Chapter ten...
"What?" Jessica blinked in surprise, if she expected anything what she heard was not one, how could Isabelle have killed her brother? the Isabelle she knew was kind and gentle and sweet, Isabelle cared too much to hurt a soul, so what really happened? She wondered. "It's not true, I know you Isabelle, you can barely hurt a fly, so tell me what happened?"
"Guess you don't know me as much as you thought then"
Isabelle's tongue darted out to lick her lips, she could taste the saltiness of her tears coupled with the metallic coppery taste of blood, she did bitten her lips hard to keep from crying out.
It was the most painful day in Isabelle's life, she did lost her brother and indirectly her parent, it was a day she would always live to remember. She closed her eyes, begging the tears to go away, with her hands around her self. She has never told anyone what happened "I was eight, it was summer and it was hot" she took in a deep breath and closed her eyes, begging the pain to go away "I wanted ice cream, strawberry ice cream and they was just chocolate and vanilla left." She sighed "I wish I did listen" she held her self tighter, eyes clench closed "I killed him, Jessica, my parents where right, it's was all my fault"
Jessica closed her eyes tightly, begging the tears to go back, she couldn't cry, Isabelle needed her, and she wasn't going to ruin it with tears. But she could imagine the pain Isabelle went through, whatsoever happened she was just eight, was her parents that mean that they couldn't forgive, where they that driven by anger?
"My mom told me, she promised she did have the help buy it the following day, during grocery shopping, but I insisted. I wanted the ice cream that day." She gazed out of the window, as if lost in thought "I loved my brother more than I did my sister, and he loved me too" she smiled at the memories, "Annabelle was always rude to him, and he was nine years older than us" she chuckled, "he would always sneak in sweets to me and Annabelle would alway snitch on us" she sighed as she held the window railing "Dave was the best brother anyone could ask for, and I killed him"
"That your parents think so, doesn't make it true. That they blame you doesn't make it your fault" Jessica said sitting up, giving her a tissue.
Isabelle scoffed "when I insisted on going with the driver to get the ice cream, he insisted on going with me" she held her self again, as if looking for comfort. "It was a normal car ride, we were busy playing and not concentration on anything, just before the traffic, our driver phone rang, and he picked up," she sighed again and shrugged "we didn't even know we had reached the traffic light, we didn't even notice that the driver was answering his cell, when the car crash happened, I woke in the hospital."
She scoffed and laughed out sarcastically "when I woke up, I did thought things were still the same" she wiped her tears "how wrong I was. I called for my mother but got my nanny instead, I was in a coma for two weeks and my mom never visited" she looked at Jessica with her tear stricken face, "now tell me, what sort of a mother is that?" She scoffed "about my father" she waved as if telling her to wait "he didn't even care if I lived or died, I spent extra four weeks in the hospital and nobody visited, I asked after my brother every day and nanny Teresa would always tell me that he was going to come soon, but he never came, my brother died at the scene of the accident, he never made it to the hospital"
She closed her eyes as more tears spouted out, for the first time since the incident, she was actually allowing herself remember, she was not trying to fight herself, she was letting go, allowing the pain flow out, relieving her to her surprise, been able to talk about her parents gave her an immense kind of relieve. "After that day, everything changed, I wasn't the favorite before but the favoritism was more prominent. When I came back from the hospital, I became an outcast in my own family, people who were supposed to protect me, slowly took the life out of me, they all blamed me for his death, if I hadn't insisted on strawberry ice cream, nothing would have happened"
One could hear the sadness mingled with pain as she scoffed and laughed, while Jessica handed her another tissue "I had nightmares and nobody cared" she closed her eyes reminiscing what had happened "for years I couldn't sleep, night fall became my phobia, I dreaded it as one would a rattle snake, but you know what?" She looked at Jessica, shaking her head " when my mother found out that Teresa got me a therapist, she kicked against it, threatening to fire her" she smiled, " she said I deserved everything I got, that I, Isabelle McCarthy deserved nothing but pain." She collected another tissue " for years I craved to be loved. For nights I wanted my father to at least complement my hard work, just like he did my sister. My mother to look at me with anything else other than hatred, maybe a little bit love like she did my sister, just a little. I wanted to go with my sister to parties, be her friend, but it never did happen."
She sighed, "so when I left, I knew I was not coming back, I knew I was done and done I was, what a coincidence that I met you" she looked at the used tissue paper she did pile up "and finally today, I did what I should have done for a very long time ago, I buried the dead, and to me they are dead.
And there is no relationship between the living and dead" Isabelle's eyes glinted, she has never felt such freedom, finally she did let go.
Jessica closed her eyes, it was painful to hear what Isabelle went through and it was more painful to look at her face, but now looking at it, gave Jessica immense pleasure because on her face was written 'hatred.' And one thing was certain, Isabelle hated her family and Jessica couldn't be more happy.
'Coincidence my foot!' Jessica thought with a smirk.
***
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Unedited.
Nnenna.
