Page 100 of Forbidden

Chapter Nineteen

Tyson

“Someone has to go up there!” Eve looked between all of us, frustrated. Clearly she was worried; we all were worried. “She hasn’t left the house all week! And now look, another Monday and she hasn’t left for school!”

I think that was our first sign that something was wrong. Last Monday, Hannah didn’t go to school. In fact, she hadn’t left the bedroom apart from going to the bathroom. Mum kept leaving food at her door. We had all been talking to her through her closed and locked door.

And when she did make those breaks to the bathroom, it was quick and it didn’t give us enough time to get up there and see her before she disappeared into that bedroom of hers.

Yesterday I said I was going to knock it in which ended up with Dad just growling at me to leave her alone.

I told Dad it was his fault Hannah wasn’t leaving her room. And that was true—he had hit her, causing her to lock herself in there. But I was trying to get the point across that she wasn’t leaving the room because she knew he was home.

Like she was going to extra lengths to make sure she didn’t have to see him.

I suggested we tell her Dad wasn’t home to see if that got her out. And my idea was going to work till Eve snapped saying Hannah needs to face Dad before more time passes, and as if she knew what Hannah was thinking, Eve kept going on about how Hannah took time to think before making a decision and we needed to get her to see Dad before she made a decision.

“She may just be running late,” I finally said something. I couldn’t believe Hannah was missing school on purpose—that shit just didn’t happen.

Mum gave me a dirty look as if I was stupid. “It’s after twelve, Tyson. She isn’t running late. She simply isn’t going.”

“We’ll do what Tyson’s idea is. Tell her I’m out. At least that might get her out of the room.” Dad picked up his bike keys. “If it does get her out then tell me and I won’t come back. Give her space away from me.”

We all knew that was the last thing Dad wanted but if him being here was causing a problem for Hannah, then he would leave. He was hoping she would come down. But that didn’t happen.

Mum was still defensive about the whole thing and was still really pissed at Dad.

Eve wasn’t really talking to either of them, and when she did her voice had a bitchy tone to it.

Then there was me trying to keep a ruined puzzle together. The doorbell went off. I think everyone knew not to come to the house. It wouldn’t be a salesperson cause who the hell would think there was a mansion at the end of a dirt road behind a biker club.

We all looked at each other.

We had all pretty much stayed home apart from going out to get take away and usually it was always ones of Hannah’s favorites. We’d left the food at her door with hope she would open for it. But she hadn’t.

We had all had a conversation with her bedroom door. And not once had she spoken back to one of us.

The only one of us not to talk to her door was Dad. He knew better. The doorbell went off again and then suddenly they were banging.

“Something might have happened with the club,” I said to Dad. Because let’s face it, no one else would have the guts to come to the mother charter’s president’s house and bang on his door.

“Brad would just come in.” Dad’s eyes went to Mum. “Have you called your sister?”

There was this thick and tight tension between Mum and Dad, and what Dad just said had clearly just made that tension tighter. I sure as fuck didn’t want to be anywhere near them when the tension snapped.

Mum’s eyes sharpened. “You think Kim is here? You really think I need her to back me up?” Mum took a step toward Dad, uncrossing her arms.

Fuck. It looked like she was one second from lashing out all her anger on him.

“God, calm down you two!” I stepped in between them. I looked between them. “I’ll get the door.” I said as the thudding on the door got louder.

Whoever it was sure as hell would be regretting ever knocking on our door. And they were lucky I was the one answering the door and not my parents who were ready to kill at the slightest thing.

Layla

You know when your gut tells you something is off? When you just know something isn’t right? That is exactly what I was feeling when Hannah messaged me at the start of the week saying she had a bad case of gastro and wouldn’t be at school for the week.

She told me she’d rearranged her radiation appointments for the week and I believed her. So when she didn’t show this morning at school it just added to my concerns about her. But it was when I showed up at the hospital and she was a no-show and when wouldn’t pick up one of my calls that I got really worried. I asked the receptionist if Hannah’s appointment was still at eleven. She told me Hannah had ceased treatment as of last week.

---