Unconditional

I whimper. What did I have to do with this? I wasn’t even born yet, let alone in the Grayson’s life.

“You came into the picture and then all of a sudden Aria wasn’t concerned with having children. She had you. Even though YOU WEREN’T OUR CHILD. I waited and waited for her to be ready, for years. Then I realized that you were enough

for her. Having you filled the void of the child we lost. The one we created. God, I’ve hated you for so long.” He growls and I sniffle. “I felt like an asshole for hating a child but you just ruined fucking everything.”

He slides his knife across my arms and down my legs and he presses it in slightly. I scream into the rag when I feel a pierce of the blade

…and then I hear his voice like a boom. “Drop it or I’ll fucking shoot you.”

I don’t have much range of motion based on how I’m tied up but I hear his voice and then he’s in front of me, a gun pointed at Henry who’s kneeling in front of me. Cal doesn’t look at me, my guess because he knows it would throw him off and he needs to stay focused.

“Baby brother,” Henry slurs. “Oh wow, I’m shocked you found us so quickly. I had no doubt you would, you were always like a bloodhound when it came to this one.” He chuckles and stands up. “I will say though, I finally get the allure about her. She smells…fucking decadent.” Cal cocks his gun, holding it to his forehead.

“Madeline, close your eyes.”

I do as he says but I can still hear. “Why?” Cal’s voice wavers slightly, but still mainly full of conviction.

“Again, with the why. Maddie and I already had this nice little talk about our slut mother.”

I hear a punch and the sound of bones cracking and I open one eye to see Henry on the ground. “Don’t you ever speak about my mother that way.”

“God, you are such a mama’s boy. Well, for the sake of everyone being on the same page.” He spits out some blood. “Your mother had an affair.” He chuckles. “You’re not really a Grayson, I guess.”

I open the other eye slowly. “What?” Cal takes a step back, his eyes wide with confusion, devastation, sadness. Everything. I can’t imagine what Cal is going through in this moment. Henry has officially lost his mind, kidnapped me and I’m tied up in the corner. Now, on top of everything, he’s about to learn that he and Henry have different fathers. I just want to wrap my arms around him and shield him from the pain that is seeping into his veins like a poison he’ll never be completely free from.

“Margie fucked some guy and got pregnant with you. I don’t know who, neither did my father.”

“How…how do you know this?”

“Because he DIED you fucking dick! He died, and I never got to know him! His current wife reached out to me a week ago. I flew to Boston to meet her, and she told me everything. Mommy Dearest broke his fucking heart when she had an affair and he never got over it. God, he wanted to hate you. But he couldn’t. But he also couldn’t look at you every day and see what she’d done.” My heart breaks in my chest hearing Henry put the sins of everyone on Cal’s head. Margie’s infidelity, Henry’s father leaving and then never reaching out.

None of this is your fault, Cal.

I watch as Cal looks away for just a second, his guard lowering as Henry’s words hit him hard. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn’t have. He wouldn’t have blinked twice. But it’s his brother, and I’m here, and I know it’s throwing his police intuition off. There’s no other reason why he’d let his guard down and give Henry the opening. Henry, who’s now standing, kicks him in his chest sending him and his gun flying from his hand and they both reach for it. Henry gets to it first and manages to get to his feet which sends a feeling of dread and terror through me. I thought he was drunker, but I wonder if I was confusing it with being high because now his eyes look almost manic. I’m screaming over the rag, and I’m trying so hard to push it out of my mouth so I can scream or cry or tell Cal I love him. Henry points the gun at Cal, keeping it a mere inch from his forehead. Kill me first, please. I can’t watch Cal die. “So, here’s how it’s going to go. Trust me, I would love to kill you first, but I want you to watch what I do to your precious Maddie first.”

“Fuck. You,” Cal growls. His eyes are angry, but I can see the pain in them and it weighs heavily on my heart. I don’t think I’ve ever seen Cal cry, but his eyes are glazed and my legs almost give out from underneath me when I see the first tear escape and trickle down his face. “I can’t believe you did this.” He blinks his eyes, clearing the tears from his eyes. “I’ve always looked up to you.”

“I didn’t do anything, dear brother. You did this. Your rotten fucking existence. You and your slut dug your own graves.” He cocks the gun and the sound is almost deafening.

I love you. I love you. I love you. I chant in my head, as I squeeze my eyes shut and prepare for the end.

In that second, something whizzes past my ear so quietly, I thought it was some sort of flying insect. My eyes open and I try to turn and look to see what it was just as the door flies open, and Henry sinks to the floor, red pooling from his chest as his mouth falls open and his eyes are wide with horror.

Oh my God!

I squeeze my eyes shut and scream so loud and so hard over the rag, I think I’m going to throw up. I vaguely hear Cal call for me, but the sounds are all running together. My vision is blurred and black spots encroach my sight. The weight of the day comes crashing around me and I suddenly feel the inability to stay standing a second longer. Cops are surrounding me in an instant and before I realize it, my arms are free and the rag is expelled from my mouth. My limbs feel like they weigh at least a hundred pounds each, and they must realize that I’m seconds from collapsing because before I hit the ground, I’m in familiar arms.

“Maddie, stay awake for me, baby. Eyes open.” I can’t even lift my arms to wrap around his neck. I just want to lay down on a flat surface. My body feels so weak and I pray it’s just the adrenaline wearing off and nothing more serious.

“So…tired.” I hear voices surrounding me. “Victim not shot,” “No wounds,” “Suspect confirmed dead.”

“No. Stay awake,” Cal grits out and my eyes flutter. I feel something brush against my lips and I think it’s his lips, but I can’t say for sure.

“You came,” I whisper, I’m trying to force a smile but I have no idea if my lips are turned upwards at all. I love you, my mind thinks, and I try to speak the words, but I can’t even muster the strength to open my mouth again.

“I NEED A CART.” I hear him scream and then I’m floating. Floating away into nothingness.

Darkness.