Page 105 of Love is Angry

“Not my problem!” He points at Laura the moment she comes in. “Get the fuck out.”

“Dad! What the hell is going on?” she replies.

“No, Laura needs to stay,” I cut in, narrowing my eyes. Keep talking, old man. Show the world what I see. “She needs to see you for who you truly are.”

“And who’s that? Your father? The man putting a roof over your head?” he shoots back.

“You forget that I no longer rely on you,” I tell him. “I’ve got a trust fund with zero contributions from you. This roof? Not mine, nor am I living here anymore. So, you hold absolutely no leverage over me. Where is Madison?”

“Laura, go to your room,” my father says, trying to brush her off.

“I’m not going anywhere until someone tells me what the hell is going on here!” my sister snaps, and I love her even more for this. She might not be ready to confront him herself, but she’s not going to back down when the game is on.

“He took Madison,” I tell her. My father scoffs, rolling his eyes as if I just said the dumbest thing in the world. “He seesher as a threat because he raped her last year, so he decided to kidnap her before election day.”

“That’s bullshit!” he interjects.

“Dad?” Laura is playing her role well. The innocent daughter, confounded by her manipulative father.

“He’s got her. He won’t tell me where she is. And I know she is anything but safe in his clutches. He’s not just a rapist. He’s a kidnapper, too, and who knows what else?”

“It’s not my fault you couldn’t keep the girl safe,” my father says, crossing his arms. “Don’t blame me for your inadequacies, Rhue. You’re the one who wanted to play the grownup game.”

Something snaps inside me. I don’t know if it’s the outrage that really breaks my resolve into thousands of sharp splinters, but it’s too much to handle. Before he can react, I fly across the room and jump across his desk like a fucking panther pouncing on his prey. I take him down and punch whatever I can get to.

My knuckles crackle against his cheekbone. I throw out a left hook that gets him in the ribs. He kicks and grunts and tries to push me away, but I’ve got too much unrestrained anger inside me to let this shit slide. Not anymore.

I’m about to punch his lights out, blood spraying from his busted lip, but I’m pulled back by someone stronger than me. Steve. He’s got his arms hooked under my armpits and locked behind my back, forcing me into an uncomfortable position. He gets me away from my father. The bastard rolls on his side, taking a moment before he stands up again.

Yeah, I rang his bell a couple of times. It felt amazing. I should experience a semblance of guilt, at least, but there’s nothing. My knuckles hurt. The skin around them burns, bruised and broken. I’ll need ice at some point. But I need Madison even more.

“Goddammit, Rhue!” my sister cries out. She shoots a wild glance at my phone, lying on the floor, still recording. She movesher chair forward a few feet to hide it, and I struggle with Steve to grab it. It might be my imagination, but I feel he let me win that minor victory.

“You need to get out,” Steve tells me.

“He’s got Madison,” I say. “He’s got her, and he’s going to hurt her.”

“Where’s your proof?!” Laura shouts, tears glittering in her eyes.

I can’t help but wonder if I’ve been expecting too much from my own sister this whole time. It doesn’t make sense, because the grief in her eyes is aimed at me. Whenever she looks at our father, it fades away. Is she acting? Am I missing something here? There is so much happening already, and with Madison in danger, I’m afraid my mind isn’t quick enough to process everything.

“Let go of me,” I tell Steve.

“You need to calm down, first,” he replies.

We’re back by the door. My father gets up, using one hand to lean into his desk. He fishes a handkerchief out of his pocket to cover the split lip. “Get the fuck out of my house,” he says.

“Not until you tell me where Madison is.”

It’s not my decision, though, as Steve so eloquently puts it as he drags me out of the mansion. I try to get away, but his grip is expertly locked. I have no chance of ridding myself of him. He caught me unexpectedly, and now I’m in his hold. Fucking helpless. Looking like an imbecile as he hauls me down the front steps and deposits me in front of my SUV in the pouring rain.

“You need to stay out of this, Manny,” I warn him, but Steve is unfazed.

I may not be the most intimidating man alive, but I know how to get a message across. It’s a little disconcerting to see someone so utterly unimpressed, especially after the pummeling that I just gave my own father.

“You need to cool your head,” Steve says. “You’re hurting your sister with this nonsense.”

“This isn’t about her. It’s not even about me!” I reply. “He’s got Madison. Why are you covering for him, huh?”

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