She made a sound when she saw me that sounded like she was in pain, but it was weak.
“No,” she moaned. Her eyes widened and tears streamed down her face, running over her trembling lips. She reached out her hand to me, but it was a sluggish attempt. She managed to lift it only for it to slump back to her side.
She tried to speak, but she couldn’t seem to manage more than a mumble. “I think something is wrong with the lady.”
I moved forward to help her, but his hand on my shoulder stopped me. In his hand was a gun. “She’s fine, son. For now. I want you to kill her.”
“Wh–what?”
“If you simply kill her, you’ll be free.”
“But, Dad, I don’t want to hurt the lady.” It was the first time I had called him dad, and strangely, it didn’t feel right. He didn’t feel like a father. He didn’t feel like my father.
He pressed the gun in my hand and lifted it with my hand to aim. “You’ve already done this many times. What’s one more?”
The gun felt much too large for the hand I held it in. I’d only begun to practice with them before the life I knew changed drastically. It was loud, and my arm would always be sore after they made me shoot it. Each time I held one didn’t do anything to diminish the foreign and uncomfortable feelings.
The last time I used one was still fresh in my memories. It was the first time I’d ever used one on my own, and, unfortunately, I remembered my training too well.
Lily was gone.
I blinked away the tears, afraid my father would mistake them for something else. I managed to keep it steadily trained on the woman who knelt in the corner. She was much too pretty for the tears streaming down her face. Her eyes were much too bright for the sadness it held. I knew she must have been afraid to die, but why didn’t she beg and plead for her life like everyone else?
“Gabriel, my sweet boy,” she whispered soothingly, finally finding her voice. Her voice held an unnatural quality to it, and her eyes, wide when I entered, drooped. Her whole appearance just seemed to fade. “It’s okay, my little boy. Do it.”
Why was she telling me it would be okay? She was the one who would die. She must have thought I was someone else. Maybe she was looking for her son.
Suddenly, I wished she were my mom.
A strange, beautiful woman who I’d never met before but felt a connection to.
“Why are you calling me Gabriel?” I lowered the gun to study her. I couldn’t shake the familiar feelings, and the feeling that hurting this woman would be a mistake.
I looked to my father for guidance. “Dad?”
“It doesn’t matter what the bitch calls you. Do you want your freedom, boy?”
“Yes.”
“Then kill her,” he sneered. He took my hand and lifted the gun again, pressing my finger into the trigger. All I had to do was squeeze a little more, but for some reason, I didn’t want her to die.
I shouldn’t do this.
I couldn’t do this.
“It’s okay, Gabriel.” She nodded her head weakly. The tears were endless as they fell from her eyes.
You’re not Gabriel. Just kill her. You’ll be free.
“I will always love you.”
What?
The gun went off.
The blast was loud, but I didn’t feel the pain in my arm. It reached far beyond the physical. I didn’t remember squeezing the trigger. I didn’t remember killing her, but there was one thing I would always remember hearing…
“Good job, son.” My father’s evil chuckled echoed behind me. “You just killed your mother.”
Chapter Fifteen
Lake
Present Day