WEIGHTED 50

ELIZE ROBERT

‘I think it’s high time we talked.’ An all to familiar voice came through the kids room’s door.

I was breastfeeding the twins after I bathed and changed them. The only way to put these little devil spawns to sleep is only if they were latching onto my breast, I can’t even fool them with a pacifier. They will immediately poke their little tongues out of their mouths to spit it out, and sometimes they don’t even drink they just keep it in their mouths while clutching my clothes in their tiny fists.

‘What do you want, Brandon?’ I said putting a sleeping Callon down in his crib after burping him, and picking Cy up to feed him too.

I didn’t bother to turn around to meet his eyes not was I that eager to hear whatever he was about to disclose.

I didn’t believe him, I didn’t trust him, so there was no need to show fake attention.

‘Face me while talking, Elize.’ He ordered sternly.

I laughed at his action, my back still facing him. ‘Do you think we’re still toddlers, that I’m still the 10 year old Elize, Brady?’ The young me would have kissed his feet without him even asking. I worshipped him that much, and what I got in return?

NOTHING!

He left me when I needed him the most, he didn’t even come back when he knew that our dad passed away, he didn’t come back when I was being conned out of my life, he didn’t come to my rescue when I was being hunted down by those goons.

He chose himself.

And now I choose myself.

‘DON’T FUCKING TEST MY PATIENCE, and turn around, I’m not Tyrone that would bear your tantrums silently!’ He almost shouted.

‘I dare you to curse like that in front of my kids!’ I hissed venomously glaring at him. ‘I’m not the little girl who goes by your orders like they’re holy words. I am my own person NOW, I heed to no one but my husband, so don’t your dare waltz into my life again thinking that by a single snap of your fingers you’d have me under your command once again.’ I was pissed he would think that I’m nothing but a whining bitch that isn’t able of anything but complaining to her loaded hubby.

‘Little sis, I just want to talk.’ He said sighing tiredly. ‘Please, I just want to clear the waves of misunderstanding between us so that we can start freshly.’ He pleaded.

‘Please look at me?’ He said when I didn’t react to his plea.

‘There’s no need to show fake attention, no need for courtesies, we’re family after all.’ I emphasised on the word ‘family’ sarcastically.

‘You really hate me that much, don’t you?’ He asked defeated.

I sighed before putting a sleeping Cy down in his crib, and turned to him. ‘Hate is a strong word that I don’t appreciate using with family, but I’m still unable to forgive you. You hid a lot of crucial things from me, and in my book that’s considered betrayal and is unforgivable, brother or not.’ I said looking in his eyes, urging him to understand my stand.

NO matter how angry or upset I am, I’ll always weaken in front of those I love. In front of my family.

‘At least let me explain, let me justify my actions from the very beginning until now. Help me lessen the burden I’ve been carrying almost all my life.’ His tone took me off guard. He was so sad and broken that I felt bad for treating him the way I did in the past few months that he was here.

My brother looked twice his age, he seemed exhausted from whatever he had been holding within all this time.

I slowly nodded for him to continue with whatever the story he wanted to narrate.

‘I didn’t leave willingly at that time, Dad made me.’ He said shocking me once more.

‘Wwwhat is that supposed to mean? Why would Dad force you to leave?’ I asked incredulously.

‘I messed up I got involved with the wrong people which almost cost you your life. I was sixteen then, I thought I was adult enough to live my life according to my wishes. I ignored every sign that alerted me from the damage those people could inflict, I believed in ‘live, experience, and learn.’ There was no learning without mistakes and experiences, so I indulged more and more into their lifestyle of crime and drugs until I almost lost you to it. I was the cause mom died.’ He was now on his knees on the floor with tears streaming down his face.

‘What do you mean?’ I didn’t understand why he said his last sentence, as far as I know mom died of a car accident when she was coming to pick me up from school.

‘Mom died in a car accident?’ My statement turned into a question, mirroring my obvious confusion.

‘She died protecting you, they were going to take you both to get to me because I refused to do one of the errands they assigned to me, but when they caught you, mom fought them off and hid you away from their reach before going back to them as a form of distraction until help came. She sent an emergency code signal to her brother who was an Adams, but they came a bit late to save her.’ He explained.

‘Wwhat, why don’t I remember any of this?’ I croaked, I was shaking at this revelation of his, my hands gripping the cribs almost painfully. A big part of me no wanting to believing his story, but I knew my brother would never lie to me about such a thing.

‘You lost your memory of the whole two weeks earlier to the incident due to the trauma, so we had to plant others in your head to make you believe that what we say is what actually happened.’ He explained.

They told me that I was in a car crash with mom when we were coming back from school, and I spent few days in a coma but mom had passed away.

Then two days after, Brandon left the house.

My pain at the time doubled, I lost not only my mother without even knowing I did and my brother just joined her, I was left with nothing by my father to help me stand on my feet again.

‘I don’t blame dad for his decision, I brought it upon myself when I didn’t heed his and mom’s warnings. He had to protect you, and to do that I had to be dead to the world.’ He said sadly.

‘It wasn’t your fault, Brandon. You were just a kid who thought himself a grown up, I don’t blame you and mom and dad certainly won’t blame you. Trust me I know, I wouldn’t blame Ethan, Elton or anyone of the kids if they were to be in your shoes. Besides there was nothing you could’ve done to prevent it.’ I said gently stroking the brown locks he got from our mother.

He smiled looking at me tenderly. ‘There’s my little compassionate peanut, I thought I lost you when I saw and experienced your new side. I didn’t believe it was you when I first heard about. ‘The New Villain’ as the other mafia described you until I saw it with my own eyes.’ He stated, looking at me proudly. ‘I’m proud of you for not letting them go away with all the perils they put you through unscathed.’

‘They coveted what was never theirs for which their punishments will be excruciatingly unbearable.’ I shrugged nonchalantly.

He nodded in agreement.

‘I’m sorry.’ He said out of the blue after few seconds of silence.

‘For?’

‘For not telling you about Jason’s condition.’

‘Why did you do it?’ I asked, curious.

‘He wasn’t in a condition to meet you, after he woke up from his coma he suffered from amnesia for almost a year. His advised against any kind of stress which is why I didn’t dare to bring you up to him or vice - versa. I didn’t want to risk his health, so I focused on letting him regain both his physical and mental strength before I came to you.’ He explained.

I was angry and sad when I heard this, but not as much as before because I knew he was right.

He did it for a reason, a good one too.

‘Why didn’t you come to me after that, I mean it’s been almost three years since he recovered, right?’

‘Yes, I think I lost courage along the way, especially after the stories I heard about you, I thought you’d never forgive me, so I opted to hearing about you from Tyrone.’ He clarified.

‘I’m glad you’re back, both of you.’ I said referring to both him and Jason.

‘I’m glad to be back, and now together we’re going to bring down whomever it is that dared to Target my little peanut’s family.’ He assured.

‘Together.’ I smiled.