“It’s true!” Dani said.
“Maybe you’re the rotten egg,” Dad said, staring at Courtney, his eyes raging. “Everything you touch tastes like shit.” He picked up his plate and threw it at her. She jerked her body to the right, making the chair topple over, spilling her onto the floor. The plate shattered behind us. Dani and I leapt out of our chairs.
Dad took a lunging step toward Courtney, his huge body towering over her. Dani pushed me behind her as she reached for Courtney, but Dad was already grabbing her arm and hauling her off the floor.
Courtney screamed and tried to pull away. He dragged her toward the stove. I tried to go after them but Dani held me back.
“Do you know what it’s like hearing that shit about my kid?” he roared.
Courtney was begging, “What did I do?”
“Bob calls me in camp, tells me my good-for-nothing daughter’s screwing a married man!”
Dad had Courtney close to the stove. She was screaming. I was sobbing and yelling, “Dad, let her go!”
Dani released my arm and ran for the rifle, pulled it out from under the couch, grabbed the box of shells.
Dad picked up the frying pan, held it close to Courtney’s face. She squirmed, frantically trying to get away. I threw myself at his back, pounded against him, clawed his neck, any flesh I could find. He hit backward with his elbow, catching me in the jaw and sending me to the floor.
He gripped Courtney’s face tight in one fist, her eyes bulging.
“Dani!” I screamed. She had the gun up to her shoulder, aimed at Dad, but she was just staring, her face shocked and white.
Dad pressed the pan against Courtney’s jaw. She shrieked, the sound stabbing into me. Dani stood there, the gun quivering in the air.
I scrambled to my feet, yanked on Dad’s arm, pulling the frying pan away. He lashed out, smacking me hard across the face. I stumbled backward, crashed into the table. The pan slipped out of his grasp and thudded to floor.
“Fucking bitches!”
He wrapped his hand in Courtney’s hair and dragged her down the hall to the bathroom. Her back was sliding on the hardwood, legs kicking out uselessly.
I chased after them, grabbed on to his belt with both hands, pulled back. He swatted at me with his free hand but I didn’t let go. He was at the bathroom.
“I called the cops!” Dani yelled. “They’re coming!”
Our phone had been disconnected two weeks ago.
She was running after us, still carrying the gun. “Stop! Dad, stop!”
Dad flipped up the toilet lid, held Courtney’s face over the bowl. Plunged her down, brought her up so she could gasp at the air, then held her down again. Her legs kicked out.
I beat on his back, picked up the garbage can, slammed it down on his head, but he didn’t stop. Dani held the gun up again.
“Get out of the way!” she yelled, and I dropped the can, moved back to the doorway.
“Let go!” she screamed. “Let go!”
Dad laughed. Water streamed from Courtney’s face. She was gagging and gasping, clawing at his hands. He plunged her head down. The moment stretched out. I couldn’t tear my gaze away. Dani was screaming, but she wasn’t pulling the trigger. Courtney’s hand was loosening. Her legs stopped kicking out.
I grabbed the rifle out of Dani’s hands, aimed for the fleshy part of Dad’s shoulder, and pulled.
The shot echoed in the small space. Dani shrieked. A bloody gash opened on the side of Dad’s neck.
He let go of Courtney, who crumpled to the floor. He clasped his neck, looked at the blood. He turned and came at me, hands out, his face ugly with rage.
“I’m going to fucking kill you!”
Desperate sobs coming out of my mouth, I pulled the trigger again. A small hole opened in his forehead and he dropped to his knees, fell forward. He made a couple of weird sounds, gasping breaths from his chest, then silence. Blood flowed onto the linoleum floor, pooled around his head.
“Oh, Jesus.” Dani ran over, checked his pulse. “He’s not breathing!”
My hands were shaking. I fell to my knees and stared at my dad’s body. Dani had flipped Dad over and was holding his face between her hands, blowing into his mouth, then pounding on his chest, but I knew it was too late. Courtney crawled past Dad, her face and hair wet. She got to me, and I dropped the gun. We gripped each other tight. Finally Dani stopped and sat up on her heels.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck.”
She turned to look at us, tears dripping down her face.
“You killed him,” she said, her voice stunned and shaky.
I’d killed Dad. I’d killed Dad. I couldn’t believe it. I swallowed hard.
“I had to. Courtney was drowning!”
She looked away then, a flash of shame in her face. She wiped at her nose, staring down at Dad’s body again. She put her hands to her head.