A/N: Sorry for uploading later than usual. Thank you for your patience.
Please note, I have not proofread this yet, so I apologize for any typos and whatnot.
Out of Hand
Max trudged along the side of the road, her footsteps heavy and sluggish. The passing cars were a blur of lights and sounds, eager to reach their destination, but Max was slow. Her feet were weighed down from the thick layer of mud slowly eating them from all sides, and they dragged aimlessly like her wandering thoughts. Remnants of her shredded comic dangled from her fingertips, no longer solid paper, and even as numbness from the cold set it, that mush couldn't have been pried from her grasp. She clenched it—a lame attempt to ground herself in some semblance of reality.
Time seemed to lose all meaning as she walked. Her mind was a haze, her face void, staring blankly into space. She kept her eyes low, watching as the once-green grass now hid under a blanket of snow.
Snow? Max paused. When did it start snowing?
She stopped for a moment and looked at the gray sky. Fluffy puffs of white fell like petals, melting on her cheeks. But then the soft flurries began to pelt, transitioning from a graceful fall to pebble-like droplets of ice bouncing on the ground. Was it snow? Or maybe rain? She couldn't tell, and the odd mix only added to the confusion clouding her mind.
Max sighed, lowering her gaze to keep the little pellets from hitting her eyes. Somehow her brain told her feet to walk as if her mind was on autopilot. She wasn't sure how to feel at that moment. Or what to feel besides the squelch of her muddy shoes mixed with the new crunch of half-frozen slush. Each step was a struggle, each pelt on her throbbing cheek a catalyst for the images looping in her mind, her thoughts constantly replaying the incident.
The incident… Did that really happen? Surely that deep pain meant it actually happened. Even if it did, couldn't it have just been an accident? Billy had just been talking with his hands, flailing them as anyone does when angry. And she was too close… because if it was the alternative—No. He wouldn't have done that on purpose, right? Right? Her eye gave another low ache, and somehow she knew it was calling her a liar.
The way his fist swung… the way her body fell… the way he sped off, not bothering to look back…
He's probably long gone by now.
And just as the world started to blur again, the little pelts of ice began to hit with heavier thunks around her. She blinked her bleary eyes when one narrowly missed her nose, and she watched it hit the ground and shatter. They weren't so much bigger than the sleet from before, but if hit in the wrong way, they could likely feel worse than a bite of cold.
Of course I'd get a hailstorm—
Max stumbled, her foot slipping on a patch of ice. She fell to the ground with a muted thud, and for a moment, she just lay there, her face against the cold pavement, trying to feel something—anything—but tears refused to come.
Is this what shock feels like? she thought dully. It wasn't what she imagined. At least not based on the movies she'd seen when someone would gibber nonsense or act frantic. Instead, she just lay there feeling numb. Maybe it was easier that way, to accept the empty feeling consuming her entire body. With another sigh, Max pushed herself up and continued to press on.
It was her staggering steps that drug her onto Cherry Lane well after the sun had sunk behind the looming clouds. The sky was darkening further by the minute casting deep shadows all around, obscuring even more in her line of sight. No matter how many times she blinked through the bleariness, her gaze remained unsteady. The hail had long stopped, but the chill lingered as if it had attached itself to her. She couldn't tell if the aches that ran bone deep were from the numbing cold or from the time she'd stumbled on the slick roads.
A small sigh of relief escaped her when her house came into view. Her heavy feet seemed to move faster all on their own as she trudged up to the door. When a dark figure emerged from the side of the porch, her foot slipped from one of the steps. She sucked in a sharp breath. She was tired… so very tired suddenly. Every single part of her felt worn out, battered even—her clothes were dripping, each little drop hitting the steps with a steady rhythm, her mud-caked shoes made it feel as though she was tracking sticky tar onto the porch, and her hair was hanging limply around her shoulders. But among that sudden weariness came sudden awareness. It crept back in like a chill breeze, and Max suddenly realized she was trembling.
