Holy shit.
If I ever needed proof that everything Toby ever told me about my father was true, then here it is in the form of this fucking raving lunatic who’s about to blow us all to kingdom come.
Mum’s swollen eyes catch mine, and I hate that I see resignation in their depths.
Tears flow down her cheeks, washing the dried blood and dirt away. My chest aches for what she might have gone through while I was upstairs and then out cold.
‘I’m sorry,’ she mouths, making the lump in my throat grow ever larger.
Tearing my eyes away when she begins to sob, I look around the room, noticing differences from the room we ate in.
“W-we’re at home?”
“Home isn’t a place, Jodie. Home is where those you love are,” Jonas tells me as if he actually fucking believes that being anywhere near him is a fucking blessing.
“You need to stop this.”
“Do I?” he asks, taunting me as he pulls a lighter from his pocket, flipping it between his fingers.
“Please, Jonas. Don’t do this,” Mum sobs. “That’s your little girl. Take me. Do what you want to me, but let her go. She’s got her whole life to live.”
“With him?” he spits.
“You’ve already told me he doesn’t want me,” I force out, my heart not believing a word of it despite the fact that his call didn’t connect. Surely, he’s worried. Surely, he’s looking for me. “So what’s the harm?”
“It’s not just him though, is it? You’ve found yourself at home with all of them. With her.”
“Stella?” I ask, feeling fiercely protective after what he did to her.
He scoffs at just hearing her name.
“You’re threatened by her, aren’t you?”
“She’s nothing. A worthless piece of shit, just like her brother. I should have strangled them both the moment they were born.”
Mum’s startled gasp rips through the air.
“Did you think that about us? Because we didn’t have enough Greek blood running through our veins? Is that why you sent Joe to the slaughter by convincing him to join that gang? Is that why you never wanted to claim me? Because you’re ashamed?”
I have no idea what the fuck I’m saying. All I know is that I’ve got to keep him talking. Bri will fix this. Nico, Theo, Toby, Stella. All of them are out there right now. I just need to keep him distracted, because the second he flicks that lighter, we’re all fucking dead.