I sat at the table desperately trying to numb the pain all over me Eliza had a day off work today, it was some holiday or other but not like that made much difference to us the triplets asleep in their room Markus still in a separate basket as his sickness grows worse by day.

There was a knock at the door but we ignored it.

Then another louder and more stern, I simply ignored it.

"Alaki! You open this door immediately!" The voice of our landlord screamed I knew I couldn't avoid him he had a key that he would surely use if I didn't open the door so I shut the door to the triplets' room and shut our bedroom door as Eliza was sleeping in there, and Opening the door with a creak "Finally, I've been needing a word" he said in his clean-cut suit and a cigar from his lips

"yes sir" I nodded

"We both know why I'm here Alaki" he smirked as he walked around the room

"I know sir Just-"

"Just what? I'm tired of your excuses, But go on... it'll amuse me"

"I lost my job sir, and Markus Needed Medicine and Eliza-"

"Excuses, Excuses..." he smirked "I'm sick of them"

"But I-"

"No!" He yelled "If one of those dam siblings of yours is sick? you let it die! one less mouth for you to feed. if you lost your job? find another! the factories and Sweeps are always looking for workers." He explained "Your four months behind on your rent alaki"

"I know... we just we don't have it"

"You have something that can pay it" He smirked glancing to the triplets' room

"Never... I'm not selling them"

"I wasn't talking about the children... where is she alaki?"

"who?" I asked

"Eliza"

"she- she's not here... she's at work" I lied looking at the floor

"you little bastard! Don't you lie to me!" He yelled "every store is closed within a hundred miles... where is she alaki?"

"Alaki? What's going on?" Eliza asked as she came out or room unaware of what was going on

"Hummmm... I knew you where lieing" He smirked "Now I have you both here... I'm going to give you a nice set of choices," He said

"what choices?" I asked

"You Can Pay me my rent?"

"We don't have it I told you that"

"You can get out of my house"

"We'd have nowhere else to go"

"I can Break Alaki's Legs to repay my money?" He smirked, "or..."

"Or what?" Eliza asked and he simply looked at her with the evilest of eyes

"No!" I argued Pulling her close to me "You can't do that! No! you won't lay a finger on her!"

"I gave you a very nice offer" he smirked

"Alaki... It's alright" she says sadly moving away from my grip

"What?... No No Eliza you can't" I pled as I felt I was already starting to cry "please Eliza No"

"What other choice do we have?" she asks

"Any other choice but that one please Eliza" I begged as I held her hands

"There isn't another choice Alaki, Not that has the least damage," she says kissing my head "Go look after the triplets," she says I hated myself but I did as she asked and went to the other room as I shut the door I saw him touch her face I tried to ignore the noise, I tried to ignore her screams I knew I was crying trying so hard to think to focus on anything else in this world then what was happening to Eliza until the door opened

"Next month I better have my rent Alaki... or I'll come back for another payment on her" he smirked

"You-" I began

"You finish that boy? I'll have you and your little whore on the streets before supper time" he warned

"Yes sir"

"Good" he smirked as he left, I bolted the house up as tight as I could before I went into our room...

Eliza laid in the bed wrapped up in the covers facing away from me I could hear her tears and I could see her skin had cuts and forming bruises, it broke my heart.

I shut the door and carefully crawled into bed with her seeing the extent of the damage he had done I was crying as I pressed a kiss to every place on her body I could see that had a cut, a bruise or anything holding her as tight as I could "You stupid, Stupid girl, why would you do that? My sweet beautiful Eliza, I should never have let him do that to you" I cried

"We didn't have a choice," she said

"We had every other choice!" I yelled "break my fucking legs, Lose the house, anything other than that," I told her "You're never doing that again... Please I can't bear it. I can't listen to him do that to you again... never again. No matter what I'm not letting that happen again, I'll die before he touched you again Eliza" I told her kissing her cheek