The figure moved into what remained of the fading light. When his face came into view, Max froze, standing ramrod straight as if lighting had struck her. Even her heart squeezed tight, like a fist had shoved into her chest to grasp it between all five fingers. She closed her eyes and shook her head, trying to clear away the vision. It had to be fake right? Her brain playing tricks with her delirium. Surly she wasn't seeing Billy waiting for her… out in the cold. But when she opened them again, he hadn't moved. Hadn't disappeared. He was real.
Why is he here? Why…?
She figured he'd be anywhere but here, but there he stood, like a gargoyle carved from stone. It didn't even look like he was breathing.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
The silence was consuming her. Only the faint sounds of her clothes dripping filled the air between them. But it was like a roar in her ears as they stared at one another. She didn't have a tongue–couldn't pry open her mouth to say any words. Her eyes never left him as she tried to take him apart piece by piece. What was he thinking as he stood there frozen in time? Her mind raced, desperately sorting through the flashes of images in her head as she tried to make sense of the building storm inside of her—the numbness that grated over every inch of her, the walk and how much time had passed as each step somehow carried her home, Billy standing there before her with nothing to say…
She pushed deeper still, her mind moving faster as the throb in her cheek and eye sent her back to the moment his fist went flying. How the shock had hurt worse than the impact of his knuckles on her skin. How she now burned from the inside out with the abandonment and not the betrayal she wanted to feel. He'd left her there… just left…
That smoldering ember inside her took to flame. It sparked to life and began to burn and boil the more she stared at him. There was nothing looking back at her. Nothing. It was as though he was seeing through her. There was so much of it, the anger flooding inside of her, that she knew she couldn't keep it contained. Not this time. It was overwhelming, from the soles of her feet to the top of her head. The chill evaporated at the rage covered her in a blanket of fire. She was still trembling, but not because she was cold. And that composure she'd so carefully put into place where Billy was concerned? It shattered. Everything erupted from her at once.
Her shredded comic fell to the ground in a forgotten heap as she charged at him. Using the stairs to catapult her movement, she shoved him with every bit of strength she had. His body was rigid and barely moved as she pushed even harder. She did it again, and again even as he seemed to just absorb the shock of her hits. The words flew from her mouth as each hand struck him.
"I hate you!" she screamed. "I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!" The words tumbled from her mouth, no filter, no holding back, just raw emotion. Like a busted dam, the sobs finally broke through. Tears flooded down her cheeks, mixing with the rainwater that still clung to her skin.
But Billy remained still. Quiet. He took every single hit she gave him, and when her arms started to hurt and her hits held less impact, she looked up at his face. At that unwavering mask that made the anger turn to more pain. His throat bobbed as he swallowed, and she tried to search through the pit of feelings roiling in her as she searched his face, his eyes, for something. She wanted him to trembled, and she wanted him to be cold. To feel even a blip of the storm inside of her. But that blank expression—that damn bored look on his face—just infuriated her more!
But within the eye of that storm, beneath the surfaced rage, something else lingered. Something she hadn't realized until now as she watched him stand in silent indifference, watching the tears carving paths down her cheeks. Max trusted Billy. He had been the one person she felt safe with despite his quick venomous tongue, despite the push and pull that had always existed between them, even despite his abrasive personality—the lack of empathy that had always radiated from him. He had somehow become her source of safety. Her comfort. But with one swing—one hit right to her face—it felt like he had taken the dullest of knives and slowly plunged it into her back. All the while nothing was etched onto his face. Like her pain meant nothing to him.
Max's cursed her weak fists as she continued to beat against his chest. She wanted to hurt him at that moment. To make him feel something. To wipe that stupid look off his face.
See what you've done!
This is what betrayal looks like!
"Why won't you say something!" she yelled, hitting him again. "Say something!" His hands were fisted at his sides and his shirt damp, but not once had he moved. Her voice felt raw in her throat, only a rasp as she yelled at him. But still, he remained silent. Another hit, only this one landed in his sternum, and even as the breath whooshed out of him, he didn't move to block it. Her face crumpled, and her vision blurred from fresh tears as her frustration only grew into something ugly.
"I–"
Thump.
"Hate."
Thump.
"You…"
A sound came from behind Billy, and in the back of Max's head, she knew what it was only a second too late. It was the front door opening and a soft voice of concern that made her awareness settle in.
