Assault With a Deadly Weapon || N.H / 1D

77.

Song recommendation: Afraid by the Neighborhood
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"What do you mean Dad?" Niall's voice was immediately laced with a string of panic.

I couldn't process anything around me. My heart was pounding, my head was spinning, and I couldn't control my thoughts. I blinked what felt like a million times, trying to make sure that what I was seeing in front of me wasn't just my imagination running wild. Every time my eyes opened, he was still there. My gaze darted across his body. This couldn't be my Dad. My Dad was dead. But he was standing in front of me.

"Phil, is this really your father?" Niall's voice blurred into the back of my head. I felt a sickening feeling arise in my stomach. My throat and chest felt like it was on fire.

"I know this is-"

"Excuse me!" I pushed past Gorilla and ran to the bathroom, barely making it to the toilet before spewing out the three mimosa's and handful of almonds that I'd consumed that morning. Before I could even open my eyes to see the damage, there was somebody holding my hair back.

"It's okay." Niall comforted me quietly. "We'll get through this together."

I wiped my mouth with toilet paper, then flushed it down the toilet. I sat on the bathroom floor, breathing heavily. My mind didn't feel like it was connected to my body. I was just floating around in space.

"Let's stand up." Niall helped me get to my feet, holding my waist to support me.

"That's-" I said quietly. "That's my Dad."

"It is?" He looked at me with concern.

"It is." I nodded. "He looks exactly like him."

"But your Dad's dead." He shook his head in disbelief.

"You'd be surprised how easy it is to fake your death." A voice said from the doorway. I looked over and saw the face of my father. I still couldn't believe it. "Can we talk about this?"

"Does it seem like we have time to talk about this?" Niall squinted.

My gaze dropped to the floor. "It might be the only chance we get."

"Ophelia, they can't kill you." Gorilla reminded me. "You're a McBride."

I'm not a McBride.

"Arabella isn't." I let go of Niall and stormed out of the bathroom. "And neither are you two." I sat at the table by the window. "If we're talking, we're talking now."

The two men followed me warily and sat at the table around me.

"Are you really her father?" Niall asked as I tapped my foot on the floor furiously.

"I'm Ben Carter. I'm her father." He replied, and I knew he was being honest. "Are you really her boyfriend?"

"That's an irrelevant question." Niall's jaw clenched.

"Is Mom alive?" I blurted, making both Niall and Ben go still.

Ben's eyes lowered to the table, taking in a deep breath.

"I said, is my Mother alive?" I repeated in a firmer tone.

"No." He replied quietly. "Neither of them made it."

My breath hitched in my throat. My Dad was the only one left.

"Where have you been?" I questioned again. "You've supposedly been dead for three years."

"I've been hiding out in California, at our old beach house. Remember that place?" He tried to make peace with me. Of course I remembered that place.