(sorry for the typos, i will edit it later)
Harry stands up first, before I can tell him to wait.
Fear is eating at me from the inside out. It must be the man I saw in the woods.
What if they found us?
Harry slips into his shirt as I stand and search for my bra on the floor. He waits until my shirt is back on to look through the peephole.
"Charlie? He calls.
I stand up abruptly and walk to the door in a panic.
"Look."
I stand up on my tippy toes and look through the tiny hole. There isn't anybody there.
Before Harry can question it, I swing the door open and let the cold breeze hit my bare arms. I look down on the matt at the pure white envelope and frown.
Picking it up with unstable hands, I flip it over and look for a name. As I guessed, it is addressed to Charlotte.
I open my mouth to speak but no words find their way. Harry snatches it from my hands to examine the print.
"I know this hand writing." He claims.
"I...I do too." I whisper. Harry's eyes look up, questioning my words.
"Lets see what it says?" he suggests and my eyes widen. I snatch it from his hand and take a step back. Turning around I rip the envelope open and unfold the letter. I know Harry is behind me looking over my shoulder, but it is too late for me to care about him seeing what it says. The words on the letter are drawing me in.
"Charlotte,
You are just like your mother, so good at running...hiding. But you haven't quite learned yet that I am no fool. You think I have no clue where to look, how to find you, but you are wrong. As I write this, I am staring at your mother, bruises covering her what used to be beautiful face. You see, Charlie, you think I will not kill her. You think. But you do not know me, as I do not know you. She is not needed alive. I found you without her before and as you see, it's not difficult to find you again. Be back in London, at my work, by 5 pm tonight, alone. If you are a minute late, her throat will be slit.
Yours and only,
Gary."
I am not sure if my heart or my knees drop first.
Harry is saying something to me but I can no longer hear him. I imagine my mother with bruises and cuts... because of me.
"Charlie?" Harry whispers gently, his hand rubbing my back. I am crouched in some sort of fetal position with my hands covering my face because I feel so ugly. I feel ugly, like a monster, because of what I have done.
"Charlie talk to me!" Harry yells. I crawl away from him, wiping the tears from my own eyes. Harry is worried. He is looking at me like I am some crying one year old and he doesn't know what to do with me.
"I need to leave Harry. I need to go now."
Harry's eyes lower. "No. I won't let you Charlie. Gary is too dangerous." He says, stepping closer to me. I tilt my head in confusion.
Wait.
"You said you didn't know your boss's name. You said to you and Zayn he was just Boss. How do you know his name is Gary?" I say, my eyes widened.
Harry's face falls for a moment. "I just figured. Who else could Gary be?" he whispers taking a step closer to me. I take another step back.
Holding the envelope as if it could actually protect me, I study Harry's eyes. I see concern... I know see concern.
But I no longer see that concern is for me.
"Give me your keys Harry." I say, carefully, studying his body movements. He shakes his head.
"I can't do that Charlie."
"You have been working with him haven't you?" I scream. Fury takes over me as I step closer him and push him. He fumbles a step back but stays standing up right.
"No Charlie , of course not! How could you say that?" he accuses me.
"You...You took me out here! You took me far away so he could kill my mom! It's been you all along! God damnt Harry give me you keys!" I scream, rage running through my veins.
"Charlie you are acting crazy."
Am I?
He knows more than I know he knows. He has to.
I am not crazy. I am a fighter and I need to save my mom.
"Where are your keys?" I say. At the same moment both his eyes and my eyes flash towards the kitchen. He looks back at me and I know he is lying to me.
I can't trust Harry. I think I have known it all along; I just never listened to myself.
Suddenly, I take off in a sprint towards the kitchen and Harry runs after me. I dive for his keys but he pulls me back.
"Charlie I just want to keep you safe. You have to stay here!" He struggles to say as I squirm out of his arms. I reach for the keys, looking down at the pocket knife attached.
I cant.
But I have to save my mom. Quickly, I go with my gut. Turning around and flipping the pockett knife upward, I sink the biggest blade into Harry's thigh. His eyes dull as I yank it out, watching him fall to the ground.
He's clutching his bleeding thigh as I run for the door. He's calling my name, pleading but I don't turn around. I keep running.
Ellie's voice is in my head right now. She's screaming at me, telling me to turn around; that Harry is the only good thing that has happened to me.
But it's too late now. I have made a mess and I need to fix it. The last thing I need is to put all my faith into someone I can't trust.
With that thought I hop in his car, looking anxiously at the door, hoping Harry hasn't already stood up. With no sight of him, I start the car put it into sports mode .
~
I arrive in London 4:30 with an urgent need to pee and tear stained cheeks. How could I have been so stupid to forgive Harry for drugging me?
If his intentions were truly good in the first place than why would he do that?
My thoughts are swarming, taking over every ounce of me but I choose to ignore them. What has and should be the only important thing is saving my mom.
Parking Harry's car a few blocks away from the alley that leads to Gary's club, I take a quick look at the city around me. Inside of me, I know that I wont come out of there. I know this a suicide mission. There is no way my mom and I are both making it out of there today.
And I need her to make it, no matter what she has done.
Because I forgive her.
There is a difference between forgiving peopke for their wrongs and forgiving people for their mistakes. My mom made a mistake. She hid my father from me out of her love for Ellie and I. It wasn't her fault that Ellie was killed.
It was just a mistake.
