The Canvas

6- Charlie

Earlier

"What the fuck were you thinking?" I yell "That's why you called then? Because you needed Dad to help you be a fucking idiot? What if this shit is connected to the Omen? The Sign is in two fucking days, you can't be this reckless! You have to think about the future." I try to stay calm but just looking at him brings fire to my blood. He pulled the fucking drug out and set it on the table like he was proud of it. It is not like any pill I've ever seen. There was a bright blue dye to it and cloud patterns; it looked like something a child would design. "Get this shit out of my house or you're not welcome here." I say not taking my eyes off the drug on our coffee table.

"You were begging me to come back. And what, now that I'm in a little trouble, you're going to abandon me?"

"You have no right to accuse me of abandoning you. You're the one that left. You left me and Lina when we needed you and I had to be the adult and try to hold the house together. Keep us fed and out of trouble that you and Dad got into." I take a breath and lower my voice so that I'm not screaming. My face is surely red and my hands feel clammy, so I flex my fingers to try and release some tension. "And now you've decided to go against one of the most powerful gangs in the area. So, no. You can't stay here if you're carrying that around." I point to it, not wanting to touch it myself. "Get it out of my fucking house and wipe you hands of this shit and then we can talk."

"Do you have any idea how much this would help our family Charlie? The Dream is addictive, people will come back for it. It's unlike anything Char, this one is different. And I've got us in a position to profit from it. Money buys protection. You'd never have to worry about anything. Cat would go to college, and you could go if you wanted. I'm going to bring in a lot of money because of this. I'm going to bring in a lot of money because of this."

"This isn't right Paul. People are going to die from this shit, I have a really bad feeling, it's like the Gods are telling me themselves."

"There you go again with that nonsense. Fuck the gods, no, this is helping people. It lets them take a break from reality so they can fucking breath for once." He's saying it frantically and only then do I take in his red eyes and shaky hands.

"You're fucking on it," I say with no emotion. "I'm being serious Paul. That can't be in this house. Get rid of it, come back clean and I'll help you. We can hide you somewhere." I'm desperately trying to reason with hi,.

"Since when do you own the house?"

"Since Mom left and Dad went crazy. Since I've been working two jobs to get rent paid on time. This isn't negotiable Paul. I don't want that anywhere near Cat."

"Kitty isn't a baby anymore. She's in high school at a low-income school. She sees shit like this all the time."

"And I've done well enough in teaching her to stay away from it. She's a good kid. I'm not going to sit here and let you act like Dad. It's something that took me a long time to figure out and now it's not one of my main worries, I don't need you to come in and take his place. Please Paul. Get out of it. Tell them you don't want anything to do with the Advocates. They'll kill you."

"You don't think the Sixes will kill me? You think I wanted to do this Charlie?" Playing to make me feel guilty only frustrates me more.

"Who do you think is more capable, Paulie? Tell me. Who do you fear more?"

"I'm dead either way. I don't need this shit. You're the one person I thought would understand. You're just like Mom."

His words are a heavy punch to my chest. "Well, you're just like Dad. Looks like we both got some family traits. Now get the fuck out." After swiping the packet off the table, he storms to the door, leaving with the loudest slam he can manage.