Broken

Part 27

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Sophia's Point of View

After a few hours I managed to make my escape to my bedroom. While the party had been amazing, it showed no signs of stopping and I was beginning to find it all a little overwhelming. I knew it was time to take a moment to myself and decompress a little.

My heart was full but I was also feeling a little nostalgic and a little sad. Last year my mom threw a big celebration for my birthday at our house. My dad, or who I thought was my dad, never showed up and that was to be expected, but my mom invited the entire club and Laura, so of course I was surrounded by people who loved and cared about me. My mom had made all of my favorites including the best chocolate cake I have ever had in my life. It was hard to fathom that I would never spend another birthday with my mom and that broke my heart.

There was a soft knock on my door and then it opened slowly. My dad poked his head in and with one look the dam broke and the tears fell from my eyes. He closed the door behind him and rushed over to me, pulling me into his arms. I held on to him and laid my head against his chest as he ran a hand through my hair.

"I miss mom," I struggled to say through my tears, "It hurts so much dad."

"I know sweetheart," Hank said soothingly, "I miss her too, but she would be happy to see how well you are doing. She would be so proud of you, Sophia."

"I can't get the image of Benny shooting her in cold blood out of my mind," I mumbled as flashes of that night appeared in my mind, "I hate him. I hate Joseph for not caring about his family. I hate him for putting us in danger. I hate him for getting mom killed."

I had despised Joseph for the last couple years, but because he was my father, I chose to overlook it. I chose to give him the benefit of the doubt. I still loved him and I wanted to believe that even the worst people could change if they really wanted to. However, Joseph never changed. Mom and I both tried talking to him multiple times, but he never showed any interest in living a straight life. He lived for the danger. He was always looking to make a quick buck. Danger, money and greed fueled Joseph and it ended up killing him in the end.

I looked up at Hank and the panic set in. I thought about the life Joseph lived and realized that Hank lived a life very similar to his brother's. I couldn't bear to lose Hank, my heart couldn't handle another loss like that.

"Dad..."

"Yeah, baby girl..."

"You and your brother lived really similar lives," I said quietly as his eyes locked on mine, "I can't help but worry about you. I can't lose you..."

"There is a difference between me and Joe," Hank replied, "What I do is a lifestyle. Yes, what I do is dangerous and yes, it could kill me one day. But I make a point to keep the club life and my family life separate. I don't intentionally put anyone I care about, especially you, in danger. I don't involve you in any of my club business. Joe was the opposite. He thrived on living dangerously. Like you said before, he never cared about the consequences. What he did was more of a drug. It was his addiction. His selfishness and his greed and his complete disregard for the safety of those he cared about got him into trouble and affected those close to him. I've been doing this a long time, baby girl...I know what I'm doing and I have a good crew watching my back."

He had a good point. I never thought about it the way he explained it.

"I never thought about it that way," I replied, feeling relief wash over me.