In Our Blood

Chapter Thirty-Six

Charlie beamed with excitement as the doctor allowed her to leave, she didn't care that she had to wear her arm in a sling for few weeks, she didn't care that she would have to get check-ups on her wounds. She was just excited to finally be out of a hospital, she took her first step outside and breathed in the fresh air.

Basking in the freedom she rightfully earned.

"Where are you going to go?"

She heard his voice interrupt her joy, she looked up at him before carefully shrugging.

---

Charlie stood in front of the burnt hospital; she carefully took steps towards it hearing the crunch under her shoes.

She stood at the broken glass as she looked at the burnt to the ground building, seeing the shells of cars in a pile, seeing burnt beds and desks. Charlie sighed as she struggled to hide her ever changing emotions.

Charlie took caution as she stepped into the burnt building, looking for something, anything that hadn't been taken away by the authorities.

Using the front of her shoe, she kicked away burnt ashes.

"Surprised you came back"

Charlie turned around to see him standing by the do not cross tape; she noted his casual business attire, his white shirt slightly unbuttoned around the neck and his sleeves rolled up, the hem of his black pants covered in dirt and his black shoes covered in dirt with hints of ash.

"I guess I just really wanted to see the destruction." She sighed.

---

Charlie and her father sat down on the edge of the footpath, their back to the destruction of the hospital.

She stared out onto the dead end road; she wasn't sure what to say to her dad.

Her father tried to figure out how to break the silence. "I have to ask, why Charlie?"

Charlie looked at her father's face, she could see that he was trying even though it didn't seem right "Because Charlotte was mum's name and I'm not her." When she was a young child, she loved sharing the same name of her mother but as Charlie began to shake her identity, Charlie realised that Charlotte never protected her daughter from everything that Charlie's father wanted his daughter to be.

He lowered his head "Right." He had named his daughter and hearing her words felt like the last connection to the past was gone.

"You wanted a boy, didn't you?" She tried to find an ounce of regret on his face, but he wasn't regretful.

"Your mother and I just wanted a healthy little child." He softly stated.

"But the way you treated me."

"I was doing it for your protection."

She was sick of hearing that excuse, the only excuse he gave when she dared to question him.

He uncomfortably placed his arm over his daughter's shoulder, she wasn't sure what to think of his interaction.

Charlie knew she'd sound like a broken record if she just said this isn't protection, but she couldn't figure out what else to say, she knew she had existed that sentence during her week from hell. "If you wanted to protect me so bad than why didn't you just teach me how to..." She couldn't find the right words to use as her father watched her, he made an attempt to comfort her "This isn't protection." She tossed a glance at the burnt building than at her father as she attempted to adjust her arm in her sling. "Hunting me down." She sighed as she looked down at her shoes, she found luxury in wearing shoes.

He allowed his daughter to talk, he was allowing himself to actually listen to her for a change.

Neither of them had a reason to get physical especially with Charlie's injuries, he knew they'd be no point to making it worse.

"Do you know why I ran after mum's funeral?" She looked up at her dad.

He didn't respond.

"You left a month before she got sick, it showed me how much you really don't care about us. The hell you put me through, the time I went without having to jump through some command. I watched my mother die, I sat by her bed and held her hand." She felt tears roll down her cheeks "I was only twelve, my fiftenth birthday, we buried mum. I was alone" Her words vomited from her mouth "Do you know what it felt like to be alone? To have a father who spent my childhood putting me through the ringer, do you know what it felt like to watch my mother die, do you know what it felt like when I had no one else. I had to run. I didn't want to find you. I didn't stay put. I couldn't stay put. I needed to run for all the damage you caused." She looked down at her right wrist, remembering why she got the tattoo turtle "I got this to remind myself how much I hated you, remind myself of all the damage you inflicted on my body."

"But I never touched you." He wasn't sure if he was doing it to remind Charlie that he never sexually abused her or if he was saying it to make himself seem like he was still father of the year.

"No but you did worse. You got inside my head, you made me try to kill myself. You got inside my head, you made me kill other people."

"I was doing..."

Charlie cut him off "For protection." She sighed.

She rose to her feet; he took his daughter's cue and rose to his foot.

Charlie looked back at the burnt hospital; she wasn't sure how she felt anymore. She knew she was free but how free was she really?

She looked back at her dad "Truce?" She reached out her uninjured arm.

He clasped his hand in hers as he smiled "Truce." He felt like his daughter was going to stay in his life.

"Please don't chase me. I'm not the same girl you trained."

That sentence had hit his nerve; he wanted to be a father to his daughter, be part of her future and play catch up on her past. He never once thought he was doing anything wrong, he genuinely thought he was teaching his daughter to protect herself, teaching his daughter the worse that life has to offer a young person growing up.

He nodded slightly "Goodbye, Charlotte."

She smiled a little as her father let go of her hand; he turned his back and began walking down the empty street.

Charlie reached into her arm sling, untucking a gun before aiming it at her father, she kept her focus before pulling the trigger.

She watched as her father fall to the ground.

She was finally free, free to live her life. Free to have the life she wanted.

"Goodbye, Dad."