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IVY

Brody's dad was missing.

Brody's dad was missing.

Brody's dad was missing.

I repeated those words over and over again causing the nauseous swirl in my stomach to stir my insides even more. Ryan had left as soon as he had read the message, promising to keep me updated later and despite it, the only person I wanted to speak to was Brody. I had to keep my phone secure at the bottom of my backpack so I could resist the urge to text him.

The last person he wanted to hear from was me.

I slammed my textbook shut and shoved it into my bag. My mind could no longer concentrate on studying. I went to stand but paused at the person stood at the end of my table.

"Can I help you?" My body tensed and my voice came out more calmly than expected. Rose shifted awkwardly and chucked her long hair behind her shoulders. Her poker expression wouldn't meet me in the eyes and I almost wanted to laugh.

"Is Brody okay?" She asked and I blinked.

She doesn't beat around the bush.

I raised a brow, "How am I supposed to know?"

What I wanted to say was he's an emotional wreck, a ticking timebomb waiting to erupt and who could blame him?

There was silence. Everyone in the library all continued to talk cautiously, casting uneasy glances at us both. They were expecting round two, which in a way I hoped for. This time I didn't have anyone to stop me.

Rose glanced upward, her mouth pursed but slightly open and loose. Her eyes were fixed as if she's was looking at something behind my head. I let out a fake cough. She blinked, refocused and let out a sigh.

"I thought you would have known," She said.

"Why are you even asking Rose?" I suddenly felt tired, like every muscle was giving in to gravity and all I wanted to do was go home and sleep. I didn't want to be stood here talking to my ex-best friend about a boy who was both our ex's. It was weird and I'd had enough of weird today.

"I heard about his dad.." She trailed and I snorted.

"Of course word travels fast in these halls," I slung my backpack over my shoulder, ready to get the hell out of there, "Why don't you ask him yourself?"

A guilty look spread across her face and she looked down at her silver wedges, "I wish I could but he'd probably tell me to fuck off,"

"He's not the only one," I muttered and she looked up me, her eyes flickering around my face.

She opened her mouth to say something but thought better of it. I took this as my queue to leave.

"Well, it was lovely speaking to you," I walked past her and looked over my shoulder, "But let's just stay out of each other's way," She nodded in response, a slight quiver on her bottom lip and I felt her eyes watching me as I left the library.

If I said I didn't feel bad about my last comment I'd be lying, but I knew Rose and I could never be friends again. If you dropped a vase, it smashed on the floor, you then will try to glue it back together but ultimately no matter how many pieces you recover or glue you use there will always be cracks.

It was shortly after that the final bell rang and I was free from the torture that is high school. The bus rocked from side to side as I traveled the familiar roads towards my house. There were groups of girls from other schools their voices rising and blending together as they talked about their day and the latest gossip. I thought I'd heard Brody's name mentioned but decided I'd imagined it. I was sat at the back, lucky to have a spare seat beside me but also lonely that I didn't have anyone to share my day with. I scrolled through my phone, my Spotify playlist playing through my headphones and I tried to pretend that I wasn't on the verge of having a breakdown. The bus was running over the tarmac so fast that the passing greenery became a hazy blur and before I knew it I was on my street.

I'd never wanted to be at home so much in my life.

I hopped off the bus, nodding thanks to the driver before my feet met the ground. I tightened the straps of my backpack and walked towards my house. The cold breeze blew right through my sweater and my hair fell loose, tousled, tangled and restricting my view. The fading of the sunlight also meant the fading of the heat and I couldn't wait to be inside. I rounded the corner of my street and my house was the first I saw. The lights were on, which meant my mom was home. She'd been home more and more recently, which I didn't complain about. I pulled my keys out of my pocket, the jangle of metal echoing throughout the empty street and I opened the front door.

I was first hit with the sweet, savory aroma that wafted in my face. My stomach clenched with hunger and I dropped my bags to the floor.

"Mom, I'm home," I called out into the open.

I heard the clattering sound of pans and the sound of water boiling. My mom rounded the corner in a floured apron and her hair in a messy heap on her head.

Her cheeks were flustered and she smiled at the sight of me, "Hello, you're home early,"

I shrugged, "I left as soon as the bell rang," I sat on the footstall by the front door and pulled my trainers off. I could feel my mom watching me and I glanced up to find her smile was still on her face.

Weird.

