EMOTIONALLY ENTANGLED

Chapter 54.

"Owen, Jaxon, Cass! Where are you guys—" I stopped for a second, trying to stop myself from breaking down once again as a flashback of what happened appeared in my mind. So...much...blood, "p-please, please, I need help—help me. Fuck!"

I fell forward on my knees and sobbed loudly. My dad was actually dead and soon, the guilt was settling in. Even if he treated me like shit, I can't excuse the fact that he was once a good dad to me and the fact mom used to love him more than anything in the world. Oscar...shot...him. I clutched at my head as voices around me brought me out of my phase.

"Oh my god, Brielle, honey. What's wrong—why do you have blood on you? Honey, shhh, shhh, shhh. It's okay." my mother had come to me and brought me in with a hug. Her hands were shaking like mine, but not as much, "Alfonso, Kiara! It's Brielle!"

"What's going on—oh my lord," Kiara exclaimed as she covered her mouth with her hand in shock. Alfonso followed after her and slowly eyes the scene in front of him. My mother was hugging the life out of me whilst panicking because she didn't know what was wrong or what had happened, "how about we get her cleaned up, okay?"

My mother rocked my head as her panic began to cease. She placed a soft kiss on my head as she helped me stand on my feet. Her arm wrapped around my shoulders as she led me out and into the house we stayed at.

I sat down on the couch as I heard mom preparing a bath for me, but I couldn't shake the thought—the nightmare. It was there in my mind, incredibly vivid. Dad's blood pouring into my hands as Oscar had that dirty smirk written all over his face.

A few minutes later, mom came downstairs with a wary look on her face. She held a towel and some fresh clothes for me to wear in her hands. I watched with a blank gaze as she placed it down upon the coffee table. She gave a small smile which I tried to return despite how shit I was feeling.

"I've run a bath for you, okay? Have a nice clean, put on some fresh clothes and come downstairs and we'll have a chat," she spoke softly before sitting next to me. I just nodded in response before standing up, leaving the room with my stuff.

I didn't know how I was going to break it mom. I had no idea she was going to be there at all and she would've heard it from someone else. How does one tell their mother that oneself witnessed the man she loved get shot? Every step I took was a heavy one, the burden of dad weighing heavily upon my shoulders. I didn't know how to feel to be honest.

On one hand, of course I'm upset that dad's dead. People never knew him the way I knew him; people never knew him the way mom knew him, loved him, cared for him with her whole heart. On the other hand, he hurt the woman who loved him, used me against her, dealt with people like Oscar and even almost got his family killed. Me or mom could've died in the hands of Oscar and that was because of dad's reckless actions, but if I did have a chance to make sure he never did it again then I would've taken it any way I could.

That deal with Liam could've fixed it all. After all, I was nothing but a distraction to Owen, slowly but surely hurting him the same way I hurt Jordan without realising. I could've changed dad, made him into a better person and make a bad situation into a good one like an opportunity.

But Oscar walked in there like he was the devil himself and showed no remorse whatsoever as he shot my dad in front of my very eyes. He was the devil who came in to take their victims where they belonged. My dad was his latest victim and looking back on the situation, I wish I could've killed him there and there.

Because thanks to him, I was dead inside, nothing but raw emotion filling my chest. It was a burning sensation that wouldn't go away.

I entered the bathroom and closed the door behind me before locking it. I stripped out of my clothes and slowly got into the tub and sitting down in it. The water touched my skin like a comforting blanket, which numbed the pain until it was bearable.