Child abuse

Previously

…He had maintained his control, his dominance. But deep down, a flicker of something else stirred – a vague sense of unease, a whisper of guilt that he quickly pushed away. He would never admit it, not even to himself, but a part of him yearned for peace, for a connection that wasn't built on fear. He turned up the television, the noise a welcome barrier against the encroaching silence and the ghosts of his past. He was a man trapped in a cycle of his own making, his anger and his pain a suffocating embrace that he couldn't escape. And Lily, the quiet observer in his world, continued to draw her shadows, hoping for a light that felt impossibly far away.