The Shining ¥ Teen Wolf

fourteen

    Winnie shut the front door of the Jones' home behind her, still soaked and with three paintings under her arm. She kicked off her boots, careful not to hit the scratch on the back of her ankle. Blowing a wisp of hair from her face, she walked upstairs to her bedroom.

The night had been eventful, to say the least.

As Winnie flicked on the light to her room, she found the space empty. In honesty, she'd been expecting-

"Winowna."

And as Winnie put her newest art pieces in her closet, she saw her father in the doorway. Bare foot and in wet clothes, she held a harsh look. "What?"

"We need to talk."

"You've already tried that line on me tonight, Dad. I'm not interested in you trying to cover your own ass." Winnie had lost her curls from the water and tied up her hair into a bun. "It's late, I just want to take a shower and go to bed, if you don't mind."

"I do mind, Win," Aaron said without stepping into her room. He was still in reminents of a suit; a white button up tucked into dark trousers and a fancy watch on his wrist. "No, I haven't told you everything, but-"

"But what?" Winnie shot back in question. "You know i'd find out. You knew that I would draw something linking you to all of this!"

"Winnie, you don't understand."

"You supply killers with weapons! What more is there to understand?"

Aaron held eye contact with his daughter, "How much have you seen?"

Winnie scoffed, "Jesus Dad, how guilty are you trying to make yourself sound? I know that you supply Argent Arms and that we didn't come here because you wanted to watch your company, but because the Argents called you as backup."

"Win, just come downstairs and we'll talk about it," Mr. Jones asked nicely in an unangered tone.

Hesitating, Winnie glanced to the bathroom before returning to her father. "May I take a shower, first?"

Aaron nodded, "I'll be in the den."

"Okay," replied Winnie softly. She waited until her dad was gone, shutting the door behind him and proceeding to take a set of pyjamas to the en suite.

She showered in under five minutes, getting all the chlorine out and replacing the scent with strawberries. Winnie slid into gray sweats and a Mallory Lacrosse tee, letting her damp hair hang as she went down the staircase.

Aaron sat in the den, two coffee mugs sitting out. Leaned back in a leather recliner, he was absently spinning a family ring around his finger.

Winnie sat down on the sofa across from him, folding a leg underneath her. She didn't touch her coffee, but instead looked to her father. "Have you rehearsed your speech?"

"Win, why don't you trust me?"

"Because I barely know you," she said over him. 

Aaron immediately silenced, a shocked look hitting him. "What do you mean you barely know me? I'm your father."

"I see you maybe six times a year, or whenever the hell you feel like coming home. You rarely call, you're only home for a week or two when you're around. You missed mine and Pete's birthday three years in a row and you've never once acted like you care about the fact Pete's an excellent lacrosse player or that Mom is doing an incredible job of raising us." Winnie swallowed heavily, having to stop herself. "It's like," she had to breathe before going on, "it's like you're a ghost. I don't always recognize you when you come home, and now..."