I stretched my legs and then jumped to my feet, awkwardly clapping my hands together and looking around the room. It was clean, I hadn't noticed before but I could still smell the distinct odor of bleach and mom had rearranged the pictures on the wall. She took down the picture of me with only a few baby teeth and in my underwear, which I was glad, it wasn't the most flattering of pictures.

"You hungry?" She asked, walking over and guiding me towards the dining room by my elbow. I nodded my head in response, watching her from the side of her face. I noticed a scratch on her cheek, it was still red so it was fresh. She looked at me, her expression unreadable for a split second before her face relaxed and that same smile covered her face.

She covered her cheek, "I'm so clumsy, I need to file my nails. I had an itch and nearly ripped my face off,"

I secretly looked down at her perfectly manicured nails, all in shape, not a single flaw and decided to not say anything.

The moment I slid into my chair I'm served an enormous platter of food. Fried chicken, mash potato, bread, corn, peas, and gravy. I brought the fresh, warm bread to my nose, inhaling deeply. My mom placed herself in the seat beside me, forking a small scoop of mash potato and placing it into her mouth. We ate in silence for a while. I ripped off a chunk of the bread and stuffed the piece into my mouth. It was soft and warm.

"How was school today?" She asked, her eyes lifting from her plate to meet mine.

I swallowed my mouthful and took a gulp of water, "School is okay,"

"It's just okay?" She frowned, "Nothing exciting happens? When I was in school there was always something going on,"

I played with the peas on my plate, crossing and uncrossing my legs as I decided whether I should tell her about Brody's dad. She might already know, but I figured she'd be waiting to hear it from me.

I looked over at her and my mouth went dry, "Brody's dad is missing,"

She paused her fork mid-air and she wasn't looking at me. I couldn't see her expression clearly from her hair hiding her face. I waited a couple of moments before repeating myself.

"Brody's dad is miss-"

"I heard you," She cut me off, placed her fork onto her plate, which caused a loud clanking noise, "How long has he been missing?"

"Since this morning," I said and I'm surprised by how timid I sounded.

She let out a sigh and grabbed her wine glass. I watched as she took a large gulp and shook her head, "Those Jackson's are always causing drama,"

"I wouldn't say it's drama," I straightened against the chair, "I'm sure Mr. Jackson isn't purposely missing,"

"I wouldn't put it past him," She said against her glass and then turned towards me, "How do you know this anyway?"

"I- uh," I took a deep breath and tried again, "It's been going around school,"

She nodded her head in acceptance. She knew I was lying but decided to not call me out on it. For someone reason, I could sense she had other things occupying her mind.

"I assume they got the police involved?" She didn't give me enough time to answer before continuing, "Usually it's after forty-eight hours they get involved but these rich people they have influences,"

"I wouldn't know mom," I said, picking apart the fried chicken. The grease dripping down my fingers suddenly made it less appealing or so I told myself.

"God I thought my life was fucked," She laughed bitterly taking another sip of wine. I could tell she'd forgotten I was there for a second, my mom never swore in front of me.

"I'm sure they'll find him soon," I said, trying to lift the mood and my mom snorted.

"They'll find him with some young bimbo on a yacht somewhere," She pointed her glass at me, "That's where most men disappear to, towards something younger and shinier,"

I could tell she was no longer talking about Mr. Jackson anymore.

"Don't let men trick you, Ivy," She continued, "Especially men like the Jacksons, they're wolf in sheep's clothing,"

I could only bring myself to nod. I didn't understand why my mom was acting weird, nor did I understand where her hatred for the Jackson's stemmed from. Up until recently, I had no idea she knew they existed.

"Where's Rose these days? I haven't seen her in a while," Her change in the subject didn't go unnoticed but I couldn't work out what was worse, talking about Brody or talking about Rose.

I looked down at my plate, "We aren't friends anymore,"

"You aren't?" She asked, "Since when?"

"For a while now," I shifted uncomfortably. My stomach twisted and I was no longer hungry.

"I didn't even realize," I could tell her disbelief was genuine and I looked up.

"You wouldn't realize mom because you are never around," I instantly regretted the words when I saw her cringe into her chair and her rosy cheeks drained of color.

There was an uncomfortable silence. She lifted her napkin from her lap and dabbed at the corners of her mouth. I watched her do it with precision and focus. After a while, she placed her napkin onto her plate of untouched food and looked at me.

