Page 134 of Released from the Sin Bin

“Don’t touch her.” I storm over, leaving a trail of water and mud from my sneakers on the always clean and spotless floor.

He turns his head slowly to look at me with a laugh, putting the pan back down on the counter.

“Carter, no,” Mom begs me to leave. “Go. Just go.”

“You want something to hit?” I take my wet jacket off and toss it on the table. Covering the food my mother must’ve made him. “I’m right here.”

“Dumb as shit, boy.” He spits out on the floor, stepping away from my shaking mother, and grabbing his glass of scotch to chug down the small drop left in it. “I’m going to enjoy this.”

He throws the glass. Mom shrieks as the glass shatters against the porcelain sink. Winding back, his fist comes at me with the first familiar punch to my already broken chest. Swinging right and left to throw his anger at my torso.

I don’t feel anything.

There’s no pain worse than losing Willa. I pushed her away. We could’ve worked it out, but I pushed her away. I’m too stubborn to realize she’s the thing that gets me out of this hell I’m living in.

I don’t need hockey, and when I’m with her, I don’t need this.

I’m not him.

“Stop!” Mom screams and holds my father’s fist back, but he shakes her off and pushes her away.

She falls back and hits her head against the counter, leaving her in a daze as she slips down to the floor.

“I’m not you,” I mutter when he comes back to hit me.

My arm lifts to stop him, and he stumbles back. But I don’t stop there.

I tackle him down to the floor with a loud roar from deep in my throat. The sharp, searing pain rushes out of me as I ram into him.

I sit on top of him, throwing everything I’ve been holding back for ten years into his face.

His chest.

His gut.

“You killed her,” I scream with the next hit. “You’re the reason she’s gone.” My fist cracks his jaw. “I’m not you.” Another crack to his rib. “You abusive piece of shit.”

I lift my fist up, but it’s grabbed before I can bring it down.

Braydon drags me off of our father and pulls me across the room.

“Stop, you’ll kill him.” He holds me back against the wall with his phone pressed to his ear.

I can’t move. Locked in place as I stare at the lifeless heap of my father on the floor.

My mother cries in the corner as lights flash through our window.

I’m done for.

Chapter 32

Willa

My body slowly collapses into a ball on the floor, watching Carter leave me again.

His blacked out eyes gazed through me. I tried to stop him, knowing where he’ll go to release the tension he’s carrying in his clenched shoulders.

“Willa?” Alex comes down the hall with his sister. “What happened?”

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