I forgive my mom.
Just as I forgive Ellie for staying in the cabin even when she could have left, being that I left the key for her.
But I can never forgive myself. And that is why I deserve this.
With that, I nod silently to the beautiful city in front of me and make my way down the alleyway.
The guard at the door immediately opens the door before I say anything. He looks at me with sympathetic eyes.
I feel like I am walking to my death.
Actually, I am.
I make my way to the main lobby. Luckily, the bar isn't filled which means there has got be some fights going on. The thought sends a sharp pain through my chest.
That was me before.
Taking a seat, I glare at the bartender checking me out. Gary didn't specify where I was to meet him so I decide to sit here until I begin to think that not meeting him exactly where he is can be considered late.
I stand up then, not wanting to risk it. Walking over to the bartender, he raises his eyebrows at me. He is good looking, with trimmed blonde hair and a large button nose. A shame he lives here.
"I am looking for Boss. Where is he?"
His eyes shift immediately. "Oh. You're Charlie." He all of the sudden looks scared.
"Yeah? What's it to you?" I growl.
A slight smirk creeps in on his face. "Boss's orders not to touch you. I'll lead you to his office." He says, stepping out from behind the bar.
"So you all just listen to him? Like you're his puppy dogs or something?" I say, following him. The bartender laughs out loud.
"He's not the person you defy. But you obviously don't get that." He huffs, stopping before a large brown door.
I cross my arms. "He is a despicable man." Is all I can make out to say.
"Well good luck but I am not going to lie to you. When Boss says don't touch someone, it means he plans on it." He says. I nod at him, expecting nothing less from someone like Gary. As I step through this door, I know I am giving myself away.
It's a choice and it's my choice. You sacrifice yourself for the ones you love. You do it with dignity and you do it with hope that something good will come of it.
~
Gary's office isn't even an office, it's more like its own house. I stand at the front and gaze around. His voice startles me.
"Charlotte."
I almost don't want to acknowledge it' pretend that I didn't hear and that they aren't here.
"This way." He says so I turn towards his voice.
"Where is she?" I whisper.
"She is fine. I want to talk to you, my daughter."
"I am not your daughter." I hiss still frozen at the door. I watch the shadow of his face fall.
"You can deny it all you want, but blood is blood, my Charlotte."
"I may share your sickened blood but I will never be your daughter no matter what you say. Just as you will never, ever be my father." I cross my arms.
"Well, why don't I show you what I have planned for us then?" he smiles.
I stand there, frozen until he takes a step closer.
"Fine, take me to my mother first." I say. He nods and steps closer to me. For a moment I almost think he wants to embrace me or something but instead he walks past me and sets his hand on the knob.
"We cant let any bad people get in." he grins, pushing the lock in.
More like you can't let anyone out.
Then, I nod at him and follow him down the hallway.
We enter through a dark room and I hear the door shut behind me. The old Charlie would panic and immediately mentally figure out where is the best place to punch a guy. But now, I have reason. All I cared for all these years was protecting myself. Ellie protected me and when I could have saved her, I ran.
So now...now it's my turn to save someone.
The lights turn on in a flicker at the same times as my mouth falls.
"Mom?" I say. Her pale face looks up to mine as I stare at her. Her face is fair but no bruised. She sits silently on the couch attached to the wall, not even tied.
"You're okay." I breathe, stepping closer to her but she shakes her head at me.
"Charlotte." She whispers in a grave tone.
I look back at Gary for the slightest second and I see it.
"No!" I immediately scream, charging for the gun in his hand but he pushes me out of the way and holds me against the door. He taking a roll of rope out of his pocket and ties my hands to the nails in the wall.
"You can't do this!" I scream but he only removes the gun from his pocket once more. "Mom! Fight! Run! You have to run!" I scream, but my mom sits calmly on the couch.
"This has to be done Charlie. I have done wrong." She whispers, her eyes stained with tears.
This cant be happening. This isn't happening.
"I know Mom. I know. But I forgive you!" I yell, struggling to get out of the rope burning into my skin.
"You see, your mother puts up this façade. You think she is so good to you. You have no idea what she has done." He turns to me, loading the gun with a golden bullet.
"Gary please don't do this." I whisper but he only laughs in retreat.
"Why don't you reveal to her Evelyn, everything that you have done out of the goodness of your pure heart hmm? If you love your daughter so damn much then tell her. Tell her everything."
"I'd rather her die than she ever know." My moms whispers in horror, her eyes not meeting mine.
What is going on?
What else is there?
"You are so pathetic Evelyn. You can't even tell the truth in your last minutes."
"Tell her how you knew I wasn't dead. Tell her how you contacted me, tell her of the lie you created!" he says furious.
Instead of looking at my horrific father, she looks at me. "I love you Charlie. You may never understand the things I have done, but I had reason. When you are a mother, I hope you understand. I really do."
Gary huffs. "I will not tell her! This is your sin Evelyn!"
My mom closes her eyes in peace. "Keep me alive if you wish but I will never bury my own daughter in the sorrow I have created."
Gary looks at me for a moment and I don't recognize the look in his eyes.
"Please. Dad. Please." I whisper, the words stinging at my tongue as his gun points straight at my mother's forehead.
Gary smiles. "But Charlotte... you said I would never be your father." And with that last word, I close my eyes because I know that's it.
I know I failed.
Then he pulls the trigger.
~
And this is now only the beginning.