Her voice came out calm, calmer than I expected it to be, "I understand I haven't been the best of moms to put it lightly but I'm trying Ivy, let me try,"

"Then understand it isn't easy for me to forget," I said, "There were years that I needed you the most and you weren't there you-"

A loud thud resonated throughout the house.

And it came from the basement.

I looked over at my mom, her face a mask of pure panic and fear. She went to say something but I got there first.

"What's that noise?"

And just like they say bad things come in twos another thud came from the basement this time stronger than before.

"It's the boiler," She said, her lie not quite reaching her eyes. She latched onto my wrist as I tried to stand up but I shook her grip off.

That noise was not a boiler.

Don't ask me how I knew, I just did.

"We had someone come out recently to fix a new one," I challenged, my head tilting to the side as I watched a million thoughts flash through her blue eyes.

"It must be faulty, we'll have to call an engineer, it could be dangerous" She stood up, turning her back as she searches through her handbag. I could hear her curses under her breath as she chucked items out onto the floor as if she were in a hurry.

"Well, then I'll go check it out,"

I was out of the room before she could protest or try to stop me. I walked towards the door that leads to the basement. My hands trembled and my eyes closed as I reached my hand towards the doorknob. Something was behind there and it was anything but good. My body felt hot and sweat trickled down my neck. I gripped the handle tightly and twisted it. I slowly switched the light on and walked down the stairs. It could just be the boiler I told myself or I hoped. With every movement, I made the more terrified I felt. My breathing quickened and comes to a halt as soon as I rounded the corner.

Suddenly everything was silent except for the rapid beating of my heart. I jammed my fist into my mouth to stifle a scream.

In the middle of my basement, tied to a chair was Mr. Jackson. His eyes were closed and thankfully his chest moved with each breath telling me that he was alive.

Thank god.

I whimpered and my legs collapsed underneath me, I brought my knees up to my chest and a feeling of dread crept up from the pit of my stomach. My heart was throbbing in my ears, loud and irregular, but I barely heard it, for my mind was clouded with fear and confusion.

Why the hell was he here?

I didn't want to believe what I was seeing or what my mind was telling me. I'd never seen anything like this, even in my worst nightmares and now I knew my mind would never be able to erase it. I tried to rationalize it, maybe he'd tried to attack my mom and this was the defence?

But then why didn't she call the police?

Oh my god, this was Brody's dad tied to a chair in my basement. I felt sick, I had a bitter taste in the back of my throat and I needed to get it out. I felt myself wretch and all the contents of my dinner splatter onto the floor. I was far too shocked to be disgusted.

This made Mr. Jackson stir, and after a couple of seconds, his hazy eyes opened and met my own. They instantly widened and his body started to jerk uncontrollably against the chair in an attempt to release himself from the rope.

"Stop," I hissed, darting over to him and pulling off the tape on his mouth. I wasn't comfortably untying him just yet because I wasn't sure about the reason why he'd be tied up in the first place. I wanted to believe there was a plausible reason my mom had done this.

There had to be.

He winced and took a sharp intact of breath, "Ivy, listen to me your mom is the one who-"

It came in sharp and fast. I felt myself lose the color from my face. It was as if my heart had suddenly stopped beating and all the blood had run down into my shoes. I swayed for just a moment, reaching up and touching the wet patch that had formed on the back of my head. I stumbled and turned around to find my mom's face being the last I saw before the blackness took over.

IVY

My head felt wet, my eyes were struggling to open and I couldn't move my hands. As if a turbulent wave washed over me, waking me up and remembering what had happened I sprung open my eyes.

What I saw felt like a kick to the jaw.

Brody was beside me, tied up, tape across his mouth. His eyes frantically scanned over my face and I saw the relief in the eyes when I looked back at him. Next to him was his Dad, his eyes focused on the floor in front of him, almost as if he'd given up any hope.

I'd given up hope the moment I was knocked out by my own mother and tied to a chair in our living room.

Talking about my mom, she was nowhere to be seen. I took this as an opportunity to try to escape. I strained against the zip-ties, blood running over the translucent plastic and onto the floor. I bit my lip to stifle the scream that wanted to escape and I could hear Brody's muffled pleas against the tape. I let out a heavy breath and leaned further back into the chair when I realised it was no use. I could feel beads of sweat and blood running down my face and staining my jeans.

I looked over at Brody to find he was already watching me, his eyes filling with tears as he scrutinised my features as if this was the last time he'd get to see me again.

So many words without a sound.

