Frenemies

7

Warning: The following chapter includes references to abuse and sexual assault. Please read with caution.

Alex drives me back home, and walks me back to the door I came out of. "I'll see you at school on Monday." He says, a soft smile on his face.

"Thank you, for tonight. I don't know why you did it, but I really needed it." I say, unlocking the gate.

I open it and close it, waving goodbye before walking away. It's quiet in the house, and I guess it should be since it's after midnight. The ferry ride was fun, and Alex and I even got to see fireworks. 

Nobody seems to have even noticed I was gone, thankfully. I get into my room and turn on the light. My heart drops to my stomach as I see my brother sitting in my desk chair. "Well, I must say that I'm shocked. None of us expected you to sneak out the day you were told about your future arrangement." He stands up. "Surely you didn't think you had gotten away with it?" Vincent walks to stand right in front of me. "You're in a world of trouble Lelia, I hope you're prepared for the backlash that's going to come from this." 

He snatches my wrist and drags me out of my room. I know where we're going, but he still ends up dragging me so fast that I trip on my own feet. Vincent opens the door to my father's office and shoves me in. My father is sitting on the leather red couch situated off to the side of the room. He's sipping on a glass of Scotch when I see him. "Ah, she has returned. Did you enjoy yourself?" I watch as he stands, his eyes burning a hole into me. He's definitely pissed off. I just hope Alex got away. "You better hope you did, because this little excursion will be your last." He strides over to me and grabs my hair and my hands shoot up to try and pull it away as I let out a shriek in pain. "You deserve worse than what's coming to you, little wench." My father drags me by the hair at the back of my head. He walks quickly, and I feel my hair being pulled out. Tears are forming at the bottoms of my eyes. We get outside, and he tosses me to the ground. "Bring the boy!" My father yells, and I watch in horror.

"Alex!" He's dragged in front of me with his arms tied behind his back. Vincent kicks the back of his knees, forcing him to the ground. 

Alex glares at my father. "Punish me, not her. I'm the one that snuck her out." 

"No!" I look at my father. "I knew what I was doing. It's my fault. I disobeyed you, even if you never directly told me, I knew I couldn't go out. I deserve to be punished. He did nothing wrong." My father grins. It's evil, and unsettling.

"Oh, I know you're at fault, Lelia, but I've been itching to teach this boy a lesson. It seems he isn't afraid enough of me." My father bends down and snatches my hair again. "But don't worry, I'll be sure you get your due punishment too." He throws my head down to the ground, and my face smacks the ground. I put my hand over my nose, and keep my head down. 

A cry escapes my mouth and the tears I had been trying to hold back stream down my face, and my breathing becomes fragmented. "I'm sorry, Alex." I can't cover the sound of my shaky voice. "I'm so sorry."

"Don't be." I look up at him, and he's still glaring at my father. "Some day, you'll regret hurting her, and it will be too late."

My father laughs loudly, amused. "Why should I regret punishing my wife's child?" Alex's eyes blaze with an anger I've never seen from him. "I doubt she told you. Typical of the little bitch." He chuckles. "She is the product of an affair my wife had. I was kind enough to give her a good life, with the promise that my wife would say she is my child so that I could one day marry her off. Marriage is a good way to strengthen alliances, and if for some reason they betray me, I would have no qualms about killing her because she isn't actually my child." My head drops again, and I try to fight the urge to sob.

I hear Alex struggling against the men holding him down. "That doesn't mean that she deserves to be treated like such shit. She was still your wife's daughter, and your wife obviously loved her!" He yells, grunting as he tries to break out of their grasp.

"Hm, yes, she did. So much so that she gave her life for her." My father becomes serious. "But you would know nothing of that, since I doubt she told you that either." Alex is still fighting. "Enough, I'm done talking." My father walks over to Alex. "If you know what is best for you, you'll stay away from my daughter. She's already arranged to be married, so you know you have no chance, and there is no way she will defy me again."

I hear a hard sound of skin hitting skin and look up to see Alex standing over my father. "Threaten me again." He says, staring down at my father. My father grabs his jaw, blood coming out of his mouth. The men that had been holding him back get ahold of him again, and Alex barely fights back.

My father stands up. "That just earned both of you a worse punishment." He looks at me. "Watch. Don't look away. If you do, I'll beat him harder." I cover my mouth to block out the sounds of my sobs. I don't look away. I can't. I have to make sure that it only goes so far. Alex loses consciousness, and my father backs away from him. Someone hands him a clean rag, and he cleans the blood off of them. "Now for your punishment." He says as he turns to me. "Don't hit her face. She still needs to be presentable at school." My father walks away as the few guys outside come up to me. My brothers follow after him, leaving me to their underlings. I'm not even worth their time. 

They leave Alex on the ground as they come towards me, predatory grins on their faces. I shut my eyes and think of my mother.

Mother, I swear I'm trying to stay strong, but I can only endure so much. I don't know if I can make it out of this. Please, if I've ever needed your help, it's now. Please...

A piece of my clothing is grabbed, but then there's the familiar sound of someone getting beaten up, and I open my eyes to see Alex, barely able to stand. The men who had been coming toward me are now all on the ground. I quickly get up and run over to him and put my shoulder under his arm. "You didn't even try to fight back." He says, almost sounding sad.

"Neither did you." I say, crying. 

Alex grunts as I try to get him out of the walls of the estate. "Why didn't you try to fight them off?" I don't say anything, and frantically unlock the iron door. "Has that ever happened before?" I finally get it open and start to pull him out of the doorway, but he pulls himself away from me, slamming into the frame."Tell me, right now, has that happened to you before?" I look away from him because I can't possibly answer him. "Fuck." He pulls out his phone. "Get me to my motorcycle." He says. I begin to walk him to the sidewalk and he calls someone while I do. "Hey, come pick me up." I hear a voice on the other end. "I'm pretty fucked up, I can't drive." The voice speaks again. "Yeah, and hurry. We're going to be sitting ducks til you get here." He hangs up and presses a button on his motorcycle. He had parked just beyond the wall this time. I guess we had both let our guards down.

"I'm so sorry." I mumble, and cover my face. He's leaning against the motorcycle, half sitting on it. "I never should have gone out. It was stupid. I knew this would happen."

Alex reaches out and grabs my arm, then pulls me to him. "Shh. It's fine. I've been in worse condition before. I'm just glad you're alright. Let me look at your nose." I pull away from him, far enough for him to put his hands on my face. He gently touches it. "Does it hurt?" He asks, trying not to press too hard. I shake my head, crying silently. He looks so worried about me, yet he's bloody, and probably in pain all over his body. Alex pulls me to his chest and wraps his arms around my back, rubbing a hand up and down it. "It's going to be okay. I promise." I'm not sure, but he sounds so sure, and angry.