Runs In The Family

Left Her Mark

HENDRIX'S POV:

I walked into the house with a grin on my face. I knew there was more to her and I wanted to find out. But we'd spent almost three hours at the park, talking about the most random things.

Yet in those three hours we'd never kissed. Not even the thought of it appeared in my head. And that was a rare thing. She was rare.

Trixie. She had me hooked. I chuckled softly to myself as I locked the front door.

"You let her go!?"

I heard shouting coming from the living room and glanced through the glass panels. Dad was holding a guy in a chokehold whilst he gasped for air and Mom had a gun aimed at his chest. He was the same guy behind Trixie in the store.

They'd sent someone to kill her?

I held my breath as he looked in my direction. But he wasn't stupid enough to blow my cover. Even if he did, I was the son of a highly dangerous mafia leader, not even a single hair on my head would've been harmed.

"S-Some boy" he spluttered "he just took her away from me, I couldn't do anything"

Dad pressed harder on his windpipe, the soldier's face slowly turning red. Any second now either his windpipe would be crushed or Mom would send a bullet through his head. And it wasn't even his fault.

"Please!" he begged, putting his hands up in surrender as Mom loaded her gun. I swallowed, my throat starting to turn dry.

"You never turn against Nikolai 19" said Mom. Without thinking, I burst into the living room causing everyone to look in my direction. Dad let go of the soldier and I watched him fall to the ground, avoiding eye contact with me.

"Hendrix? When did you get back?" said Mom, lowering her gun as I took a step inside.

"It was me" I said, watching her look over at Dad in confusion. He shrugged his shoulders and they both looked at me.

"I'm the one who got her away from him, I ruined your plan, I'm sorry"

"What?" whispered Mom, taking a step closer to me, her hands curling up into fists. Sometimes, I wondered whether she had anger issues.

"You did this?" said Dad, looking at me in disbelief. I nodded, looking down at the ground.

"I just didn't want you killing random people"

"She's not random!" screamed Mom "she's Mattia Polibio's daughter, you fool!"

I looked up at her, slightly shocked but not completely. It was obvious Trixie was hiding something. She just hid it extremely well by keeping her walls up.

"Mom I hate NJ13 as far as I can throw them but getting their children involved is wrong" I argued.

"Go to your room" she said, her voice dangerously calm. I wanted to stay and argue but she wasn't going to listen. They never did. I'd always wished for a normal family. Being born into this lifestyle was never a good thing.

I walked upstairs and saw my little sister standing by the stairs, clutching her pink blanket as she looked at me with fearful eyes. She was only 4, she was happily living a normal life. For now.

"Why aren't you asleep, Daisy?" I asked, picking her up in my arms as I walked back to her room.

I vividly remember tucking her in at 8pm before I went out for a walk and met Trixie. It was now past midnight.

"Are Mommy and Daddy fighting again?" she whispered, clutching onto my shirt a little.

I sighed, slowly shaking my head. There was no easy way to tell your baby sister that your parents killed people for a living. As far as she was concerned, they were having arguments.

I was going to do everything in my power to keep her as far away from this life as I could.

"No Daisy, they were just talking" I said, setting her down in her bed. She crossed her arms across her chest, looking up at me.

"Why were they so loud then?"

She was four, not stupid. I laughed to myself and shrugged my shoulders, turning out her Disney princess nightlight. I walked to the door, glancing back at her as I closed the door gently.

It's always me, I thought as I walked back to my room.

Why was I always the one in charge of keeping this family together? Why was I always the parent since they were too busy killing people? I hated it.

I changed into nightclothes and went to wash my face when there was a knock at my door.

Daisy walked in, a huge frown on her face as she held onto the little pink blanket I'd gotten her. I already knew she was going to ask to sleep in my bed. It was becoming a regular thing whenever she heard our parents yelling.

I kneeled down to her height, tilting my head at her when she stuck out her bottom lip.

"Okay" I said, watching her smile widely at me before running over to my bed and jumping into the white sheets. I went to the bathroom and did a skincare routine since that was my only kind of therapy whenever shit like this happened.

I washed the mask off my face before walking out the bathroom. I switched the light off when I heard two gunshots go off downstairs. They must've been in the basement because the sound was only faint.

I blinked back the tears since Dad had always told me they made me less of a man before dragging my exhausted body over to my bed.

I pulled back the covers to see Daisy sprawled out, taking up all the space. I sighed and got some blankets, making the floor into some kind of bed. But all the shuffling must've disturbed her cause her voice woke me up as I was drifting off.

"Why did you go out today, Hendrix?" she asked. I thought back to meeting Trixie and a small smile appeared on my face.

"Just to meet someone" I lied.

"A girl?" she asked. I rolled my eyes at how nosy she was but at the same time I wanted to tell the whole world about Trixie.

"A very pretty girl" I answered before drifting off again I'd definitely be seeing her again.

A/N: I loved writing this chapter sm