Tradition Comes Third

Headache

Author's note: Bit of a short update. I hope you all enjoy it!

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I cradled my head and tried to get up off of the ground. A sharp pain shot across my temple as soon as I moved my head. I groaned and lied back down. The leaves crunched and I gritted my teeth as I turned my head. Dad's blurry figure walked over to me. I realized that I did not have my glasses on.

"That was pretty pathetic," Dad said.

He got down on one knee beside me. He set the gun down and turned my head to get a better look at my wound.

"It looks bad," he said. "Good thing they're running straight into Jared."

My stomach twisted as a wave of nausea hit me. Ava should have listened to me. If she came back with me, the punishment would have been minimal. Now when JAred found them, they were going to be punished severely. I was going to be punished for letting them get away.

"I'm not going to punish you," Dad said, like he just read my mind. "Leah did a lot of damage to you. Can you get up?"

"I don't know," I said. "It really hurts."

"Here." Dad handed me my glasses.

The one arm was loose and wigged as I put them onto my face. Dad grabbed my elbow, and pulled me up onto my feet. I kept my hand on my head as I groaned in pain. Dad picked up the gun before he put my arm around the back of his neck. I leaned into him as he walked forward. I closed my eyes as watching the ground move under my feet made my stomach twist.

We were walking for a few minutes before two sharp whistles rang through the woods. The sharp sound caused my head to ache even more.

"Jared's found the girls," Dad said.

He picked up his pace. With every step, pain shot through my skull. I gritted my teeth together, and dug my fingers into his shoulder. I wanted to curl up on the ground, and Dad was the only thing keeping me on my feet.

I didn't open my eyes until Dad stopped moving and I heard sobbing.

When I opened my eyes, my vision was blurry and slowly came into focus. Jared had his arm around Leah's throat and was pinning her to his body. She was crying and trying to pull him off of her.

Jared had his gun pointing down at Ava. She was crumpled on the ground, but not crying. Her mouth dropped open when she saw us.

"Girls, you got yourself in quite a bit of trouble," Dad said. "Stand up, Ava."

"No," she said, bringing her knees up to her chest.

"What?" Dad asked.

"I'm not going back to that house," she said.

"You don't have a choice," Jared said.

"Kill me," she said. "I'd rather die than spend my life in that house. I didn't choose this."

Dad slipped his arm off of his shoulders. Without his support I couldn't stay on my feet. I lowered myself onto the ground and kept my hand against my head. I could feel blood running down my arm.

Dad sat on his heels beside Ava. She squeezed her eyes shut and rested her head against her knees. Dad tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. He cupped the side of her face, and pulled her away from her knees.

"Ava, sweetheart, we know you didn't choose this," he said. "We chose you because we saw how special you are. It just takes awhile to adjust, but this is where you belong."

"No, I don't," she said. "You're all crazy."

"We're the crazy ones?" Dad asked. "Look at Hunter. You two nearly killed him. I'll make you a promise. If he dies I will kill you. It won't be a simple shooting. I will make sure that you suffer the entire time. Understand?"

Ava let out a shaky breath. Her gaze was fixed on her knees. Dad twisted his fingers into her hair. He yanked her head back so that she was staring at him.

"Do you understand?" he barked.

"Yes," she said, nodding her head.

"Good," he said. Dad let go of her and stood up. "You better make sure he lives. Help him get back to the house."

I didn't realize that my body had melted down to the ground. I was lying on my side with my head in my hands. My eyes were heavy, and my vision was starting to go blurry again.

Ava got up off of her feet, and stumbled as she hurried over to me. She slipped her arms under my shoulders and tried to pull me up. I tried to help her, but the pain had spread down my neck. Dad helped her pull me onto my feet. I was slumped over her shoulder.

I don't remember the rest of the walk home.

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Fingers were grazing along my chest when my eyes barely opened. The pain was spread throughout my temple. My eyes ached, and the light above caused my eyes to burn. My mouth and throat were dry, and it hurt to breathe.

Ava was sitting on the edge of the bed. Her blonde hair was hanging down in greasy and wet strands. Her eyes were bright red. Her face was pale, but her cheeks were pink. She had been crying. She had a large green T-shirt on. Her fingers stopped grazing along my bare chest.

"I'm so sorry," she said, her voice cracked.

She slipped her fingers through mine and brought our hands up. She kissed the back of my hand before she rested her cheek on it.

"I love you," she said. "Please don't die."