"Max?"
Max finally tore her eyes away from Billy and turned to see her mom standing in the doorway of the house. She was in a soft pink sweater and blue pants. Max's heart was like an alarm as it thundered in her chest. She quickly pulled back from Billy and wiped her face. Her guard had been down, broken to bits at her feet. She hadn't even thought twice about her outburst. She hadn't even considered that their parents were home.
"What's going on? Did you guys just get back?" Susan tilted her head. "Honey, why are you all wet?" she asked, letting her crossed arms fall to her sides. Max opened up her mouth to speak, willing her voice not to sound as broken as it had when she'd screamed at Billy. Susan's eyes narrow in a mix of confusion and concern, but before she could take a step closer, Neil's voice rings out from deep inside the house.
"Are we putting a show on for the neighbors now?! Get inside and close the door!"
Max felt herself go rigid at the sound of Neil's harsh voice ringing out between them all. Even her Mom stood a little straighter before pressing her lips together in a thin line, nodding. She took a step back to give them space to enter the house. Max glanced at Billy, expecting him to reflect some sort of emotion at them getting caught. Unease or even anger, but he simply turned and walked into the house.
Max looked down at her muddy shoes before letting out a shaky sigh. Then, she followed after him. She winced as more melting ice sluiced off her body, the squelch of her shoes more audible than before.
The door closed behind them. Max quickly tried to think of how to explain the situation, but her mom was already on her. "Max, why are you we—" Susan's words cut off with a sharp intake of breath. It occurred to Max, a moment too late, that standing in the light of the house meant that the mark on her face was visible. Max tried to duck her head, but it was no use. Susan moved closer to grab her arm. "Oh my god. What happened to your face? Maxine, wha—"
Susan suddenly stopped. She stared wide-eyed as her thumb brushed against the cut on Max's cheek. Her hands shook. "There's blood on your face… Why is there blood on your face?" A flurry of panic filled her mom's eyes as they darted across Max's face for answers. Through them, Max could see all the wild thoughts running in her mom's mind.
"Maxine!" The words were firmer now, desperate. Susan looked to Billy to take in his appearance before looking back at Max again. "Will one of you say something, please?"
When Max struggled to find the words and Susan looked to Billy again, that furrow in her brow deepening, her mom swiveled on her heel and marched. Whether her mom was charging to the phone or to tell Neil, she didn't know. All she knew was panic surged through her.
Before she knew it, Max grabbed her mom and blurted, "It was an accident."
"What accident?"
Max winced at the way her mother's eyes lingered on her cheek and eye. She hadn't seen it for herself to know how bad it looked, but if the throb was any indication, it was likely already swollen and red.
"Max, honey…" Susan softened her voice, bending to her level. "Please tell me… Do we need to call the police?" Max said nothing. She winced again when Susan pressed her lips into a thin line and took a cautious step back. "Maybe we should get Neil—"
Max's eye went wide. Her lips quivered as she frantically shook her head. her voice trembled. "Please don't tell Neil, Mom, please."
"Don't tell me what?"
Another sharp gasp unwillingly burst from Max's lips. She tried to swallow down her panic even as her heart sank, cowering deep inside of her chest. Neil appeared in the doorway looking between the three of them, his expression a mix of curiosity and suspicion. She tried to remain still, to keep her mother between them so Neil wouldn't see the damage. But her mom moved to the side, as if inviting him in.
Neil's eyes locked on Max's face. For a long moment, he didn't say a single word as his eyes found the very thing she was trying to hide. Max refused to lift her head and stared off long enough that her vision began to blur. She barely held back her jump when he suddenly stepped past Susan to pinch the bottom of Max's chin. With a quick tug, he forced it up so that she was facing him directly. Neil's fingers were rough against her cold skin, and she fought the urge to recoil from his touch. Max clenched her fists and tried not to tremble, pressing her lips together to keep them from quivering as the tears sat idle in her eyes. Somehow her face throbbed more under his gaze.
"What happened?" Neil said in a low voice that was void of any emotion. If anything, it was eerily calm, and assessing. It made her stomach roll with unease, and her tongue felt glued in her mouth all over again. Somehow it felt as though he would see right through any excuse she gave. But that didn't stop her from trying.
