Prologue
Eddie cleaned the dust off his boots as he walked into his home. "Eddie! Is that you?" He heard his mother call.
"Yeah mom, it's me." He replied, shaking his jacket off and then hanging it up on the stand. His mom walked into the kitchen, greeting Eddie with some oatmeal raisin cookies- his favorite. "Where's Richard?" Ah yes, Richard- his stepdad of three years. "Richard? I'm not sure he's home yet." She responds, just as heavy footsteps enter the house. "Never mind." She mutters sheepishly, just as the six foot man walks up to greet her.
"Hello darling." He smiles, planting a kiss on her lips. "Eddie." He gave his stepdad a brief wave, before excusing himself to his room.
Upstairs, Eddie found himself being comforted with the band name Sick Puppies that he had acquired a liking for a few years ago. He began working on his biology paper that turned out to be due tomorrow. Yes, you could say that he was a procrastinator, but he always managed to get his work done. It was a cover. To make it seem like all he did at home was schoolwork. But whoever thought that was wrong. Way wrong.
Eddie had begun to act out around the age of twelve. When he finally managed to convince himself that it was his fault that his dad left. It was his fault that his mom was depressed for three years. That is until, she met Richard. Eddie remembered the day that his mom told him that she and Richard were getting married.
A thirteen year old Eddie sat in his room, doodling useless sketches in his notepad. He found comfort in this, a way to get away from the crap in his life."Eddie?" His mother spoke softly, entering his room. He looked up from his pictures, sensing her serious tone. "I have something important to talk to you about." He gulps, as she takes a seat next to him on his bed.
"Well? Go ahead."He says as she just sits there, searching for the right words.
"You know that Richard and I have been dating for a long time now, and you know what happens after people date for a long time?"
"You finally realize that he's a horrible person and you decide to dump him?" He tries hopeful. She laughs, lacking humor.
"Let's just say that I'm changing my name. Instead of being Charlotte Anne Miller, I'm going to be Charlotte Anne Price." Eddie's face grimaces.
"Does that mean…"He trails, not able to finish his sentence.
"Yes. We're getting married." Eddie simply nods, sending his mother off. But when she leaves, he takes his lamp from his bedside table, and smashes it into the wall. Then angles a punch at the same spot. He pulls his fist back, clutching it in pain. He lets the tears stream down his face, and slides his back against the wall. His mom kept asking him what was wrong with his hand the whole night.
But now, Eddie was older, wiser. He knew how to camouflage his emotions. He was rather good at it, really. But hey, what do you expect after years and years of practice. That's what Eddie considered it; practice.
After dinner that night, Charlotte offered to do dishes, leaving just Richard and Eddie. Usually when this happened, Eddie ended up in his room, video chatting with his best friend, Fabian. He lives in England now, but Fabian and Eddie used to be neighbors. But tonight, tonight was different. Eddie was shocked when Richard followed him up to his room, claiming that he wanted to 'talk.'
"So, Edison, how's life been?"
"Alright." Eddie mutters, not correcting him when he uses his full name.
"That's good. You haven't told anyone about our little secret now, have you?" Eddie stiffens at his question. Of course he hadn't, he wasn't that stupid. Rather than replying, he just shakes his head. "Good, now remember we need to keep it that way; no one knowing, not even your mother." It's true, not even his mom knows; and for that he felt incredibly guilty. But he couldn't dare imagine what would happen to her if she did know.
"I know." He whispers, causing Richard to grin.
"Well in that case, I have a new mission for you." Eddie gulped at his words. What more did he want him to do?
I bet you are highly confused right now. Richard, he has his own sort of system going; a system that only Eddie had seemed to figure out. You see, Richard had his own little gang. And when he and Charlotte got married, Richard inducted Eddie into that gang. At first Eddie thought that it was a load of crap; that is until Richard started to threaten Eddie's mother. And he was not letting anything happen to his only family. I mean, it was only stealing money, threatening and injuring people, right? How bad could it get? Bad.
It was sort of like a mafia; sort of. Richard named it The Society, and each of the members were assigned tasks. Being the newcomer, Eddie was usually assined group tasks. But as time grew on, he grew independent with the work. And each time Eddie was assigned a new task, the more dangerous and risky it got. He never thought to disobey, because he was afraid of the consequences. It was his mom on the line, and if she wasn't around, he'd be stuck with him for awhile.
"A new mission, eh? I'm always up for a challenge." Eddie lies. That earns him a smile from his stepdad.
"Good, good. Now, this task will take a lot of effort, time, and patience." He begins to explain. He nods. "You have three months to go overseas, find a girl, and kill her. Eddie's jaw drops.
"What?! I can't, I won't!" Eddie shouts, flabbergasted.
"Yes, you will. But if not, I think we all know what will happen." He replies with a toothy grin, causing Eddie to shutter. "But first, you must convince your mother to let you go overseas. To England." Thoughts of his father run through the teenage boy's mind. Even though it was highly unlikely that they would end up in the same place.
Eddie skipped dinner that night, and ended up going to bed. After hours of tossing and turning, he just couldn't sleep. Knowing that he was to kill a most likely innocent girl, just because a cruel man commanded him too? But all he knew was that there was know way to get out of this.
Years ago, when Eddie was first inducted and assigned his first task, thought about going to the police. That as until one of his 'gang' members reminded him that if so, his mother would end up in a shelter. Realization struck Eddie for the first time, and it was then that he decided he would do this to keep both him and his mother safe. Or so he thought.
The next morning was when everything was set to go off. Richard eyed Eddie at the breakfast table, signaling him in. "Hey mom?" He asked, turning her attention away from the orange juice she was pouring to him.
"Yes sweetie?" Eddie gulped.
"I was wondering..." He couldn't pull himself to say it, he just couldn't. His mom looked at him peculiarly, waiting for him to continue. "I want to go live with dad." The woman spit her orange juice on the floor.
"What!?" She screeched. Richard just sat back, and Eddie flinched.
"I think it's time that I've met him. I mean, of course I've met him, but I don't rember anything." He covers.
"Your son's right, Charlotte. I think that he's old and mature enough to go on this trip. I'll even chip in for air fair." Richard suggests. Eddie picks at his eggs.
"Well... okay, alright. You can leave in a week. I will contact your father, givng him all the details." Panic floods Eddie's eyes, but Richard gives him a look that say he'll take care of everything.
The next week passes by quickly much to Eddie's dismay, and before he knows it, he's already on the boarding the plane to England. Liverpool, to be exact. His mother already bid him goodbye, which consisted of many hugs. Richard just nodded at the boy, a glare in his eyes. "Ladies and gentleman, please prepare for takeoff." The pilot's voice came over the intercom. Eddie sat down and adjusted his seatbelt, ready for takeoff. Takeoff to a journey that would change his life.
A/N: Okay! So, new story! Plus, I'm of hiatus! And guess what... Today I have officially been a member of fanfiction for a whole year! Yay! That's kinda why I wrote this, as a gift. The updates will be every Monday, so weekly, as something to help pass school by. (Or at least for me.) So please review, because I've worked so hard on this story!