Flying

Chapter 25: Truth

"You killed my father." My voice grows stronger as I continue. "It wasn't a dream. I've seen you before. Haven't I?"

"Jimmy, I don't...I was..." Hook stammers, dropping my hands.

"What did you do, Hook?" I yell in his face, refusing to let him look away.

"I'm not supposed to..."

Leaning forward, I grab the front of Hook's shirt and jerk him forward, forcing him to meet my gaze. His eyes darken with guilt.

"Did you kill my father?" I demand.

My hands are clenched so tightly on his shirt that I can feel the blood pulsing through my palms. Hook takes a deep breath. His hands tremble slightly. Lowering his face, he closes his eyes. Time and sound halt for a moment. The splash of the waves, the rising sun, and the cool morning breeze fade away. I can only see Hook's tortured expression before me. Finally, he raises his head and looks at me.

"Yes." His voice breaks. "Yes, I killed your father."

Releasing his shirt, I fall backwards onto the sand. All the strength has drained from my body. I can't move or think or breathe. My heart is pounding in my head.

"Please, Jimmy." Hook kneels in front of me. "Please let me explain."

"What could you possibly say?" I whisper. "How could you explain this?"

"Jimmy, just give him a chance." Merlin stands and crosses over to us.

"I have." A sudden rush of fury sweeps over me like a tidal wave. "Both of you had so many chances to tell me, and you didn't. We were stuck on a bloody ship together for days, and you said nothing. Worse than that, you lied to me."

"I'm sorry. I didn't want to keep things from you."

"But you did," I interrupt, rising to my feet. "All I asked for was honesty. You didn't say anything after I told you about my memory. You pretended to be truthful and honorable just so both of you could get what you wanted from me."

"That's not true!" Hook protests. "I wanted to tell you everything."

"Then why didn't you?" I scoff.

"Because I told him not to," Merlin speaks up. "He was going to tell you, but I stopped him. I saw the two of you on the deck. I knew that you were growing close, so I ordered him to cut contact with you."

"To keep him from telling me the truth." I back a few steps away from the two. "I want to know. Now."

"Jimmy, I don't think that you should know..."

"No," Hook cuts Merlin off. "She deserves to know everything."

Heaving a sigh, Merlin holds up his hands in surrender. Hook gestures for me to sit on the tree trunk while he stands in front of me. Uncomfortably, he shifts his weight, clasping his hands behind his back.

"I didn't mean for any of this to happen." Hook runs his fingers through his hair. "Whatever happens, please understand that I did not mean to hurt you."

"Well, you did." I cross my arms over my chest. "So get on with it."

"I didn't know that he was your father." Hook sits next to me. "After Peter drove Merlin and I out of the kingdom, I started searching for the timepiece. Only the original members of the Order knew where it was kept, and they were all missing or dead. For centuries, I kept looking with no success. It wasn't until Merlin sent Flicker to me that I realized the Order stored the timepiece in a place that no human could reach. The past."