"I… I ran into a pole," Max said, her voice barely above a whisper.
Neil released her face. His expression darkened, morphing into disbelief and a hint of anger. He lowered himself, hands resting on his knees as he continued to stare at her with a glare so intense. Max's eyes swung to Billy for just a second without even meaning to before landing right back on Neil's heavy glare. Neil copied the move, looking at his son with narrowed eyes before giving her his attention once more.
"Don't lie to me," he growled. "That won't help either of you."
Max was frozen, the words sending shivers up her spine. Her mind raced as she struggled to find the right words. Something that would steer the situation from a path of no return. But before she could speak, Neil nodded in Billy's direction and said, "He did it, didn't he?"
Max paused a second too long.
When raided a knowing brow, she quickly shook her head. "No—"
"Yeah. I did it. So what?" Billy said, his words short but firm. Calm and unwavering. Neil slowly shifted his glare from Max to Billy, and his eyes narrowed even more as he stiffened.
Susan's mouth dropped in horror. She stared at Billy like he was a stranger. "You… You hit Maxine?"
"Why?" Neil's words were harsh, leaving no room to be unanswered. Susan's look of horror intensified.
No one moved a muscle as they waited for Billy's explanation. Max had never felt so out of control than at that moment. She tried to will Billy into looking at her face just so she could try and tell him to stop. For him to not go any further. But he merely stared at Neil as he said, "The little bitch wouldn't shut her damn mouth."
"Billy!" Susan yelped as though she had been struck by the words. She shook her head at him as she warily looked from him to Neil.
"Did you throw her down into a puddle too? Drag her through the mud? Why does she look like that—" Neil hissed, pointing at Max so abruptly she took a step back. "When you look like this." He waved a hand at Billy's obviously dry appearance.
Max tried to come up with a lie to deescalate the situation, but again, Billy beat her to it.
"I left the dumb brat on the side of the road not far from the comic store. She wanted to throw a damn tantrum so I decided she could walk her sorry ass home."
Max could almost taste the shock as it filled her mouth. It was like bitter, angry words tainting her tongue all over again, but this rage was mostly directed at his blatant disregard for what he did. How could he care so little? Did he really have no remorse whatsoever when it came to her? But the longer she stared at him, the more she realized that something wasn't right. Especially with how he'd just admitted to abandoning her. There was no bite to his words, nothing hidden in his tone. In fact, he was emotionless. Empty. Like a robot in some movie that recites in a monotonous voice.
Susan swiveled Max around to face her, blocking Neil and Billy from her view just long enough to get her attention. Max blinked, settling on her mother's eyes. That usual warmth was mixed with a sternness she hadn't seen in a long time—only it was edged with something wary; disbelief. "Maxine, is this true?"
But Max couldn't find the words to speak. She could only watch as the scene behind her mom continued to unfold.
Billy was so still that she wasn't sure if he was even breathing. Then he said, "Is that what you wanted to hear? That I got sick of her running her damn mouth all the time and I finally closed it for her? Is that enough for you?"
Susan spun, still half standing in front of Max as she stared with wide eyes at Billy. Neil hadn't moved either, but his glare sharpened like daggers. His voice was tight as if he was forcing the words from his lips, "Come again?"
"That's the lesson you always teach, isn't it?" Billy said, his robotic voice somehow more disarming to Max than his usual lashing tone. "About respect. Isn't that what happens when disrespectful people run their mouths? They get taught a lesson. Isn't that the lesson you teach?"
"I would tread carefully if I were you, son."
What are you doing?! Max wanted to scream. This wasn't Billy. It was like someone else had inhabited his body from the moment she made it back to the house. The things he was saying were nothing short of a provocation. A direct one. Why would he be pushing Neil on purpose?
Billy tilted his head as he stared directly at his father. Not a single twitch of the mouth or a gleam in his eye. Just that endless void. His chest hardly moved with any signs of his breathing while Max was sure her lungs were going to burst from the way she sucked in panicked breaths. She thought she might pass out when Billy's voice echoed in the silent room.
"Or what?"
