Day-to-Day

Disclaimer: I don't own anything related to Red Eye!

Chapter Three

Close to seventeen years later…

There was nothing worse than being an orphan. Being adopted was hard from what she had heard, but what hurt the most was never getting the chance to know your parents and have life cruelly snatch them away from you. Life was a mean-spirited bitch, as was chance, and she hated it. She hated her luck and above all, her life.

She was just barely fifteen years old and all she knew was death and pain. She was alone in the world. But she was tough.

She had not been more than a few months old when her mother was killed. No one explained the death to her and they all lied and called it 'an unfortunate accident'. But she knew there was nothing accidental about it. She knew it was murder.

The question that always plagued her was did her father kill her mother? Did he order her death? Did he ever love her? Did she love him? Or was her birth just an accident?

But she never received her answers. Her father had disappeared at the same time that her mother died, leaving her alone with her grandfather. Now, many years later, a heart attack had claimed the older man.

She was alone again.

There was no way she was going to let Social Services find out about her situation. The very last thing that she needed was to be placed in a foster home. Not that she would not last in foster care; it was just that she was not meant to be caged in. She clashed with other people and enjoyed her alone time. But, as she was finally learned, there was such as thing as too much of a good thing.

Like her father, she was mentally ill. Well, at least according to her grandfather, who was prejudiced against her father because of the past and the bad blood between them. She had never been diagnosed by a professional, but she had read enough to know exactly what was wrong with her.

It was not her grandfather's fault. It was no one's fault but her parents. They were responsible for the strife and all the bad things that happened in her life. Their twisted love affair tormented her every day and led her to be ridiculed at school. She was friendless because of the stories.

She had no way of setting them straight because she did not know the truth behind the rumors. All she knew was their names and that he had been a killer. Her grandfather refused to say any more than that. Her mother's death had shocked him and upset his world, as far as she could tell; not that she remembered him before. She had no memories of her parents, but she did occasionally dream about them.

But now, with Joe Reisert dead, she could finally learn the truth. She could end the continuous stream of lies once and for all. She could learn the twisted reasons behind her disastrous life. She needed to know. She needed to know why she was cursed to have this unbearable burden upon her slim shoulders.

She turned away from the two graves—her mother's and her grandfather's. Her father had not been lucky enough to receive a grave. Joe had never been asked to claim a body, and even if he had, he would have refused. The hatred was too strong to allow her father any rest; despite what her mother might have wanted.

Life had set her upon the road that she now walked between darkness and light. Good and evil. Black and white. She had a choice before her. She would either try to be good like her mother or she was doomed to fall into shadow with her father.

Her only guide was a journal that listed all the sordid details of her parents' past. A journal with contributions from them both and photographs—the only pictures of her parents that she possessed. Joe had kept it from her until his death by claiming that she was not ready. Now, there was no choice. She had to know. She had to know it all.

Her very life depended on it.

She strode away from the cemetery and cracked open the leather-backed journal. She had taken it with her to the funeral; promising to wait until Joe was buried to disobey his wishes. She had owed him that much.

The time-worn pages beckoned her, begging her to read the secrets they contained. She flipped to the first page, deciding to start at the beginning. Elegant, flowing script met her eyes and she was quickly absorbed by the words of a love gone wrong.

I'll never trust anyone again. I trusted Jackson Rippner, and where did it get me? It nearly killed me and my dad! I'm not even going to mention the innocent lives that he wanted to take…

He disgusts me. I hate him with every fiber of my being. I hope he dies. He is lower than scum and unworthy of any life. He needs to pay for his sins.

If I ever have the misfortune of meeting him again, I will kill him. I will take his life and torture him the way he did me. He has no idea what he has done. He destroyed my life and my safety net. I was safe inside my shell, but he shattered it.

He manipulated me with his charms. He lied and I listened. I took the bait. And I sold my soul as a result. I became just as low as him.

But I achieved redemption. I single-handedly brought down the high and mighty Jackson Rippner, assassination manager! I saved the Keefe family, my dad, and myself. I'm stronger than he thought. I won, despite his attempts at control.

We played the game and I won. I won, and now he'll have to answer for his crimes against society.

Yet, why do I feel upset at times? Is it because he seemed so nice a few times? Was it all a ploy, or did he have feelings? As much as I hate to admit it, there was an attraction to him.

I'll never know and at this point, I don't want to know. Everything is complex enough without worrying about my feelings…

Author's Notes:

I tried to write this without giving away too much information. Yep, her parents are Lisa and Jackson, but what happened to lead to this point will be revealed in due time. Enjoy!