A Broken Truth

22: Personal

I met Arthur at the end of the bridge. He was just standing there, waiting patiently.

I walked up to him, "Where am I sending the letter to?"

He smiled and handed me the letter, "There's a store in your city. The owner is an author. This letter is for her."

I grabbed the letter and tried to read it until Arthur grabbed my wrist with a tight grip, "Don't read it. Deliver it right now. Do I make myself clear?"

I quickly nodded and he let me go. I went back to the city and walked into the store, all while avoiding the police. When I walked in, everything was knocked down and there were scratch marks on the counter, along with broken windows. I saw a white cat with black spots sitting on the counter. It tilted its head while looking at me. I didn't see Peri anywhere.

The cat meowed and Peri peeked over the counter, then stood up.

She sighed, "Hi, sorry that my store is a mess..."

I handed Peri the letter, "This is for you. Um...if you don't mind me asking, what happened here?"

"Oh, you don't need to worry about it..." She replied as she grabbed the letter with a shaky hand.

I looked at Peri with a worried expression, "Are you ok?"

"Yeah, don't worry about me." She laughed nervously.

What is she hiding?

Isaac's voice echoed in my head, "Her other hand looks like it's holding her side...I think our little spy got hurt."

Isaac, don't be mean...

"Did someone hurt you?" I asked her.

Peri smiled, "I'm fine, really. Anyway, who is this letter from?"

I looked down, "It's from Arthur..."

She paused before speaking, "Oh...is that so? Well, thanks for bringing it to me. Are you two friends?"

I almost laughed but held it back, "Not even close."

Peri laughed, "I thought so. It seems like you were put up to this. Why?"

"I don't know...he didn't say. That's one of the many reasons why he's an asshole." I said as I rolled my eyes.

"You look...kinda tired. Are you ok?" She asked with a puzzled expression.

I sighed, "Well, I am tired...but I'm fine. If you say I don't need to worry about you, then you don't need to worry about me...I'm going back home. See you, Peri."

Peri waved goodbye as I walked out of the store. I went back home and straight to my room. I closed the door and lay in bed.

"Finley...how long will you be sulking like this? It can't be forever." Isaac said in a concerned tone.

Just shut up...please.

He growled, "Don't 'just shut up' me! I'm trying to help you."

It's. Not. Helping. Wanna really help me? Be quiet!

I covered my head with my pillow, hoping that would somehow silence Isaac.

"Fine..." Isaac went silent after that. He sounded hurt.

My guilt haunted me again and I quickly tried to go to sleep. Eventually, I was able to take a nap.

I found myself standing in the grey room yet again. It felt like forever had gone by since the last time I was there. Isaac was sitting there, staring at the grey wall before he looked at me. The walls had cracks. Pieces of the wall fell to the ground.

"The room...it's falling apart. But why?" I asked in a panic.

Isaac stood up and looked at me, frowning. "This room can't hold itself up anymore because your mind is unstable. Please, let us help you..."

Those were the last words I heard before I woke up in fear along with a throbbing headache. I fell off my bed and slowly stood up. I saw Isaac leaning against the wall nonchalantly.

I looked at him with a puzzled expression, "Weren't you in my head?"

He nodded, "Yes, but your mind is no longer safe for me."

I checked the time. The clock said it was 2:36 pm. I sighed and walked back to my bed before Isaac pulled me away.

"No more bedtime. You've been sulking long enough."

Isaac dragged me out of my room and Serena helped him. They forced me out of the house and into the forest. They sat me down gave each other a high five.

I glared at both of them, "Did you two plan this?"

Serena nodded, "We had to get you out of your room somehow. Plus, you need to talk to us. We know you still feel bad, but avoiding it isn't healthy."

I sighed, "Look, I appreciate your concern, but there's nothing to talk about...what happened to Connor was my fault and that's it."

"You have it all wrong, Finley. Arthur is to blame for this. You have every right to be angry at him. That's why you punched him! He deserved that! It's his fault for being petty about it." Isaac explained with a determined expression.

I frowned, "But if I didn't punch him-"

Isaac interrupted, "He wouldn't have learned that you are a threat if he isn't careful. That's why Arthur killed Connor."

"He probably wanted to 1-up you and gain control. Arthur wouldn't hurt you directly because he obviously needs you for something, right?" Serena asked with a frown as if she encountered a bad memory.

"How do you know that?" Isaac asked Serena in confusion.

She sighed, "When you date an abuser for a long time, you tend to notice a pattern in their behavior...Arthur acts the same way from what both of you have said about him and I noticed his behavior towards Finley in the alleyway: manipulative, controlling and aggressive."

He definitely fits that description...

Serena looked at me and smiled, "I know it'll take you time to move on from this...but we believe in you, Finley. We'll be here for you every step of the way."

I looked down shyly and smiled, "Thank you, guys..."

Serena and Isaac smiled. We group hugged. I felt a little better after that talk and that hug. It reminded me that I wasn't alone.