Neil's teeth clacked together from the force as his mouth snapped shut. His body straightened, and his jaw clenched at the same time his fists did. He seemed to grow taller as he towered over Billy, his eyes daring him to keep it up. Max shook her head, and without realizing it, her hand gripped her mother's arm.
"Go ahead," Billy said, his eyes glancing down to Neil's clenched fist. "Don't I need to be taught a lesson too? Need to make sure you show your dominance when you put me in my place, right? It's what you always do. After all, Neil, isn't that what you did to mom whenever she ran her mouth?"
The tension crackled in the air like an electric current. Susan was rigid in front of her, trembling where she stood in shock. Max could see the rage building as Neil got that look in his eye. The one that promised tears—the one he had before he struck.
Neil rolled his tongue as he gave a slow nodded before taking two long strides and shoved Billy in the chest. Billy didn't cower on impact, didn't raise his hands in defense. It was as though he was waiting for it, and only a soft grunt escaped him when his back hit the wall. Neil cornered him with a pointed finger as he seethed. Spittle flying from his mouth as he spoke, "Mark my words, boy. By the time I'm done with you, you will know the exact meaning of respect." The final word struck like a blow all on its own as he roared it into Billy's flat face.
And for the first time, much to Max's horror, Billy finally gave a reaction. No words were needed to show the meaning behind it—nothing else to ignite Neil's rage more. Billy looked right at him and smirked.
Max felt her mother's grip tighten around her arm as she pushed her back. She was half shielded by Susan's arm, but with one, step she was back at her side watching, bracing herself. She knew what was coming. They all knew what was coming.
The first punch was so fast that only Susan's startled flinch and Billy's sudden stagger told Max Neil had swung. Billy remained on his feet. His eyes closed for only a brief second as he righted himself. Neil parted his feet as though bracing himself to swing again, and Max felt her heart dip so sharply that she couldn't help but cry out, "Stop it!"
Ignoring her, Neil charged at Billy once more, his closed fist landing with such force on the side of Billy's face and head that each resounding smack echoed like the shattering of Max's heart. Each blow caused Max and Susan to flinch, as if they were absorbing the impact themselves.
All Max had wanted was for something good to happen. One decent thing to break their—Billy's—cycle of perpetual misery. Instead, she only caused more of it. Time and time again, she was the reason bad things happened to him. And every single punch to the face was wiping away one of the miniscule, good memories she had made with Billy. Erasing it from existence just to insert another reason to despise her. She remembered Billy's words like a punch meant just for her.
Leave it alone.
But she didn't. Why couldn't she just have listened to him? Why weren't his words enough for her?
"Stop it," she tried again, only it came out as a wheeze. Neil was beyond reasoning with, like a bull seeing red. All she wanted was for it to stop—for it to be over. Yet Billy seemed to absorb each hit, raising backup to stare at Neil with that deadened expression. His lack of remorse, the lack of pleading and crying just served as fuel for the fire of Neil's rage. Defiance was Billy's weapon and he was wielding it as an invitation for his dad's wrath.
"I'll make you eat those words, son," Neil growled, grabbing Billy by the collar of his shirt and jerking him closer. "You'll regret ever speaking to me that way."
With a shove, Billy stumbled back into the bookshelf, fumbling to keep himself from falling. The distraction was enough for Neil to throw a punch with his opposite hand, catching Billy off guard just as he turned his head to brace The impact connected with his nose, and his legs buckle underneath him. Billy clutched at it on instinct with a grunt, but his hand quickly dropped. Susan made a startled noise. Blood dripped steadily from Billy's nose, collecting on his upper lip before spilling over as he slowly pushed himself to his knees.
Susan moved to pull Max from the room, giving Neil and Billy her back. But Max's feet were frozen on the floor as she stared at Billy slowly pushing himself back to his feet. He didn't bother to wipe away the blood even as he was forced to breathe out of his mouth, flashing his teeth as they glistened with his blood. Had she ever seen him bleed like that before? She blinked as her mom murmured something, but it sounded far away. Too far to be heard by her, but not by Neil.
He spun, eyes wide and wild as he locked Max in his line of sight and pointed directly at her. "No, she stays!" he yelled, turning that glare to Susan only once as she jerked and spun to stare at him in shock.
