We reached the parking lot of the hospital, its sight as looming and ominous as the storm that was forming in the sky. Daniel turned the car off after giving me a reassuring smile and got out, quickly making his way to my door to open it for me.
My hands were visibly shaking- either due to the cold or nerves, I wasn't too sure. Daniel must've noticed that my uniform was quickly becoming soaked in the rain, because he shrugged off his coat and draped it over my shoulders. The act hit me with such nostalgia that I felt emotional all over again.
Taking a deep breath, I looped my arm through his and walked inside, ready to see my friend again after so many years.
We reached the room where Amelia was admitted and I hesitated in front of the door. After a few beats, I walked inside and was instantly greeted by the rest of the members of the family.
All of whom I had been close to before I was forced to disappear and left a gaping wound in their lives.
Daniel's younger brother and sister, Edward and Elizabeth, who were both older than Amelia and were twins took turns hugging me. Elizabeth was in tears, and after finally releasing me, she cried in her husband's arms. Edward led me to the bed where Amelia lay and she suddenly opened her eyes. The moment she saw me, she averted her eyes and sat up abruptly. Edward tried to calm her down but it didn't work because she began to yell,
'GET OUT'
I tried to speak to her, but her yelling intensified and she covered her ears while shaking her head. Daniel firmly told Amelia to be quiet, to which she glared at him and told him to make her leave. He relented, 'she's your best friend. She came all this way to see you because you tried to hurt yourself'
Elizabeth stiffened at his hard tone. When I tried to interfere and opened my mouth to say something, I felt Edward's hand on my shoulder and turned to see him quietly shaking his head.
Amelia was still fighting with Daniel, 'the reason all of this happened is because she left'
My chest ached as I heard this admission and I grabbed my best friend's hands, who in turn was struggling to pull them away. Her limbs flayed about everywhere and struck me in the jaw but I didn't let go. I couldn't. I grabbed her shoulders forcefully and made her look me.
'I'm disappointed.'
Tears burned in my eyes as I spoke, keeping my voice low, just a hairbreadth away from a whisper.
'You really thought so little of me to believe that I would just leave like this for no reason'
Amelias face flushed and guilt flashed in her eyes. I continued, not wanting to leave anything unsaid,
'I left because..i had to. I left to protect all of you, even though it was the hardest thing I've ever done in my life. Even though it broke my heart'
Daniel stepped forward and sat down next to me, 'what happened? What do you mean protect us?'
I sighed. This was it. I began my story and spoke in one breath, spilling out everything until my heart felt lighter, 'when i turned sixteen, i got a letter from my father. My father who was in prison, who i thought was dead. He told me that he had some gambling debts with the mafia, and he didn't have the money to pay them off'
I paused slightly, took a sip of water to try to calm my rapidly beating heart before continuing, 'he said that he offered them me as payment. That I would have to marry whoever they set me up with, anyone they chose who was in the mafia. I couldn't go through with it. He said that if i refused to comply then the mafia would come after the people i care about.'
Everyone in the room had fallen silent at these words, and Amelia was visibly crying.
I hung my head in shame. 'So i-i left. I didn't know what else to do. I was terrified that they might hurt you, so i just..left, just like that' she laughed nervously, 'it's pathetic, isn't it? I joined the police force so i could learn how to protect myself, you know. I planned that I'd cut off contact and never come back here. But then I found out you had nearly died and i just couldn't stay away.'
I say this to Amelia, who has tears streaming down her face and she pulls me into an embrace.I say the last thing, yet the most important one,
'I'm sorry'
I allow myself to relax in Amelia's arms, exhaustion pulls at me after i revealed everything to them. Daniel's hands are fisted at his sides, and the intensity of his fury surprises me. I sit back and take his hands, asking his without words to keep his promise. He looks at me with an intense gaze before he finally nods tightly. Thank god. I couldn't imagine involving him in this mess. This was my fight, and i was going to face it by myself.
A few hours later, Daniel dropped me off to my apartment after making me promise that I would visit again the following day. I agreed instantly, even though I had work, but some things were too important to miss. Before he left, he handed me a card with an address written on it, along with an instruction to come to that location in two weeks time. The request confused me but I complied, having complete trust in Daniel. It was only after I went there two weeks later that my life completely changed and everything I thought i knew about Daniel proved to be wrong.
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