FATHER ALWAYS SMILING

Chapter 43 ~~~~~

His hold tightened, as he began to kiss my head as he rocked back and forth. "Your safe now Amalie, that man will never hurt you or anyone else ever again."

"But you said he ran away..." I managed between breaths as the tears kept falling. "That he's on the run... hiding from the police..."

His smile was faint but the anger in his eyes was clear. "Not anymore."

I looked at him as he carried me to his room and placed me on the bed, he went to move away from me, probably to get the medicine I needed but before he could I grasped his hand. for the rest of his life."

His smile twitched. "Some would say a fate worse than death."

I looked away as I let go of his hand. "Does that make me a bad person?"

His eyes then became warm as he gently made me look at him. "Never. I fully agree that he should suffer for the rest of his life for what he's done to those children, and you." His eyes looked at me for a moment before asking. "Do you think you can manage to eat something? Medicine on an empty stomach is never good you know."

I sniffed back my tears. "I can try..."

He kissed me again. "That's all I ask." He came back moments later with a bowl of Icelandic chocolate pudding. My favourite.

I ate it slowly and then took some medicine before finishing the rest. He then came back with a mug of hot chocolate, the homemade kind, not like in a store. I could taste the chocolate, the milk, and hints of cinnamon. It made me feel relaxed.

"Want me to read to you?" my Dad asked when I finished, I nodded.

He soon came back with a leather-bound book, red with gold trim on the edges of the paper and gold design on the red leather itself. Alice's Adventures in Wonderland – Through the Looking-Glass – The Haunting of the Snark – Phantasmagoria and Other Poems by Lewis Carroll. It was something my Dad had when he was a kid, well-loved and cared for as if it were more important than gold.

Something that belonged to his Mom, my Grandma who I never met.

He'd often read the Christmas poem that's inside, every year, before opening gifts, a family tradition.

My Dad would read the story to me in different voices depending on the character, it made me think of Lauren since it was something she would also do. I wonder if it was because I was sick that was making me think of her. I hoped she was okay.

I started to feel sleepy, I think the medicine was starting to work. "Dad...?"

"Hmmm?"

"Your really not mad?"

"At you? No, I could never. No matter what you'd do, I would never be mad at you." He then kissed my cheek. "Sofðu vel og dreymdu ljúfa drauma, elskan mín." Sleep well and dream sweet dreams, my darling.

"Nótt, nótt pabbi." Night, Night Daddy.

He ran his hand through my hair as I drifted off to sleep.

* * *

Alastor remained sitting on the edge of the bed brushing his daughter's hair as she was fast asleep, he remained there for an hour before getting up taking his phone and silently going into his office before looking at his pocket watch and then calling who he intended.

"Bob, evening, apologize for calling so late, my daughter? Well, that's why I'm calling, I'll be needing to take some time off again. Yes, yes, it's because of what happened at the school. I do apologize for this. Oh, alright. I'll see what I can do, Henry's been saying he needs more work, I think he'd be fine with it, best to check though. Thank you, Bob, have a good night." Once he hung up, Alastor tapped his phone into his other hand as he moved further into his office where he sat at his desk, and then touched a hidden switch that would open a compartment where a burner phone, an SD card and a few other things that resided. Taking the SD card, he put it into the burner phone and sent out a text with an address.

He kept it sparse with few details, but the one on the other end of this text was smart and would know what to do.

They would bring the package to the aforementioned site to be dealt with by a third party. Someone whom he had a chance to meet with, but wouldn't waste on such an open invitation.

This was something entirely different from what Allen Huxley and his sister would do for him on occasion, and, luckily for them, they wouldn't need to be involved this time with it being so high profile.

Alastor couldn't help but feel some form of irony, his daughter didn't want people to die, ranging from those who were decent and kind to those who should live out their lives to pay for the bad things that they've done. Where Alastor would just want that person, regardless of whom who harmed his child, to no longer exist on this earth. And in turn, be turned into something far more... tasteful. But not him, such a man like Nick Green didn't deserve such kind treatment.

His daughter's words then came to his mind.

"I don't want him to die for what he did. I want him to live, and suffer for his actions for the rest of his life." The way his daughter looked, her expression as her face was dampened with tears. Her silver eyes burned with a want to keep others safe, regardless of her wellbeing.

It sent a chill down his spine, not of anger or rage, but one of admiration.

His baby girl was becoming her own and wanting of her desires.

A hand went over his ecstatic grin to stifle the laugh that threatened to escape so as not to wake her from her much-needed sleep.

It made him so happy!

Truly, he has such a wonderful daughter!!