"Neil—!"
"I said she stays!"
This was her punishment she realized. To be forced to bear witness to yet another one of Billy's beatings. For her the pain wasn't physical. And that mental suffering long surpassed the throb on her own face. Max tried to turn away, to look anywhere but at the blood Billy was forced to taste.
Neil spoke again, breathing heavier than before. "Take a good look, Maxine. Make sure you really see what's happening here." But she couldn't. "You sure you don't want to see him pay for that?" Neil asked, pointing to the side of her face. "You want to protect a guy like this?"
Neil nodded as if agreeing with himself before he turned back to Billy and pointed a finger at his chest, "Maybe one of these days I'll finally teach you how to be a man with some damn respect."
"A bit hypocritical don't you think?" Billy said, giving up on his attempt to stand back up. He swayed on his knees, locking eyes with Neil. There was a silent battle happening between them as they glared at one another.
Dread built within Max as she waited to see Billy apologize. For him to cry out and tell him to stop. Anything to satiate Neil's need to have the upper hand. But he didn't. He simply stared and waited. With an open palm, Neil slapped the side of Billy's face so hard he fell back hard on his elbows. It gave Neil all the room to straddle him as he held his son roughly by the neck as his fist rained down without mercy, blow after blow until each thump of his fist sounded more wet than the last. Blood didn't just stain Billy's lips and teeth; it now splattered onto his eyelids and cheeks, trickling down his chin from the split in his bottom lip and the gash below his eye.
Each blow was desperate—harder than the last like Neil was trying to force Billy's submission. His seething glare was long gone, only to be replaced by a look just as vacant as Billy's had been. As though he'd entered a tunnel with only one thing in sight. Like the only thing he wanted was to hear Billy's muffled apology. That break in his voice that would declare him the victor. Max only realized at the sudden pinch in her throat that she had been yelling for him to stop. She was pleading.
Stop.
STOP.
PLEASE STOP HITTING HIM!
"YOU'LL KILL HIM!"
Neil's fist halted in mid-air. He seemed to snap out of his stupor, his chest heaving as he sucked in air as if he'd been holding his breath. He looked up to lock eyes on Max, settling for just a moment as if he just remembered where they were. Sweat glistened on his forehead as he grunted, jerking Billy up by the arm. Billy was barely on his feet before Neil dragged him toward the dining room. The two stumbled, and Max forced herself to follow, even as it felt as though her feet were weighed down by anchors. With a careless toss, Billy was sent crashing stomach-first over the table. Billy gave no fight, but then again, he gave nothing at all. Not a single sound of pain came from him. Only the crinkle of his brow and the hard set of his jaw reassured Max of his defiance.
She couldn't understand why Billy seemed to be pushing Neil in that way. Why was he so set on remaining impassive? Why when it gave him nothing but pain in return? Neil gripped Billy by the back of the neck and leaned down to hiss in his ear, "Apologize."
Max winced when Neil pressed Billy's face harder into the table, ensuring that the wood pressed into the split under his eye. Neil's nostrils flared, and his lips pressed together tightly as if holding himself back. Five long seconds passed, and it felt like hours before Billy sucked in a breath. No one moved.
"No." It was barely audible.
Billy's face scrunched, the only sign of pain, as Neil's knuckles went white from the force of his grip. Guilt was second nature to Max now, and as Neil yanked off his belt and wrapped it tight around his hand, that feeling only dug into her core. Almost as hard as her nails dug into her palms. No part of Billy's legs and behind was safe from the onslaught of Neil's wailing hits. The leather cracked each time it landed. Billy twitched against the table, blood spitting from his mouth on each rough exhale as he struggled to remain silent. Only that scrunch of his face betrayed him. He was shaking, Max realized, as his hands seemed to vibrate where they lay on the flat surface of the wood. She had to look away, unable to stomach the way his body began to jolt.
But Billy never begged, not once. Didn't utter a single word.
This was different than before. At that moment, Max remembered the way he begged on the side of the road, begged for Neil to stop as if begging for his life. How his screams cut off each time Neil whipped him. How broken his voice sounded through the tears. But now, only his eyes blazed with his anger. There were no tears.
