Broken Bonds and Stolen Hearts (discontinued)

Chapter 3

"You must be excited, yeah?" Kevin asked as he gave Louis a passing look. But Louis didn't respond for a while. He didn't know if he was excited or scared, he didn't know what to feel.

"Answer me when I talk to you," he growled before smacking Louis's head.

"I don't know," Louis finally responded as he placed his little hand on where he got hit. Feeling his head throb from the smack.

"Jesus Christ. You must be the most pathetic child I have ever seen," Kevin scoffed before he picked up his pace and walked in front of Louis, leaving some distance between the two of them.

He knew Louis wouldn't run, no kid would. Not with all the things they see and hear on a daily basis. Louis tried to walk as fast as his little legs could carry him, not wanting to be left behind and become food for the monsters.

All of them are taught the basics back in the guarded areas, but none of them go through practical practice before ten. A rule to keep whoever pass of them alive long enough to become traffickers. That's what all the kids want, to stay alive. They knew the punishments were too harsh and that even death is better sometimes.

Between where he stayed and where his mother was staying a distance that would take a little less than 3 days to cross. In those 3 days, his father was both cruel and kind. It made Louis question himself a lot, whether he was doing something wrong to make his father angry or if his father was just angry anyways. Sometimes he would give Louis food and water and let him sleep at night while he kept watch. Other times he would hit Louis for no reason, cursing him and saying mean stuff.

3 days passed, and Louis was torn between whether his father was a good person or not. Whether he cared about him or not. But all those questions flew out of his head once he saw his mother holding his little brother in her arms.

She looked happy while she hugged Hugo, who was the spitting image of her. Same eye color and hair color and everything else, while Louis looked more like his father. But she would love him too, he was her child too. Even if there was someone else in the picture.

"Mo-" he breathed out shakily, overwhelmed with emotions as his eyes started to sting. He wanted to run over to her and jump into her lap, but he was stopped by Kevin.

"No. Wait here first," he said harshly, and Louis looked at him confused but still nodded nonetheless. He watched as Kevin walked up to his mother, her face went from happy to shock, and then to fear as Kevin started talking to her. He couldn't tell what they were talking about, but it couldn't have been good because for a second, his mother took a quick look at him, and she didn't look happy or relieved to see him. No... She looked furious and terrified that he was there.

Kevin handed her the note Gary gave him, and she put down Hugo before she took the note and unfolded it, reading it with her eyes before nodding her head at Kevin. They spoke again briefly before Kevin motioned for Louis to come closer.

His mother didn't spare him a look as he walked toward her. She was looking at her shoes as if it was the most interesting thing ever.

"Mom..." Louis whispered, his voice was shaking as he reached out his hands and hugged her leg while looking up at her. He couldn't help the tears that were running down his cheeks. His mother bit her lower lip as she gave him a quick, barely noticeable pat on the head and a quick look.

"I'll be going now. You better fix him by the time the next shipment is ready. Unless you would like to face the consequence," Kevin threw Louis a pitiful look before he walked away.

Once he was out of the picture, his mother placed her hands on his shoulders and gently pushed him away before leaning down to his level. Her eyes were full of fear, and her voice was shaking.

"What did you do??? Why are you here!?" She questioned in a hushed tone, as if she was too afraid someone else will hear her.

"... I didn't do anything. They asked if I wanted to see you, and I said yes. I missed you a lot, Mom," he tried to stop his tears from falling by using his sleeve to wipe them away, but to no avail. He couldn't stop crying.

"Are you... Are you mad at me too? What did I do??" he cried out as he grabbed a fistful of the bottom of his shirt.

"Nonononono... Not here, shhh," she looked around in panic as she tried to shush him, going as far as to place her hand over his mouth.

"Let's go to my room. Hugo! Come here baby," She pulled Louis close to her before she called for his brother, who came running once he heard his name. She had her hand held out for him, and he quickly took hold of it with his tiny ones, letting her lead him to wherever they were going.

"Don't cry Lou, I won't understand otherwise," his mother mumbled only for him to hear as they entered her room. She made sure no one was in the corridor before she closed the door and locked it.

Louis sniffled as he tried to wipe his tears once again.
"What happened to you? Why are you here?" she asked again, with a warmer tone this time.

"They... We..." he sniffled again, feeling the tears pouring down once again as he remembered his friend.

"They killed Rei... They were angry because we finished early and... I don't know. We didn't do anything! I didn't mean for him to die, I swear! And then... I...!" he let out another ragged breath, not able to see his mother now from how hard he was crying.

"THEY MADE ME EAT HIM! I SWEAR I DIDN'T KNOW!" He cried out loudly before he crouched on the floor and cried his eyes out. Hugo didn't understand what was happening, but he didn't like seeing his older brother cry like that. It made him want to cry too.

He went to where his brother was sitting and hugged his head while patting, trying to do the same thing his mother does to him when he's crying.

"I swear I didn't know! I don't know what we did wrong. I don't understand, Mom. Help me! I don't want to go back, please," he pleaded, now crying harder than before as he looked up to his Mom.

"It's what you were born into Louis. I can't help you. No one can. It's your destiny, you have to live with it. Or you will get us all killed," his mother gritted her teeth as she balled her fists in anger, glaring at her crying son for making a commotion.

"Bu-"

"I am sorry. I really am sweetheart, but you have no idea what it's like to live out there. I know... I know that this is cruel and unfair, but it's not going to be better anywhere else." she relaxed her body, letting out a stressed sigh before she knelt in front of her kids and hugged the both of them.

"My sweet little children..." her arms tightened around the both of them and her voice wavered.

"I know it's hard, but you have to accept it. Please... I don't want to lose you two..." she quietly sobbed, running her hand over Louis's hair.

Louis bit his lips, feeling guilty for making his mother cry, for endangering her and Hugo. But he didn't know what he could do, what was there even to do to fix this.