening to her. Her father told her not to tell anyone because it was their little secret. On her eighth birthday she finally told her mother. For years she had hidden her scars from everyone around her by wearing layers of clothing. Even in the summer but her mother never questioned it. She thought that Katya was just going through a phase. When her mother found out she couldn't believe what Katya was telling her and for days her mother and father argued about it. Thank fully her father stopped because her mother had kicked him out of the house.

But on the day Ida got married he assaulted her again. That's why she can't remember anything from that day. The police got involved and locked him up for a few years. After that no one had heard from him again. Katya started seeing a psychiatrist soon after the ordeal.

She put the teddy down on the bed beside her and went through a photo album. It dated back to when Katya was ten. She found photos of her and her mother and Ida on a holiday to England. They all looked so happy. She smiled at the pleasant memory. The further back she went the younger she was. In one album was a photo of her and Ida sitting on a beach with another little girl. Her sister Elsa who died when she was five.

Katya gasped and recoiled away from the photo. She recognised the little girl straight away. Her hand covered her mouth in shock as she tried to comprehend how this had happened.

It was her sister.

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