Music tip:
Snow Patrol – What If The Storm Ends?
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Lovers of Freedom

Chapter 24:
No Hope

Adam's intention had been clear.

Back home in Pennsylvania, where Mitch hadn't been for months now, Murphy wouldn't find him. Not in the next days at least, while the rest of the team was trying to finally fight their supposed mentor in court. It would take some time to sort certain events out and find at least some kind of evidence, but against Mitch's doubts they had all agreed to not let his evil schemes continue.

"Because we are friends," Ian had stated confidently as if the past had never been.
The warm feeling in Mitch's chest had only been expanded by the smile Adam had been giving him.
Then they had decided to get Mitch out of the line of fire. His parents had been the obvious choice, since he had to talk to them at some point and with the current events going on sooner was certainly better than later. And he needed to recover. Not only from the physical wounds Murphy had laid upon him, but also from the emotional ones. His dad had been fired because of him. There was a lot they had to talk about.

Nonetheless standing in front of their door without turning around to flee was harder than expected and just hesitantly Mitch rang the doorbell after several minutes of not moving at all. It was already late, the flight and drive to his parents had taken the whole day, so Mitch was able to hear the voice of his mother wondering who it could be at such a late hour.

She had not expected to see her son – that much was evident as she let go of the opened door with a gasp and froze. Then she took in his pale and beaten form. The rings under his eyes. The trembling shoulders. The fear in his glance.

"Oh god, Mitch!"
In an instant she pulled him tightly into her arms and just like that the terrifying panic melted away, as he gladly welcomed the motherly protection she offered without words. He didn't stop shaking, overwhelmed by his feelings. Mitch should have never pushed them away, because in the end they had been involved after all and the cruel separation might have hurt the close bond they always had in a way he wasn't sure how to repair.

"Mom, I-" was all he was able to say, before she shushed him effectively and tightened the hug once more. Then she let go of him, put both of her hands on the sides of his face and looked deeply into his eyes. She wasn't the only one tearing up.

"We have finished eating an hour ago, but I'm going to make you something nice. Then I take a look at that bruise, alright?"
Her smile was lulling him in, as she pulled him softly into the hallway where he discarded his suitcase at the side to follow her further into their kitchen. His father was standing at one of the cupboards and put the dishes away, when he heard them enter.

"Who was it?"
His question was left unanswered, as he turned around and nearly let the plate in his hands fall to the ground. "Hey dad," Mitch whispered and was unable to bring a smile onto his face. Not after all that had happened. Not after Murphy. Not since his father had been fired simply because he had a son that was too stupid to not mess everything up.

At first his father seemed to be torn between frustration and anger, but then he must have seen the conflicted emotions in his son's eyes and stormed forward to pull him into his strong arms like his wife had done mere seconds before him.
Mitch should have never left. He needed exactly this, the comfort of his family which had always helped him, no matter how hard the situation. How did he ever think that he would manage it without them somehow?

"Where have you been?" his father whispered in his ear and pressed his son a little tighter. He wasn't going to let go of him any time soon, but Mitch didn't mind at all. It felt so incredibly good to just let himself fall, to not worry, to simply be and love.
"Not where I should have been," he replied equally quiet and closed his eyes, while he took a deep breath. The familiar scent of his father felt like a blessing and even though Mitch had come all the way to Pennsylvania to most of all clear their unspoken differences, he wished to forget it all and to just stay in the embrace of his parents. When was the last time he had felt this save?

"We should have known that it would come to this sooner or later."
Mitch frowned and just like that the cozy atmosphere shattered into bits and pieces of uncomfortable premonitions. He blinked. Something was really off, if the sad tone in the voice of his father was any indication. Slowly he raised his head and stared in the direction of his mother, but she stayed unusually quiet and stood in front of the fridge.

"What are you talking about?"
Mitch cursed himself for not being able to erase the shaking in his voice and for sounding so insecure, while his father pushed him away a bit to look him into the eyes.

"You changed. It was bound to happen and we were foolish to believe that you wouldn't despite all the fame and the money. All the years you were able to avoid it and we did everything we could to keep it that way, but one day all those bottled-up emotions had to come out one way or the other."

