Page 24 of Mad Love

Fuck.

“Since you successfully completed your first week, I thought a reward was in order,” Dr. Browne explained, pushing me into the room. “Here at Highwater, our ultimate goal is the reconnection of family. Maddie, I know you’ve had some issues with both your parents in the past, and the plan is to spend the next several months working through those issues.”

My head swung to stare at her. “What?”

Dr. Browne’s gaze narrowed slightly, an indication that I wasn’t behaving like the trained pony she wanted. I could see what Joss meant now; there was a calculated coldness to everything Dr. Browne did.

“Madelaine,” she prompted, arching a slender brow.

I flinched at the name. At the reminder that my sister had been murdered at our father’s command. And now she wanted me to, what? Run over and hug him?

“Perhaps we should start with apologies,” Dr. Browne suggested. “Maddie, it’s healthy to take ownership of past misunderstandings and transgressions.”

She wanted me to apologize? To who? My psychotic dad, or my cracked-out mom? Which one did I owe an apology to, exactly?

“Maybe I should begin,” Gary said with an airy laugh. “Maddie, I should have seen how much you needed both parents in your life growing up. It wasn’t fair for us to keep our family separated.”

“We’ve all made mistakes,” Mom added, lifting her hand to the table, and I saw it then. The tiniest tremor as she splayed her fingers flat against the table. She looked at me, but her gaze wasn’t entirely focused and her pupils…

Fuck me. She was high. Functional, but high as a kite.

Gary’s eyes narrowed. “Dr. Browne, would you give us a moment with our daughter?”

Dr. Browne bristled but didn’t argue. It was pretty obvious from Gary’s tone that he expected her to comply with his request, not argue.

Joss was right; Gary was controlling Dr. Browne.

“Of course,” she said brightly, touching my shoulder as she left. She pulled the door shut, and all I could do was stand there and gape at the creatures who’d birthed me.

“Sit down.” Gary’s cold voice lost any pretenses of warmth and reconciliation.

I didn’t move. It was a small act of defiance, but it was all I had. I folded my arms and leaned against the door like I didn’t care, even as my heart thundered in my chest.

“Fucking cunt,” he spat, dropping heavily into his chair and causing Mom to flinch away from his side.

“Gary,” she whispered, reaching for him with a more noticeable tremble. “I need—”

“You need to shut the fuck up,” he snapped, glaring at her until she withdrew her hand and cradled it to her body like a scolded child. “Useless bitch. You’ll get what I give you, which is nothing unless your daughter sits her ass down.”

Mom turned her pleading eyes to me. “Maddie, baby, please… Your daddy—”

A hollow laugh burst from my chest. “He isn’t my anything, and you’re out of your mind if you think he’s helping you. Jesus, Mom, wake up.”

Mom let out a soft, keening sound and buried her face in her hands.

I glanced around the room, wondering if there was some secret two-way mirror set up in here for the doctor to watch and see what sort of shitshow she’d signed on to. But there wasn’t a mirror of any kind or even a camera tucked into a corner to record what was going on.

“Sit. Down.” Gary’s voice shook with barely contained rage. A second later, Mom cried out in pain, and I realized he’d grabbed her under the table and was hurting her.

Hurting her because I wasn’t complying.

My heart twisted, and even though I’d lost count of all the ways my mom had failed me, I couldn’t watch her suffer when I could stop it.

Reluctantly, I pulled out a chair and sat down across from them.

With a loud gasp, Mom twisted away from Gary as he released her.

“Where is it?” Gary demanded, placing his hands flat on the table.

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