Forced Family 3

E I G H T E E N

Answer to last Chapter Challenge : Louis had his ankle broken

Dedicated to: 

"This book is disgusting," 

Niall glances toward the woman in the checkout lane next to him, she flips through the pages recklessly with a frown, and a disturbed pout paints her features when he returns the book to the shelf she'd swiped it from initially. 

The friend she was speaking to beside her shrugs, "They were just kids, it's not his fault,"

"It's sad he still chose them!" Defending her point, the woman once more takes the book flipping to the first page, 

"To my brother, thank you. Thank you so much for showing me that no matter what you go through, you can always come back home."

"See?! This is gross, he's mental if he can call a place he was held hostage 'home'." As the woman continues pressing her point, Niall feels his throat swell, as if he knew what book was being discussed before he even heard the tragic line he repeats to himself daily.

Shifting his gaze from the pair to the floor beneath him, he inhales shakily as his vision blurs with tears threatening to spill any minute. 

He was never good at these tests the Maliks put him through.

Clearing his throat where it felt like a cactus was blooming, he shakes his head focusing on the moving line ahead of him, his goal was to be in and out of the store in under fifteen minutes. All he needed was milk.

It was one of the many weekly tasks Niall was ordered to follow like the dog the powerful "parents" treated him like. If he returned with said item or completed the task he was allowed to return home to his "family," if not, the chance of his freedom was moved further down the line, with the occasional threat of having him be forced to kill either Liam or Louis would have Niall asking how high when they barked at him to jump.

It wasn't any surprise Niall still harbored the immense guilt for leading these boys to the evil men in the first place.

"I wouldn't be surprised if those two have kidnapped more kids,"

Freezing, Niall's grip tightens on the milk jug, he feels his breath hitch the tears spilling down his cheeks with horror flickering in his oceanic eyes at the underlying threat of someone knowing more. Knots tighten in his stomach, the sudden ache bringing a groan from him as he stiffens in his stance keeping his face covered by the tightly wrapped scarf around his neck.

"Why would they take more? The two still live with them," the friend inhales loudly, "Is this line ever going to move?!" Niall can't help but feel relief that the two had moved on from the book. While he was proud of Liam for even writing a book, he couldn't help but have a deep hatred for the words so thickly stuck onto the pages that oozed with fake love and had a sprinkling of sympathy plastered over a lesson to be taught about learning how to cope with severe trauma.

Liam didn't cope.

fuck the man barely survived anymore. 

Ever since the two had taken in Annika and Thomas it was all Liam did to sulk around the house practically begging to be forgiven for the unforgivable. 

While Annika had lessened her apparent loathe for the man, she didn't sit next to him on the couch during movie night. She wouldn't look up from her book when he entered the room. Annika didn't openly express anything but resentment toward her "daddy", and it was killing Liam.