Through the Dark (Sequel to Taking Chances)

Chapter Forty-Four: "Affected"

Brielle
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I had never felt so betrayed, so lost, as I did when I looked out upon the dirt trail below the house. Everything looked different, from the beautiful bed to the curtain, even the car we'd driven on our way here. Was any of it actually Charlotte's?

Was this safe house even safe?

Adopted.

Adopted seemed like the poorest term for what happened to me. I was taken in. Told that Anna Pattson was my mother and Leo Pattson was my father. My birth certificate even lied to me. Charlotte kept the secret close to her heart, never mentioned a word, even when she told me about the three years my fath-Leo spent in jail, missing my first three years of life.

Judie didn't hate me solely for delusion of Liam being innocent. She knew he killed them. She was the bitch who led him to become a killer! And all for the fact that her precious sister died giving birth to a baby named Brielle.

Claire, Harry, Niall, Zayn... lying to me about the return of Liam Payne... that was nothing to worry about. Wanting to protect me from that monster... that seemed like a distant cakewalk. Judie knew all along, and she was going to kill me before I knew of it.

Time failed to kill me. That's what she meant. Not because Liam didn't kill me when he tried, but because she'd done all she could to get me to commit suicide. She was trying to make me kill myself!

I was so outraged, yet so confused and broken. Was anything besides Claire, Harry, and Niall a truth? Was there not a lie yet untold?

Anna and Leo Pattson were not my parents. They took me in.

How could I just accept that and not do anything dangerous? Anything stupid? Had Charlotte lost her mind?

The click of the bedroom door broke the silence, and I turned swiftly as I began to tell whoever it was that I didn't want anyone to bother me. I just wanted to be alone.

Claire, however, never listened to me when I told her to leave. She was stubborn like that, always there despite the fact that I didn't want her to be at times. Maybe deep down I still wanted her company. It would cover the fact that I didn't push her away when she pulled me close and hugged me so tightly I could hardly breathe.

She didn't say anything, but she didn't need to. She simply held me and made sure I leaned on her for support.

When she left, I was left in my broken silence, and I found myself curling into a ball on the bed. I just couldn't take anything anymore. I wanted to sleep it all off. I wanted to wake up and look around to see that everything had changed. I wanted to be safe, to know all truths. I didn't want to be a part of this family anymore. I wanted it all to stop.

The light had vanished outside when Niall finally came to bed. He stripped nearly all his clothes and climbed into bed, his t-shirt soft and warm against my arm. For a few minutes, he said nothing, too. He just laid there, watching me silently, judging and contemplating. Perhaps he was deciding whether he still wanted to be with me, after finding out my family was still delivering all the lies they'd kept to themselves until they deemed it necessary to tell me. I didn't blame him for questioning it. I was questioning how deeply I wanted to fight this battle now. I was just sick of it all.

"Come here," he whispered, halting my thoughts.

Sighing, I scooted closer and turned toward him, closing my eyes as I snuggled close to him. The smell of his cologne warmed me, reminded me of something familiar and sweet. Something I loved. It almost calmed me down.

"You're still Brielle. You're still the woman I fell in love with because of her compassion and her ability to see good in those who do not deserve it. You're still you, baby. It is only the people around you who have changed. You're just finally becoming your own self. That's all that really counts."