Echoes in the Storm

Shy girl finds her voice and
            screams into
sealed space where they’ve
tucked her away. Nobody hears
because nobody wants to know
            what evil
took her voice in the first place
or what horror she faced to pluck it
from dark canyon where she fell 
            unnoticed.

Even now they barely notice her. 
            Secretly,
they remain grateful for safe havens
from summer storm. Afraid
of the dark, these who are her 
            only hope
scatter at sound of awkward cry, run
for homes well-lit with love and laughter,
and refuse to see: they become 
            monsters, too.