The Bone Cutter

Chapter Thirty-Two

Chapter Thirty-Two

The car-ride to the airport was surreal. I kept glancing at my father, in disbelief that he was sitting only inches away from me. I once even poked him, which made him glance at me as though I was acting irrational and I think I was. 

"I can't believe he let me come." I say finally, the silence was beginning to get overbearing.

"Has he hurt you?" My father's voice was sudden, as if he had been wanting to ask me that this whole time but held himself back from doing so.

"No." I say, in a defensive tone that surprised even me. "He has never hurt me, well, physically."

"I find that hard to believe." He replied, "The way he acted when he said you could come, Mirea, I'm afraid he may hurt you when you come back."

"He wouldn't do that."

"Are you defending him?"

I stare at my father in disbelief, "Absolutely not, I just-"

"Because it sounds like you're defending him."

"I'm not defending him."

"Don't tell me he's grown on you."

"Dad." I stop him before he could spew anything else as ridiculous as me liking Inanis Messor. "I live with the guy; I know how he acts. I feel like I know him, and I know he wouldn't harm me in a physical way."

"So, you'll just let him insult you and throw casual threats at you every hour? Is that it? The way he threatened you tonight, God, Mirea, I wanted to kill him right there."

"You don't understand him like I do." I argued, "That's just what he does. He threatens people when he's feeling-" I pause, as I was going to say Inanis threatens people when he's angry, but really, he threatens people when he's happy too. He just likes to make threats, but I have never seen him actually act upon them. Inanis isn't one to 'feel' things often, so when he does he goes to the extreme. I can't exactly hate him for being dramatic, when that's all he knows. "He's a liar." I say finally, "He's a liar, he loves to lie, it's what he does best, trust me."

"So, the man who kills people for a living won't hurt you because he's such a good guy? I believe that."

"Why are you acting this way?" I shift uncomfortably in my seat, "Can't we just be glad that I'm able to come home for a week? I don't want to talk about Inanis for the rest of this trip."

"That's just it, Mirea." My dad shouting, making me jump, "You coming home with me shouldn't be a 'trip'. This is a fucking mess. You should be making something of yourself right now. You should be going to job interviews and discovering who you want to be. Not caged up in some damned mansion like a prisoner."

"This is how it is, dad. I wouldn't change a thing."

"My life isn't worth this."

"I said I wouldn't fucking change a thing, I'd do it over and over and over, so drop it."

"You've fallen in love with him, haven't you?"

"Excuse me?"

My dad took his eyes off the road and stared at me, "Jesus, Mirea."

"I don't love him, that's vile! How could you even ask me something like that?" My heart was racing from my rising temper. I understood why my father was so angry, but he had no right to make such absurd claims.

"It makes sense." He said, "His mother complaining about how he's been putting his work second."

My eyes widened, "Oh my god." I say, "Is that why she let you come to the mansion? Because I'm a distraction to her son and she wanted to get rid of me?"