Just cry, she wanted to tell him. Just say the words…
"Apologize!" Neil demanded, but it went ignored.
Billy kept his eyes on the table, refusing to look up, refusing to look at her.
Only when the belt slipped from Neil's grasp did the moment break. He fumbled for it and Susan gave a sudden noise of protest. "Neil, please!"
Neil didn't look at her as he let the belt fall to the ground. Instead, he grabbed Billy by the shoulder and shirt, lifting him from the table to swing him toward the entryway. Only his grunts could be heard alongside the shuffle of feet as they disappeared down the hall. Neither Max nor her mother moved as they waited. A loud slam rang through the house and both of them startled. Her heart began to thunder in tune with the stomping sound of Neil's feet as he made his way back to the dining room.
"I will break the stubbornness in that boy if it's the last thing I do," he growled, moving to pick up his belt from the floor. Max's lip quivered as her eyes fell to the little droplets of blood on the table. There was a pang in her chest, as if her heart was protesting, when he turned to face her and her mom. Susan gripped Max tighter, reminding her that she had been there the whole time. Neil stared at them for a moment, assessing, before he gave them a firm nod. "Don't worry. I'm going to make sure he doesn't pull something like that ever again." Max shook her head without realizing and his eyes locked onto her face, cold and mean. "This is far from over."
Max's eyes widened with disbelief. "Don't you think that was enough?" she said, pulling away from Susan slightly. Her voice trembled with disbelief, but beyond that, it was filled with resound anger.
Susan looked down in surprise, but Neil remained unmoved, his words cold. "Maxine, feeling sorry for him won't protect him. It will just make him weak. And it won't change who he really is. His behavior, that display. Unacceptable. He will learn, even if I have to beat it into his skull every single time."
"Don't you think he acts this way because of you?!" she blurted, unable to hold back the anger and frustration rising inside her. Then she held her tongue. Unable to believe she just said that. But she didn't take it back. She didn't care to hold her thoughts back anymore. Or even bother to hide the scowl on her face. The words hung in the air. The shock clear in both Susan and Neil's eyes.
Neil's face hardened. An awful, dangerous look clouding in his eyes. "It's been a long day," he said. "I think you need to take some time to cool off in your room too, Maxine."
His words were calm, but the threat was clear. The edge in his voice told Max that, underneath his calm, seemingly reasonable mask was a man itching for a fight, itching for a reason to bloody his knuckles even more. And like that, she was reminded again of that day in the truck. The fear greeted the anger inside of her, and she knew the two were like oil and water. Not meant to mix. She worried that if she left them to war inside of her, the anger might win out this one time. The anger she had for the situation, ther anger for Neil's ruthlessness and fury, the anger she had towards herself…
But the fear grounded her, pushing her to hold back, so with a toss of her head, she turned her back on Neil and stalked off down the hall.
Then she stopped. Max stood right outside Billy's room, heart heavy, uncertain. She hesitated as her hand hovered over the doorknob. Every inch of her wanted to go in, to somehow make this better, to make it right. But she debated with herself. A small voice blared in her head as though it was coming from behind Billy's door—Go away.
Leave it alone.
Feeling helpless, Max went to her own room. She closed the door slowly, keeping her eyes on Billy's door across the hall, desperately wanting to rush back out and give him some form of comfort. Some form of apology… But that persisting feeling of helplessness kept her rooted in place.
Then, she heard it—footsteps marching down the hall, heavy. Determined. Neil was entering Billy's room for round two, and Max felt dread wash over her. It was like the first day all over again, when she heard the sound of a belt through the door. Only this time, it was much, much worse. And she was helpless to stop it.
As Neil unleashed more fury on Billy, Max tried to block out the sound. She tried to put herself in a happy place in her mind, but it was pointless. She could still hear the heavy-handed thrashes, and though Billy still refused to speak, his grunts of pain still rang through the walls. And eventually, those grunts mixed into the low sobs that barely rose above a whisper.
She covered her ears.
To be continued…
A/N: Roughly 2 to 3 chapters left (if I don't end up splitting them up).