Road of the Lonely Ones ✸ Paul Lahote

005. Taste of Cruelty

"Hmm?" Saskia acknowledged lightly, her gaze still weary of her father as she could see the way his hand wrapped around the flask tighter and tighter.

"I said-"

"Quiet, Hugo" There it was, finally, she was waiting for it. And now here it was. The calm only lasted so long before the storm. Saskia watched the way her younger brother shrank into himself, immediately silencing himself. Though Levi's hand went to rub at his back in a calming manner. "So, Paul, how is it that you know my daughter?" Sas hated the way he said his name like he was dirt at the bottom of his shoe.

If Paul was affected by it, his demeanor certainly didn't show it. "Through Jacob Black, Sir, I'd see her a lot when she'd visit him on the reservation" Saskia seemed shocked by his answer, she didn't know he noticed her as she would always try her hardest to hide behind the well-known face of Jake.

"She's been filling your head with these ridiculous stories too, I imagine?" Her father said sharply. Saskia winced at his tone.

"What stories, Sir?"

"All this nonsense on vampires and whatnot, I'm telling you I thought those medicines would sort her out but they seem to have made her fucking crazy" Paul's eyebrows raised at the mans use of language about his daughter, talking as if she weren't there.

"Dad, stop" Though she regretted letting those words leave her mouth immediately as Stanley slammed his hands down on the table, rattling his own cutlery onto the floor.

"I'm not talking to you, child" He seemed to only be able to speak in a condescending tone as he pointed his finger at his daughter, nothing but pure fury in his eyes. Sweat dripped down his forehead from the alcohol intake, and she took notice of the way his hands shook. Paul was on edge, watching the nerves, anger, and sadness, all pile out of his soulmate in waves larger than anything he'd felt before.

Saskia briefly saw Levi carrying Hugo out of the room and could hear their footsteps upstairs. And suddenly it was as if any anger she was holding out on for the last few months had come out. Why now? Why in front of Paul? But she had no time to ponder the answers as she stood up from her chair and placed her hands on the table, staring directly into her father's eyes. "I am not fucking crazy, you asshole!"

"How dare you speak to me like that in my own house!"

"Fuck you, you haven't even looked at me in weeks!" She was angry, so so angry.

Stanley suddenly rounded the table getting in Saskia's face as he towered over her. Paul shot up from his chair, rushing to push a gap between them.

"You're lucky I've let you even stay here, you're a disgrace to this family, you are why your mother is dead." Her breath was gone, sucked from every ounce of her body. Her lungs were empty, she felt faint as static rung in her ears and through her brain her blood felt as if it had stopped running completely. What had she done wrong to deserve this? A knife had twisted itself further into her gut, she was sure she was bleeding out onto the floor.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?!" Paul's words rang loud in her ears as he yelled at her father. No, no, don't do it, Paul. Don't make things worse. She silently begged, hoping he could hear her pleas.

"Excuse me" Stanley barked out a harsh scoff, staring at the 19-year-old in front of him. "This has nothing to do with you, son." He said, rather condescendingly.

"It has something to do with me when your daughter is clearly terrified of you, treat her with some fucking respect, you piece of shit"

"Oh, have you been filling his head with more lies, Saskia, telling rumors about me being a horrible father, you ungrateful shit!" Of course, he was blaming her again. Saskia couldn't pick her head up to say anything and instead dragged Paul out of the house and into the rain outside.

The boy couldn't help but think about how beautiful she looked as she stared up at him in the rain, wet coating her bleached hair and running down her speckled face. She was frowning, he didn't like it when she frowned, her chin was wobbling and her eyebrows furrowed together in a rather angry manner.

"I'm so sorry, Saskia" He felt the deepest of sympathies for her, living in that household with that angry man. He wanted nothing more than to pick her up and take her to safety. She could live with him, safe, away from the cruel world. How he ached for his imprint.

"Why would you do that?" He was confused now, he stood up for her?

"What?"

"You have no idea what you've done" She looked petrified. But Paul was suddenly clouded by anger at the accusation. He just chuckled humourlessly in her face.

"I was helping you!"

"No, you made things worse!" He couldn't see that she was screaming for help, to be rid of the nightmare that was her father. her judgment was skewed. She was just a scared little girl who needed to be saved. But all she could do was place the blame on someone else, exactly like her father. "Just leave, Paul, I don't want to see you"

The Lahote boy turned his head to the side, unable to understand the girl that stood before him. he knew this was wrong from the beginning, it should have never been her. She hated him. And now he felt nothing but rage at this moment towards her. How could she do this to him? Just when he thought they were developing something sweet. Shattered instantly.

He didn't mean to say it, he was so angry. His brain turned to static, his anger management caught the better of him. "You are fucking crazy."

Fuck, he had never felt worse watching as her face dropped further, and he could feel the betrayal ooze off of her as she turned her body around and walked into the house, trying to discreetly wipe away her tears but he noticed. Of course, he noticed, and he suddenly felt as if his heart had been ripped out. He made her feel like that. But, in the moment of anger and stubbornness, he left. Just like she had asked.

♱

As soon as Saksia had walked up the steps of her house and shut the door behind her, a stinging feeling came to her cheek as her father stood before her. Sas immediately raised her hand to her face, more tears pooling in her eyes. He had hit her. His own child.

You disgrace! The words were on the tip of his tongue. But he stared down at his sixteen-year-old daughter, her eyes wide, and cheek reddening. Guilt consumed his being. His baby girl, he had hit her. Struck her across the face.

Shame. Disgust.

Tears trailed down his face and he brought his arms around her, tugging her to his chest. Saskia stayed frozen. She should have yelled, struggled, pushed him away. But all she could do was sob into her father's shirt and bathe in the nostalgia his embrace gave her. She knew it would only last tonight, for he was so drunk. Though Saskia sank into him further and grasped at his shirt as he whispered 'I'm sorry' over and over into the top of her head and stroked down her hair in hopes it would compensate for the inhumane actions he had just performed. And Sas let him, for she was just a little hopeless, motherless girl. How she missed the days when she was someone else, and he was her dad who loved her, not the father who hit her and told her mean things. How wrong all of this was, how pathetic Saskia was.

AUTHORS NOTE

I edited the last chapter so anything you read about about Saskia being seventeen was a lie, my bad xx

Hope this isn't total shit, lots of love.