Loving Ashlynn (#Wattys2016)

Chapter 23 - Family Betrayals (Kalenah Conrad) Pt. 2

A/N: NOT THOROUGHLY EDITED.

Chapter 23 - Family Betrayals (Kalenah Conrad) Pt. 2

"Brooklyn please go upstairs and pack your things as well as Devin's," I snapped at the girl, Brennan and Devin whirled to face me, with shock and disbelief on their faces.

Paling, taking Brennan's hand Devin turned to me.  "I'm sorry Kalenah, Brennan it was an accident, I did not mean-" I held up one hand just as Ansel was coming into the house, smiling but that soon dropped when he felt the emotional tension pulsing and rising in the room.

"I was sitting right here," I flicked my finger to my now empty spot. 

"You were trying to make Faith uncomfortable, calling her fire starter, had Brooklyn joining in - and just now - don't even get me started on what you said to Samson, who do you think you are?" not having witnessed anything I just said Ansel came in but slinked off to the side, calm but watching the scene unfold before him.

Devin shook her head, her hand gripping Brennan. "It was an accident, but he can't just do that to Taylor, she's hurt, and it's because of him. They've been close, best friends since they were five years old, and now he just tosses her aside? She's my sister; he can't treat people like they don't have any feelings!" she shouts her eyes are watering.

"We've all been walking around on eggshells for him since Silas died. Everyone was hurting, not just him, and Taylor has stuck by his side from the beginning and now - after how hard we've all tried to make him feel like he was a part of us he's just ignoring her, humiliating her at every turn." Devin was placing all the blame at Samson's feet, but as his mother, I knew I had to shelter some of the blame. The thing I had learned was to let people that wanted to speak, do so until they ran out of fuel, and then burn them with the own fire they started. At this moment, her points weren't too far out, unfortunately.

We didn't let Samson get away with everything; we didn't walk on eggshells but we did avoid topics of Silas, we did know that he needed to grieve in his way, and it had never gotten bad, or to the point where he was in danger at all. He needed time and so we - Ansel and me - we had been giving that to him, watching and monitoring offering our shoulders and ears when he needed it.

"So you think that the best way to help this situation was to make him see that his brother betrayed his trust?" I asked when she heaved desperately.

Blinking away tears.

"Someone had to say it, Faith isn't Silas, he doesn't even know her - none of us do and yet you've welcomed her into a place that you told Taylor and me to consider our home away from home." I had to say I almost felt guilty, almost. Everything Devin was saying did make sense to me, however, what I didn't like was her simple, trouble making methods of going about getting those words out which made me question if she meant them now or if this was something rehearsed?

If this were how she felt, the motives to her actions, coming to me quietly would have been better that all this hostility.