I told him I loved him in my head and I hoped he'd somehow heard. I didn't know what my moms plan was, I didn't think she had a plan that involved us until we intervened. I still didn't understand why she had kidnapped Mr Jackson, I didn't want to understand, I just wanted to be free and awake from this nightmare.

As if on queue my mom came strolling into the living room. She had changed clothes, this time she was wearing all black and she had an black accessory in her hand.

A loaded pistol.

The muffled screams came out before I could stop myself, I felt like my heart was going to explode and my eyes were wide with fear as they focused on the gun in her hand. I struggled hard against the chair using all my strength to escape but I couldn't.

She looked at me in disgust and rolled her eyes, "Ivy, behave yourself we have guests,"

My mom had completely lost her sanity. I didn't even recognise the woman standing in front of me.

Was this her true self?

Is that why dad wanted to escape?

Or worse had she been behind dad's death all along?

So many questions rattled my brain, I felt dizzy and my head pounded from the injury. I knew I needed stitches.

There was one question that stood out to me.

Was she going to kill us?

I watched as she grabbed a chair, scraping it against the floor as she moved it to the centre of the room. She slumped into the seat and placed the gun onto her lap, stretching her legs out and crossing her arms against her chest.

I had no idea if I was going to make it out of here.

She looked at us all one at a time and when her eyes fell on me she bitterly laughed.

"What happened to promising to stay away from him?" She gestured towards Brody with the gun and we both flinched, "I can understand the allure, but let me get you in on a little secret," She leaned forward and lowered her voice, "The Jackson's aren't worth shit,"

Mr Jackson spat out a curse against the tape and mom shot her head in his direction. She stood up from her seat and stalked towards him, kneeling so she was at his eye level and pointed the gun against his temple.

I heard him take a sharp intake of breath and his body tense so hard, I was afraid he'd crack. Brody shook against the chair, the veins visible in his neck as he watched them both. I saw his knuckles go white from how hard he was holding onto the chair.

The room went silent.

My mom watched Mr Jackson for a couple of seconds, enjoying the way he squirmed and pleaded with her. It made me feel sick.

"Not so tough now are you, Paul?" She half-whispered, but it was loud enough for us to hear.

She placed a hand on his cheek, which made him recoil and she wiped away a tear that had escaped, "What did you expect barging in here and threatening me? Did you expect me to be scared? Like your wife was?"

At the mention of his wife, he jerked his head forward and head-butted my mom. I gasped. She stumbled backwards in shock, reaching out and touching the red patch that had formed on her forehead. She squeezed her eyes shut and I watched as she slowly tried to calm her rapid breathing. After a couple of painful seconds she opened her eyes.

I thought she was going to shoot him, I'd convinced myself that she was and I didn't know what I'd do with that knowledge but when she didn't I was surprised, almost happy that I didn't have to witness my mom murder someone.

She put her hands in the air, "That wasn't smart, but I'll give you it," She walked back over to her chair and sat down. She pushed her hair back from her face and used her t-shirt to rub under her eyes.

All eyes were on her.

"You're all probably wondering why this has had to happen," She looked up and stared directly at me, "If you hadn't of decided to play detective this would never have happened," She let out a sigh, "I'd spent years keeping this from you, from everyone and god it feels good to finally tell someone," She gestured towards Paul, "Well I mean you already knew, so I guess I have to tell the kids, I paid for Eloise Jackson to be killed,"

My brain stuttered for a moment and my eyes took in more light than I expected, every part of me went on pause while my thoughts tried to catch up with what I've been told. I snuck a glance at Brody, who was white as chalk. His eyes and his mouth were frozen wide open in an expression of stunned surprise.

It had been my mom all along.

I'd spent so long convinced that it had been Paul that I hadn't seen what was right under my nose all along.

My brain desperately scrambled to try to make sense of it all but even my thoughts were rendered speechless.

My mom walked towards me and I flinched as she pulled the tape off my mouth. She had the gun pointed towards my torso as a friendly reminder to not scream or protest. My mouth opened and closed like a goldfish gasping for air and I only managed to bark out one question.

"Why?"

She carefully placed a hand on my cheek, almost too sincere in this setting and spoke, "Because Ivy, she was a whore,"

The venom in her voice was so strong, and for a second I realised it wasn't the Jackson's she had hated, it was one in particular.

