Page 126 of Misery
But only one who killed the other to keep me safe.
Only one who handed me the evidence of his crimes.
Only one who stood still while I decided his fate.
I should destroy both drives. Burn them. Pretend none of it happened.
Instead, I pocket them.
Evidence. Truth. Weapons in the future if I need them.
My phone buzzes.
It’s a text from Oskar:
Your hour isn't up. Just wanted you to know Ivar's asking for you. When you're ready.
He's respecting the boundary. The bare minimum, but still.
I text back:
Coming.
When I return, Dad's been moved to one of the back rooms.
It’s cleaner, quieter.
He's propped up on pillows, looking more human even with the damage that was done to him.
"Hey, baby girl."
"Hey, Dad."
"We're going to be okay," he says. Not a question.
"Yeah. Different, but okay."
"Different isn't always bad."
"No. Sometimes it's just different."
He shifts, winces. "Fenrir’s boy, Oskar. He loves you."
"I know."
"Do you love him?"
The question I've been avoiding. "Yeah, I think so."
"I see."
"How do you forgive something like this?" I ask. "The watching. The lying."
"Same way your mother forgave me for putting the club first. Same way you'll forgive me for not protecting you better." He meets my eyes with his good one. "You decide if the person they are now is worth the pain they caused then. If who they're becoming matters more than who they were."
"And if it doesn't?"
"Then you walk away. But at least you know."
