Forced To Love | ✔

Chapter 38

Alyssa's POV

A photograph?

"Look at this.", he passed it to me to have a closer look.

I took it reluctantly, unsure as to what the photograph had to do with anything.

I held it before me with Henry peaking over my shoulder to view it too.

It was a potrait of a family. There was a man in police uniform. His arm was draped over a woman's shoulder and a small boy was standing in between them. All three of them were smiling happily.

The man had striking blue eyes along with black hair while the lady had warm brown eyes with similar coloured hair. It was clear that the boy took after both his parents with his brown coloured hair and piercing blue orbs. It didn't take long for me to recognise who it was.

"Is this you?", I looked up in shock at Liam.

"Yes.", he answered curtly.

He continued to stare at me intently as his eyes searched mine as though they were expecting me to say something. I glanced briefly at Henry who was shooting daggers at Liam. Henry was undoubtedly pissed at him. But, there wasn't much he could do than stare at him for now.

"This is your mom and dad, right?", I squeaked as my voice got caught in my throat from his intense stare. I looked back down at the photo and observed his parents. They were good looking people. Liam definetely inherited their good genes.

"That's my dad and yes, she was my mom....." he paused briefly, causing me to look up at him again.

He then continued as his penetrating gaze bore into mine.

"Until she became yours."

It felt like the whole world was spinning around me. I heard Henry's muffled gasp through the white cloth that covered his mouth.

I could hear the relentless pounding of my heartbeat echoing inside my ears.

"No, you're lying! It can't be...", I shook my head in denial.

"Look for yourself, Alyssa. Look at her face, don't you see the resemblance?", he pressed on.

How could this be?

I stared down the woman's face in the picture. Now that I took a closer look at her face, the similarities were more palpable from the hair and eye colour to our face shape. I exchanged looks with Henry and I knew he saw it too.

"Does that....does that mean you're my brother?", I swallowed the lump that formed in my throat as I asked him the question.

"No, not brother. But, half-brother.", he replied nonchalantly.

"Half-brother? What do you mean?", I was beyond confounded now.

"Why don't we start from the beginning? My father was a reputable police officer who excelled in his profession. He loved his job the most until he met her.", he pointed to the photo in my hand before continuing.

"When they met, it was love at first sight. They married just after a few months and about a year later, I was born. We were a happy family. Then, when I was six years old, I was told that I was going to be a big brother. I was elated until my dad found out that baby wasn't his. The lady that I called mother...she cheated on the man who loved and cherished her without any guilt. After he found out, she ran away to her lover and sent a divorce notice to my dad. She didn't even care about him or me. My father couldn't take the betrayal. He turned to alcohol and drugs. He began to neglect his job and it wasn't long before everything went into a  downward spiral. He would come home and smash everything around the house. There was once he snapped and slapped me. I still remember how he fell to the ground and cried for so long after hitting me. He felt like a failure. He wanted to make things right once and for all."

"What do you mean by made things right?", I interrupted him, as I was curious to find out what had happened.

At that moment, a wicked grin formed on his lips.

"It was about a year after she left, my dad realised that he couldn't continue living like this. So, he found her new address and took me along to visit her. I didn't want to see her but he promised that the visit would be short one. I had no other choice but to oblige. When we arrived at her home, she was shocked to see us at her doorstep.", Liam looked off to the distance and spoke absentmindly, as though he was reliving that moment.

"Then what happened?", I probed him further, eager to find out more. I was glad he didn't snap at me for interuppting him again.

"She invited us in to the house. My dad apologised to her for everything. She was taken aback but she apologised too. She then left us abruptly and brought you into the room in her arms.", he shifted his eyes back to me.

"You were crying and wailing around like an annoying brat. My dad carried you in his arms and cooed into your ears. You still didn't stop crying until your father came home from work. He didn't expect to see us there either but after explaining everything, he calmed down and forget about what had happened. We sat down and ate dinner like a big happy family. Soon after, it was time to say goodbye. You were already sound asleep in your room. That was when....Dad drew his gun out."

I didn't want to hear what he was about to say next.

"It all happened so fast. There were no words exchanged between anyone. He shot your dad first and then her....both their limp bodies fell to the ground. Then, my dad...he...he put the gun in his mouth and shot himself.", Liam scrunched his eyes shut as if he were in pain.

Unrestrained tears surged to my eyes and rolled down my cheeks. I turned to Henry and saw that his eyes mirrored mine too. He felt the loss and pain that I was experiencing too. Deep within me, I mourned the loss of my parents whom I never got to know.

"It didn't take long for the police to arrive after the neighbours had heard the gunshots and alerted them. I honestly didn't know what to do....I just sat there in a daze amongst their bodies. I was shocked, sad and confused. The police tried to question me but I never opened up. They ruled the entire case as homicide and that was the end of that. They sent to me to a foster home and all I knew was that you were being sent to an orphanage for adoption. That was the last time I ever saw you. But, I promised myself that it would not be the last time you saw of me."

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