Her eyes roamed my face before she dropped her hand to her side and took a step back, "Eloise was sleeping with your father Ivy, a married woman and a married man behind their family's backs,"

Was my whole family's foundation based on lies?

She continued despite the fact I hadn't said anything, "Your father had known Eloise since high school, apparently they were sweethearts then, well as the saying goes old habits die hard," She paused and pointed to her chin, "I'd always wondered why when I fell pregnant with you he wanted to move back to his hometown, I guess it wasn't because he wanted to start a new life with me, he wanted to rekindle an old,"

"So you had her killed all because she was having an affair with dad?" The words felt sour in my mouth, an acidic texture on my tongue.

She shook her head, "No Ivy, I had her killed because she had killed your dad,"

If I thought my heart could take all this I was wrong.

My eyes focused on my lap and became glazed with a glossy layer of tears. I blinked and they pooled over onto my jeans, "What do you mean?"

"She was never going to leave him -" She aggressively pointed towards Paul, "For your dad Ivy, come on, you are smarter than this,"

"Then how did she kill him?" I didn't realise I had raised my voice until I saw Brody flinch beside me. I couldn't even begin to imagine what must have been going through his head right now.

"She didn't really want to be with him," She matched my tone and slapped the gun against her thigh, "This was all just a game to her, being with your dad made her feel young, made her feel important and when things got too serious she did what Jackson's do best, she broke his heart,"

"You can't die from a broken heart mom," I stared at her as she was crazy, I mean she was crazy.

I'd heard women killing their husbands and their mistresses out of crime of passion but never in a million years did I think my own mom would be in that category.

Her face fell a little and for the first time she lost her composure, "No but you can die from suicide,"

The penny dropped.

My lower lip quivered as words slowly made their way out of my mouth. "Dad killed himself because," I began, yet what followed was engulfed in the tremors.

"Because Eloise didn't want him," She finished my sentence and slumped into the chair. She wiped the beads of sweat from her forehead with her sleeve and her shoulders hunched over. Her body started to shake and for a second I thought she was crying, but it wasn't until she looked up that I realised she was laughing.

"Your father," She said in between laughs, "Would much rather not live and leave his family behind than live and be in a world where he wasn't with her,"

"You're lying," I said in pure disbelief, she had to be lying, this couldn't be true.

"Why would I lie to you Ivy?" She said regaining herself , "I have no reason,"

She was right.

"I did what I had to do to protect this family and I couldn't bear to see that bitch walking around without a care in the world when my world had just crashed and burned," She looked down at her lap, "I'd found the letters, I realised what she had done and I decided that revenge is best served cold,"

"You're sick," I spat and she jumped to her feet.

She walked over and gripped a large chunk of my hair, I yelped as she yanked my head in Brody's direction. His face was pale and cheeks stained with tears. Our eyes locked and I could see that he was trying to tell me something but I couldn't quite make out what it was. He looked at me and then to my mom, his whiskey coloured eyes dark.

A smile crept over my moms features, "You may think I'm sick now, but wait until I put these two to sleep," My blood ran cold at her words.

"You wouldn't," I challenged and she nodded.

"I would, and then me and you are going to start somewhere new, somewhere we can be at peace again where -"

It all happened so quickly.

One minute Brody was sitting in the chair and the next he was out and charging towards my mom at full speed. His height and strength was an advantage as he knocked her to the ground. The ties had a mixture of blood and sweat on them as their remains laid on the floor by his chair. He must have spent his time stretching the material enough that he could slip his hands-free or my mom had been sloppy in tying him.

They fought for a while, my mom was a lot stronger than she had looked, I prayed that Brody would get the upper hand as he grabbed hold of her wrist to point the gun away. My mom elbowed him in the ribs, which had caught him off guard, he let out a low noise from the back of my throat. She took this moment of surprise to pull the trigger it was loud and defeating, but Brody was quick, he had pushed her arm out of the way and the bullet had missed him by an inch only scraping his skin.

In that moment something else had happened.

The bullet had found a home.

The impact had knocked every wisp of air from their lungs, and pushing them backwards. They fell to the ground in a tangled heap and laid there struggling to inhale, to exhale, to do anything as blood pooled around them.

They only wished the darkness would welcome them and as promised, it soon did.

BLOODY HELL THIS WAS A HUGE CHAPTER!

I will most likely go back and change some bits as not too sure feel like it's a bit poo but I hope you all enjoy! Let me know your thoughts!

QUESTION: Who do you think was shot?

Love D

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