"…what?"

"But it's alright, Mitch."
The smile on his father's face felt unreal. Like a dream. A nightmare.
"We don't blame you."
Slowly Mitch backed off and pulled away from the warm embrace.
"We will fix this."

We will fix you.

"No, wait, stop!"

How did it all went so horribly wrong? His parents were supposed to comfort him, to tell him that he was save here from all the worries and that nothing in the world could change that ever. Now they were accusing him of something that never happened.
Of something that they only saw in the news.
"You weren't supposed to do that," he whispered and when he finally had their attention, he continued with a trembling voice, "I told you to never believe in what they say!"

"What were we supposed to do, Mitchell? After you denied every single call and ignored every message we sent you it was the only way to somehow know what was going on."
His father took the shaking in his son's voice the wrong way and gave in to the anger he had suppressed before. With a deep frown on his face and raised arms he took a step forward and out of fear and shock Mitch took another step back. His father froze.
"Mitch?"

It was one of those habits as he liked to call it. Ever since his encounter with Murphy two nights ago he was unusually jumpy. But his parents didn't know about it, not yet. How in the world was he supposed to tell them? Despite his confusion and the feeling of being betrayed by the people he loved the most on the world he knew that they would wreak havoc over Murphy and the concern he and Mitch were working for now. But against Microsoft they didn't stand a chance, not in the slightest, and especially now after the whole mess with his father's job they should just lay low for a bit.

"You can't deny it though, Mitchell, the whole 'bad boy attitude'. The news are full of it. You have to see that this way of living can't be satisfying. Sooner or later you will se-"
And there were the accusations again. Did they really know him so little? After all that had happened, after his horrible past and his mistakes regarding the old team they should know that he would never let himself change so drastically.
A dry and humorless laugh escaped his throat. His father fell silent. His mother turned around.

And with a beaten smile on his face he began to open up.
"I did it all for you."

They didn't answer, instead they looked incredibly confused and exchanged weary glances. Mitch laughed, louder this time, because it was so, so stupid. All of it. And it had been for nothing.
"Everything I did in the past weeks was only for your sake."

And then, at the clueless looks in their surprised eyes, something else rushed through his veins together with desperation and disappointment. Anger. After all he did this was how they thanked him? At last his attempts failed, but how bad would it have been if he hadn't taken Murphy serious from the beginning on? What else would he have ruined?
"And here you are, blaming me for actually trying to save your ass-"

"Because you don't tell us anything, Mitchell, so why don't you start with the goddamn truth for once?!" his father interrupted him and seemed as agitated as Mitch was. It was the wrong way to approach a serious talk like that, but all the bottled-up emotions were starting to flow out and it was impossible to contain them all. And so he replied as heated as his father, because there was no one else left to direct his anger to.

"Would you even believe me?! Isn't it easier for you to go back and listen to the stupid news, because your so-called son is too busy being a money whore?! If you had been so worried about me changing, why haven't you called Jerome? Or tried to call me after the news went around? It has been easier for you to simply ignore me, so why don't we just go back to that and you can keep living your pretty little lives here, while my life is literally like hell right now?!"

He only realized that he had been shouting, when the oppressive silence took over.
With clenched fists he stared at the ground, unable to look his parents into the eyes. They were just worried about him and had every right in doing so. The whole Murphy affair had him on edge all the time and the least they deserved was his uncontrolled anger. "I'm sorry," he mumbled and took a deep breath, before he ran his fingers through the strands of his hair.

And then his phone rang.
One look at the display was like a punch in the gut.

Murphy.

"Mitch, we-" his father began but stopped a second later, when Mitch finally looked up. He could only imagine what his face was looking like, but who could blame him with the feeling of being crushed by despair and panic roaring through his veins?
"Who is this?"

He took a single glance at his skeptical mother, then he turned around and closed the door to the dining room he fled into. His hand was shaking horribly, as he took the call and raised his phone to his ear. Before he had the chance to say anything, the furious voice of his boss began to yell, "Did your stupid little brain think we wouldn't find out that you told your friends about what happened?! Are you seriously that demented? Do you think you can take me down, Mitchell?!"

