The Beating

He slides open the hallway closet door...reaches in
  and takes one of his belts off the hook.
As he winds the leather tight around his knuckles,
  the buckle makes a tinkling sound.
His eyes are bulging out of their sockets...bloodshot.

Her temperature rises, as her heart beats faster.
She smells his sweat and her own.
Her eyes meet his.

With each lash of the belt, he brands her...
  in the tender spot behind her knees, the softness inside her
                                               thighs.

He hurls obscenities.
"Slut!...Whore!...Cunt!...
You belong on the streets!...
You disgust me!"
He holds up his little finger.
"You're not worth this much!"he screams.

And then he starts to cry.
She has ruined his life, he tells her.

She goes to her room and waits
  for the bruises and welts to appear---
                                 tokens of a father's love.