The Umbrella Academy ~ Number 8

Mamma's Boy

   The siblings, minus Five, all gathered around the small TV on top of the bar to watch the footage Luther was dying to show them.

   Allison was enjoying a drink she made herself while Klaus was blissfully eating a snack beside Eleanor.

   He silently offered her some, which she took gratefully, showing her gratitude with a small smile.

   Luther finally played the tape and the family looked in shock at the scene before them. Their mother doing nothing while their father died.

   "I mean, do you really think Mom would hurt Dad?" Vanya asked, breaking the silence.

"You haven't been home in a long time, Vanya. Maybe you don't know Grace anymore." Luther retorted, earning a scowl from Eleanor.

   "If he was poisoned, it would have shown in the coroner's report." Diego reminded him, but Luther continued.

"Well, I don't need a report to tell me what I can see with my own eyes."

   "Maybe all that low gravity in space messed with your vision." Diego joked and Eleanor could help but let out a laugh as she took another bite of Klaus' snack.

   "Look closer." Diego took a step closer to the television as he faced backwards, the siblings all watching the screen intently.

   "Dad has his monocle. Mom stands up. Monocle's gone." Diego narrated.

"Oh, yeah!" Klaus chuckled, while pointing to the screen.

   "She wasn't poisoning him. She was...taking it. To clean it." Diego justified as he went to stand by Eleanor, but Luther didn't buy it.

   "Then where is it? No, I've searched the house, including all her things. She doesn't have it."

   Diego looked down for a moment, contemplating whether to tell the truth or not before finally coming clean.

   "That's because I took it from her. After the funeral."

   "You've had the monocle this whole time? What the hell, Diego?" Allison exclaimed as the siblings looked to him, shocked at his confession.

   "Give it to me." Luther ordered, reaching his hand out for the monocle but receiving nothing.

   "I threw it away." Diego looked down again, not wanting to discuss this any further, but Luther merely continued.

   "You what?" He asked in disbelief and Allison scoffed before taking a long sip of her drink.

   "Look, I knew that if you found it on Mom, you'd lose your shit, just like you're doing right now." Diego explained and Eleanor couldn't help but understand where he was coming from.

   "Diego, you son of a bitch." Luther spat out as the two men approached one another, itching for a fight.

   Having read their minds, Eleanor stood between them in an effort to prevent another altercation, while Vanya spoke up.

   "Hey, no. Calm down! Look, I know Dad wasn't exactly an open book. But I do remember one thing he said." She began and everyone looked to her, urging her to continue.

   "Mom was, well, designed to be a caretaker, but also a protector."

   "What does that mean?" Allison asked, confused.

"She was programmed to intervene if someone's life was in jeopardy." Vanya finished.

"Well if her hardware is degrading, then...we need to turn her off." Luther said casually, as Diego and Eleanor looked to him with wide eyes.