Logan...

My chest tightened.  My father, and now Logan, and everything I once knew was a lie...

"Do you think Logan has more to do with this than we think?"

Alex nodded slowly, running his hand through his brown locks, his hair falling into his eyes.

"By the looks of it, yes". Alex slowly turned around and faced the door.

"Do you think father moved to this house because of Molly and whatever they were planning to do, not because of work?" Alex looked downcast, tightening his lips into a straight line, narrowing his eyes.

"I wouldn't be surprised!"

I slowly got up from my sitting position. I walked up the stairs, the smell of must filling my nostrils, grabbing the cold handle I pulled down.

"Damnit!! It's still locked!" I silently cursed to myself.  I turned around and placed my back against the door, sliding down and sitting on the top step. Leaning my head against the cold wall, I looked ahead of me into the damp darkness.  The light illuminated the space around me, slowly fading the further the steps went down.

Out of the darkness, came my brother, his steps echoing around the walls of the narrow staircase.  Stopping beside me and sitting down, his hands supported his face, brows furrowing as he sighed.

"How long are we going to be down here?" He sighed with annoyance, rubbing the nape of his neck.

Before we could complain any more, the sound of a key turning in a lock filled the room.  With an air of suspense, I looked at the slowly opening door.

"Mom!" Alex cried with relief, standing up with excitement, as a flood of light filled the dark staircase.

"I'm sorry!"

Slowly our Mom opened the door fully, stepping to the side to let us by.

"Where's father and Molly?", I asked, looking around the vacant hallway.

"I don't know.  He left with Molly and said that he'd be gone for a few days, because of work.  But I think he was lying.  Why would Molly go with him?"

A flood of relief filled my body, knowing that Molly wouldn't be here.  But I felt guilty of the way I thought of my father.

"I'm sorry I wasn't here; I was meeting up with some friends"

I shook my head, my hair falling from behind my ear.  "It's fine; you didn't know"

"Are you ready?", my mother whispered in a timid voice.  I nodded.  We followed our mother out the front door.

"Brook, Alex, I want to let you know that your sister...".  Slowly, she stopped and let out a sigh.

"Please don't tell your father.  He's beginning to scare me"

"What's he doing to you?"

Our Mom looked pale.  She adjusted her cuffs and turned on her heel.  She was now facing the car.  "I don't want to talk about it, not just yet.."
~~~
As the car started, the familiar feeling of the hum of the car came to life as our mom rolled out of the driveway.  She turned onto the pothole-filled road, every bump and pothole rocked the car slightly, moving me in my seat. Reaching out, our Mom switched the radio on; scanning the dial in an effort to find a decent station.

The journey felt long and agonisingly boring.  My cheek was against the cool window, the vibration of the car making me sleepy.  The sound of the radio became more distant. The sudden Jolt of the car woke me up from my light slumber.  Pulling myself up, I looked out the window, droplets from the light shower running down the window.

Turning around, our mother faced us, her hands clenched, causing her knuckles to whiten. "Before we go in, I-I need to tell you something".  By now my Mom had completely turned around and was facing us, twisting her wedding ring nervously.

"Your uncle has custody of your sister"

"Why!?"

"Well..."  Averting her eyes, our Mom Olivia continued.

"After everything that happened, your father began to change.  He began to drink much more and got involved with bad people.  I couldn't leave him.  He started to do other things, getting involved with the police.  This ended with your father going to court.  In the end, your uncle Rufus gained custody of Sophia.

Your father calmed down after he found out I was having you two, but eight years ago, he began to change" By now, our Mom was slouched in her seat, her hands crossed, looking down at her feet.

"W-what happened after?" I asked, stuttering.

"I couldn't leave.  He-he said and did some things to me.  I was
afraid that he would do something to you, so I stayed with him.

I also wanted you to have a childhood with a mother and a father.  Then, after what happened with you, Brooklyn, that's when he really began to change"

"A-all this time, he was faking!" I looked at my brother in disbelief, my voice cracking as I covered my face with my hands, holding back any emotion.

Nodding, my mother opened the car door, running to my side and opening it, engulfing me and Alex in a hug.

"I'm so sorry.  I know I've been a horrible mother, but I was trapped in his lies.  He controlled me, and I was scared".  She tightened her grip on us as she spoke.

With every word, I felt myself crumble.  All this time, my father was just a cruel selfless man, and was putting on an act.

Slowly I felt a tingling sensation in my stomach.  The more I thought of my father and the way he treated my Mom, the more it grew.  Soon, I felt strong resentment towards my father growing into hatred.

Slowly letting go of my Mom, I got out of the car, my feet hitting the gravel floor.  Looking up I was surprised to see a small brownstone cottage nestled between many oak trees. A stone path lead up to the old-fashioned wooden door.  The smell of freshly cut grass filled my senses.  The sound of birds chirping their songs calmed me.  Hanging baskets hung from the wall with an array of purple and pink tulips. At the end of the path, there was a concrete ramp leading to the door.

Walking up, my Mom turned around rather abruptly. "This never happened.  Whenever you're around your father, don't say anything about today"

"OK"

As we knocked, a gruff voice shouted "Coming!", which was followed by footsteps. The door opened.  Greeting us was Uncle Rufus, who had a rectangular face with angular cheekbones and a sturdy jaw bone, his dark green eyes contrasting with his dark brown hair.  His brows furrowed, as he wore a scowl, showing wrinkles. Once he saw us, his frown cracked and turned into a slight smile.

"Ah, Brooklyn, Alexander, Olivia, how are things?"
Before anyone could answer, his smile disappeared and turned back into a scowl. "Is Charles here?"

My Mom shuck her head, indicating that our father was not here, "He doesn't know".

Rufus once again smiled, waving his hand into his humble home, gesturing us to come in.

As we stepped inside, a blast of heat hit me, nearly causing me not to breath with the intensity.  I looked around.  The fire was lit, filling the small room with crackling noises.  The fire had a warm and fierce energy.  It danced when a breeze from the open window threatened to put it out, embers glowing around with an occasional popping sound from the burning wood.

"You finally brought Brook and Alex to see Sophia?" Rufus asked, walking to the kitchen and filling the kettle with tap water.

"Yes!"

Rufus beckoned us to sit at the kitchen table.  As we sat down, Rufus brought over a biscuit tin. "Hmm, we have green tea or Black tea?", Rufus asked, stroking an imaginary beard, deep in thought.

"I'll have green tea", I said, looking at my surroundings.  The smell of herbs filled the air, and the sound of the kettle whistle gained my attention.

"I'll be back in a second!".  With that, Rufus disappeared down a hallway, coming back in seconds.

As he came back, he rolled in a wheelchair, in which was sitting a girl, her long, brown hair tied into two braids.  Her dull, blue eyes were staring at mine.  Her small and dainty nose was tinted red, like her cheeks, as a result of the immense heat.  Her bright yellow dress flowed down to her knees, and was crinkled around the hem.

"This is Sophia.  Sophia, this is Alexander and Brooklyn, your younger siblings".

Looking at us, Sophia nodded slightly.  Her stare was overwhelming, like she was looking through us.  Her facial expression never changed.  The only thing that signified movement was her slow blinking and her chest moving when inhaling and exhaling.

After a couple of long agonising minutes, Sophia started to sway her head and was whispering.  Her voice was hoarse as if she hadn't spoken in a long time.

"Fake, Framed, Cat Lady, Fake, Framed, Cat Lady", was repeated over and over again.

"Fake - Father
Framed - ?
Cat Lady - Dahlia, no Molly.."

End of Chapter 21

Thank you for reading Chapter 21 of 'The Terror Within'!