I'm in it for the Long Run // Edge of Winter

14

I reached my hand behind me to try and find Bradley. He met his hand with mine and pulled me close to him. Caleb ran over to us as I took him under my wing. He latched onto my arm and snuggled his face against my sleeve.

The three of us were shaking from a mixture of fear and cold. The cool night breeze whipped across our faces, reddening our noses and chattering our teeth.

"You- you just left me?" Elliot stammered, his breath visible in the crisp air. I felt Caleb's breath shorten until he was almost hyperventilating.

"No. We were trying to find help." He replied shakily.

"Look we gotta stick together. You can't just leave me." Elliot emphasized. He tried his best to act strong, but I could see right through him. He was just as scared as us, lost and helpless.

"Yeah, but we were gonna come back for you. Dad I promise." Bradley eased his way into the conversation, cautiously stepping on the egg shells that were Elliot's temper.

"Do you know what could've happened to you guys out there?" Elliot's voice was harsh and staccato. I could feel each word climb through my body like a spider crawling up my back. He huffed once and a large part of his breath was reflected in the air. "Look I'm your father. It's my job to protect you."

"Protect us, huh." Bradley scoffed quietly. Elliot somehow heard him and whipped his head to stare at his son. Bradley broke off from us, rejecting my hand as I reached out for him to come back.

"What are you doing." I whispered, just audible for Bradley, not even Caleb, to hear. He nodded at me and took a peak down at my pocket where I had been keeping the gun he gave me. I traced the weapon with my fingers, and pulled Caleb tighter into my grip.

Then with one final look, it almost felt as if he were saying 'good-bye' to me. He blinked and then turned to face his father, raising his eyebrows. He let another scoff escape his lips, this one a lit louder than before.

"You think that's funny?" Elliot beamed, taking a step in Bradley's direction. I gently pushed Caleb back until we were almost up against a tree, watching the scene unfold before us. "You got something you want to say to me?"

Except this time, Bradley lost everything he had on Elliot. I watched as his thoughts and basic ability to function were washed out of his body by a single motion from Elliot. His father was now standing above him, staring straight down to make sure his eye's met Bradley's. His smirk dropped and his eyes were consumed by fear.

"You got something to say to me?" Elliot cackled, putting his hands up. "Just say it." With that, he shoved Bradley back roughly. Bradley stumbled awkwardly, but took his eyes away from his father's, only daring to stare down at the snow-covered ground.

"You think I'm a shitty father, hm?" He pressed, taking a long stride towards Bradley. Then once again, he was towering over him leaving him powerless. "Say it." Another shove, launching him even farther this time.

Bradley let out a faint gasp for air as I saw him try to regain his balance on the hill. I turned Caleb so that he couldn't see what was going on, and pulled him into a hug doing my best to reassure him that everything was alright.

"You're a shitty dad." My mouth dropped open as I heard the words dribble from Bradley's tongue. What he had just done was given Elliot the power to punish him, put him in his place, show him who is boss. Elliot backs his face out of Bradley's and nods.

"There you go. Now, are you gonna say it like a little pussy or say it like a man?" Elliot was starving and hungry for more. Bradley's face was a flushed white color, almost the same as the snow.

"Brad, don't." I begged, shaking my head. Bradley didn't even look up, not one sign that he had even heard me. Instead, he seemed preoccupied getting pushed around by his father. I shoved my hand into my pocket and adjusted it to hold the handle of the gun.

"Say it." Elliot ordered. I pulled Caleb closer to me, shielding his eyes from his lunatic father. I could tell by the look in Bradley's eyes that he was going to crack, any second now.

"Try not to focus on it, think of something else." I whispered into Caleb's ear, restricting myself from crying. I clenched one of my fists on the gun as I felt my body tremble.

"Say it, say it!" Elliot hissed, launching Bradley backwards. Brad looked up and balled his fists in front of him. Then he lunged as his father, throwing punches rapidly into the center of his chest. But it was no use, it didn't even seem to faze Elliot.

"You're a shitty father!" Bradley yelled between punches, groaning with every shot he took. One punch, two punches, three punches, four. Elliot let him play for a while, before he began to take over.

"Say it! You think I'm a shitty father?" Elliot screams, pinning Bradley's arms behind his back. He locked his son into some type of hold that he couldn't get out of. No matter how hard Bradley tugged and squirmed, he was just exerting the energy that he didn't even have.

"Get off me, please!" Bradley cried, as the tears began streaming down my cheeks. I wiped them away with my gloves as fast as I could, and began screaming at Elliot myself.

"Let go of him!" I pleaded into the dull night sky. Bradley struggled there, coughing and sniffling until Elliot realized the game was over.

"Dad!" Caleb whimpered, pulling away from my shoulder. As soon as Elliot saw the look of fear in Caleb's eyes, he knew he screwed up. But it was too late for him now, and he knew that. So he pushed Bradley even harder, making him yelp in pain.

Then I did it, I yanked the gun out of my coat and pulled it on Elliot. I'd had enough of him controlling us, let's see how he likes it.

"Don't make me do this." I sniffled, keeping my stance. Elliot looked at me and then at his sons, a look of betrayal on his face.

"You just gonna let her do this?" He asked his sons hysterically. "I can't believe it! My own sons,"

"Elliot back away I ordered." He gave in, luckily. He dropped his hands and slowly started walking backwards, raising his arms in the air.

"Fuck off." Bradley told his father, isolating himself from all of us. He began limping slightly until he fell to the ground, coughing during the process. I watched as all of his insides come out in the form of vomit, accompanied by a painful moan scraping Bradley's throat.

I made my way over to Bradley, and rubbed his back. As soon as he stopped vomiting, I helped him to his feet and wiped his mouth with the rag that was around the gun. He leaned on me, relying on me to support his entire body weight.

I shot Elliot one final look of hatred and muttered, "Grow up." His eyes flashed a small sense of guilt before he turned to face the ground. I brought the boys back to the cabin and gingerly placed Bradley down on the bed. Elliot followed us in, but soon realized we wouldn't be talking to him for a while.

So he left the room and slammed the door behind him. I sighed as soon as Elliot was out of sight and plopped down on the bed next to Bradley. He sat up and ran a hand through his hair under his hat.

"I don't want to stay here anymore." Caleb stated, taking a seat across from us.

"Neither do we." I shrugged, giving him a look of sympathy. But that's when we heard it, the first piece of furniture. The sound of the couch's legs scraping against the weakened wooden floorboards.

"Is that what I think it is?" Bradley said alarmed, slowly rising from the bed. The next sound we heard was the loud 'bang' of the sofa slamming against the bedroom door.

Locking us in with no way out.