And just like that his life shattered into a million pieces.
He knew.

"I hope you enjoy the time with your family, because no lawyer will go against Microsoft, against me! Have you any idea how many contacts to every branch of the goddamn industry I have?! I will make you suffer, Mitchell, you, your family and every single friend of yours."

It was all over.
"Especially the one you can't get your hands off."

He would destroy all of them.
"Adam."

And him.

Before Murphy could continue, Mitch hung up and stared at the dark wall of the unlit dining room. He had to do something. Right? Anything to stop this maniac. The trembling had stopped completely and he could feel the blood rushing from his face. And then, when the initial shock passed, he rushed forward into the kitchen again and past his parents who had been quietly talking to each other.

"Who was tha- what happened?!"
He didn't know who was talking to him, as he ran into the hallway and over to the jacket he had discarded on top of his suitcase near the door. "I have to go," he whispered with a voice that was unrecognizable even to his own ears.
Then a strong hand grabbed his upper arm tightly. "Not again and certainly not like this! What is going on?"

A few minutes ago Mitch would have told them everything, but now all that existed was the need to just get away as far and as fast as possible, until he was able to think clearly again and could come up with a plan that would not be the end of them all. Not this time, because there was no second chance for him or the people he loved.

"Please let me go."
With a single glance into his father's worried eyes Mitch was able to free himself and ran out of the door before they were able to hold him back once more. The seatbelt was forgotten, as he started the motor and pulled out of the driveway and onto the dark street in Pennsylvania.

His mind was barely able to focus on the street, when it finally dawned on him. Murphy found out every single thing. He knew Mitch had been with his parents. He knew that he had told the rest of the group everything. He knew that they were trying to take legal action against him. And Mitch didn't doubt for a second that Murphy was capable of fulfilling his threat, bringing them all down and destroying their future once and for all.

All because of Mitch.

He should have just given in.
He should have never fought against Murphy.

Without him everything would be better, wouldn't it?

It was stupid and wrong of him to think like that, but Mitch couldn't stop following the thought for a moment, while he drove alone through the dark forest in the middle of the night. Team Crafted would be together with no worries in the world. They wouldn't even had split up in the first place and Seto wouldn't be missing. His family wouldn't have been pained with the troublesome career of one of their children.

Another emotion got rid of the panic and the anger inside of his chest and spread like a disease, slowly but unstoppable.
Maybe it would be better, if he ended it once and for all.

The thought amazed and scared him at the same time.
Had there ever been a moment in his life in which he had felt so desperate and… alone?
His mind screamed at him how stupid he was for even considering it, but with the stiff coldness in his chest and the sudden loss of simply feeling something, anything at this point, he couldn't bring himself to care.

Because who would care anyway?
They would be happier in the end.

And for a daze moment, as he followed the straight road towards the upcoming turn, he closed his eyes and slowly let go of the steering wheel. A smile appeared on his lips, for a moment he felt so light and free, no one could hurt him, not like this, never would Murphy catch him here, in the middle of nowhere at the edge of oblivion-
The ringing of his phone on the passenger's seat pulled him out of his daydream-like condition. A surprised look onto the display. Adam.

Then he noticed the trees rushing at him out of the corner of his eye. The turn of the road appeared directly in front of him. Too close to react in time. With a sudden burst of adrenaline he gasped, as his survival instinct kicked in. He reached for the steering wheel with an iron grip and forced it around as fast as possible to avoid the catastrophe somehow, even though he knew that his suicidal thoughts and the cursed seconds of blissful unawareness might have sealed his fate already.

He had always anticipated for time to slow down, when he would be in a near-death experience. In his mind he would see his life passing by, his friends, his family, the one he loved, the most important memories and those which had shaped him to be the person he was in the end.

Instead his ears were filled with the ear-deafening sound of squealing tires and breaking glass, as the metal bent around him at the force of the impact. A hard jolt went through his body, he lost all sense of direction, closed his eyes-

Silence.
Darkness.
He felt nothing.

And with the horrible realization that he forgot to put his seatbelt on Mitch drifted off into the luring darkness waiting for him at the edge of his consciousness.