The White Rabbit

Chapter 24

    Bang!
    My eyes are tightly shut sad I wait for the pain. When I look up, I see my dad gasping for breath. I look next to me and see a hole in the floor. Caleb lies behind dad, his nose bleeding and he is panting.
My dad turns to Caleb and I see a large piece of glass sticking out of his back. He pulls the glass out and points it at Caleb. I stand up and notice the gun lying on the floor behind dad. I pick up the gun and point it at dad. Caleb looks at me and notices that I'm holding the gun. Dad follows his gaze to me and chuckles. "Are you going to shoot me Jace."
He turns to me and I hear Caleb yelling at him to stop. "Shoot me Jace," he says. He rushes towards me, the glass in his hand.
"I'm sorry dad." I pull the trigger.
My dad falls to the ground. Blood pools around him. The gun falls from my hand and I drop on the floor next to dad. I hear shots from behind me and I hear the door bang open. Immediately, police rush inside. I look behind me and see the officer that came to Caleb's house to arrest him. He looks at the scene around him and then looks at me.
He turns to his partner and says, "Get an ambulance here ASAP." His partner nods and talks into a radio on his chest. The officer walks towards me and helps me up. His partner helps up Caleb and they both help us outside. I turn and look at my dad and I begin to cry.
I just killed my dad.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    After a long time of questioning the officer, who's name is Steven, tells me and Caleb that our dad is still alive. He also tells us that they found Caleb's house on fire and since Caleb and I were missing, they determined that it was a kidnapping. It turns out that dad hadn't gone to work in a few days and his colleagues were worried so they asked the cops to stop by.
    They also told us that they found Kyle's body. Caleb didn't know about what happened to Caleb so he was devastated when he found out. It took almost an hour to get him to calm down.
    Dad crazily confessed to kidnapping us and a lot more. He admitted to killing mom's friend and killing Kyle.
     When I found out that dad was still alive, I didn't really know how to feel. I was glad that I didn't actually kill him, but that also means that he'll always be out there. I was worried about him coming after me but officer Steven assured me that dad will get at least up to 75 years in jail and if he steps foot near me, then he'll get a lot longer.
    As we walked out of the police station, dad was being escorted somewhere else. As soon as he saw me, he began to freak out.
    "Give me back my son! Jace come here!" He begins to fight the officers and look at me. "I want my son!" Tears run down his face as he yells for me and is dragged away.
     I walk away from dad and out of the police station with Caleb, never looking back.

      +++++++++++++++++++++++++

  I look up at Caleb who's sitting next to me on the couch. We watch a movie in the living room of our new house. It's a bit smaller than his old one but he told me that he always wanted to move anyway. He said that he didn't like having that much space with nothing to do with it.
    It's been almost a week since dad went to dad. School is over and it's time for summer break. Ali and Lizzie came over a couple of times to give me some comfort about what happened.  A few days before dad's trial I began to relapse and cut again. Mrs.Conwell came to our house to talk to me about how to handle a relapse. It took me awhile but eventually, I began to stop cutting.
    "Yes Jace," Caleb asks. "Why did dad kick you out?" I had always wanted to ask him that question, but every time I did he would either change the subject or just ignore the question completely. I know that I should just let it be, but now that everything with dad is over I was hoping that he would open up and tell me.
    He sighs. "It was a few weeks after mom died. I knew that dad was hurting you. I threatened to tell someone if he continued to do it. So he had a friend of his come over and his friend paid dad to molest me. Dad threatened to let it happen again if I said anything."
    He pauses and takes a deep breath. I know that this must be hard on him so I pull him into me and let him lean against my shoulder. He takes another breath before continuing.
    "After a while, I began to act out. My plan was to become so bad that he would want to get rid of me. I couldn't stand staying in that house knowing that he was hurting you and that I couldn't do anything about it. A few days later, he told me that I was going to be moving in with a distant family member. The day I left he told me that if I told anyone then he would kill you. So I stayed silent. After I turned 18, I came back for you. I was hoping to adopt you but dad wouldn't let me near you. He said that as long as I stayed away, then you wouldn't get hurt. He got me the house and paid the bills just to keep me away."
    Suddenly Caleb bursts into tears. "I'm so sorry Jace. I'm so sorry that I left you," he cries. I let Caleb lean against me as he cries. I know how much this must have been hurting him. Keeping something like that inside will destroy you from the inside out. Caleb has always been there for me and now it's my turn to be there for him. I'll be his anchor.
    When Caleb calms back down he looks at me and smiles. He looks down and smiles at Harry snuggled tight in my arms. I follow Caleb's gaze and smile. Harry's white fur tickles my arms. Even with the black stitches around his neck, I don't mind it at all. I snuggle Harry close to my chest. Whenever I hug Harry, I can almost feel my mom's arms hugging me back. It comforts me and reminds me that I'm still alive. I've been through a lot and I know that I have a long way to go before my life is ever normal. But right now, I'm content right here. I smile down my little Harry.
    My little white rabbit.

            

The End