I glanced to the right of me, seeing the very real bullet now lodged into the thick frame of the door, before looking to my brother, who sat at the end of Ivy’s closet. There were still shopping bags that hadn’t been hung. Everything brand new, untouched, never used...never would be used.
“Funny thing is, she said she wouldn’t be able to wear all of this,” he said bitterly, following my eyes before bringing a bottle of brandy to his lips and drinking. In his other hand was his gun. He brushed the side of his mouth as liquor spilled, and gripped the gun tighter.
“You shouldn’t drink—”
BANG!
He fired at the floor right before my foot, stopping me from walking forward.
“Give a me good reason not to kill you,” he said.
“I’m your brother—”
BANG!
“Fuck!” I hissed, reaching up to grab the tip of my ear, which had to be bright red from the gun burn. Inhaling deeply, I looked back to him as he took a swig. “I take that is no longer a good reason?”
To answer he put down his bottle and pointed his gun again.
“ETHAN! —”
BANG!
I couldn’t move, not because he hit me but because I had no idea where he was aiming and whether he’d miss or not because of his obvious mental break. So again, I just stood there, hoping he wasn’t yet that lost.
“Eleven years,” he said, pulling out the magazine of his gun. “That’s how long I alone was left to protect this family. I accepted that. I was first born. That is what I was supposed to do. That is what I was born to do.” He reached into his pocket, and pulled out bullets that he slowly loaded into the magazine. “Twenty-six years, that’s how long I’ve been watching out for you. From the day you were born to the day he died, Father told me… ‘Look out for Wyatt.’ ‘Protect Wyatt.’ ‘Teach Wyatt.’ ‘Forgive Wyatt.” Wyatt. Wyatt. Wyatt. It was so bloody annoying and odd. He never told me ‘look out for Donatella’ or ‘look out for your siblings.’ It was always look out for you, Wyatt. Now I realize it’s because Father knew, at the very least, that Donatella wasn’t going to be completely and utterly useless!”
“Ethan—”
BANG!
This time when he shot I dashed to the side into Ivy’s shoes, noticing he was pointing straight for my chest.
“For all Dona’s flaws, I never once doubted that she would do what she needed to do,” he said, twisting his gun to the side to look it over as he spoke. “Kill Toby? Stay loyal. No matter her own ambition…I knew she would because she is what I am…a Callahan, proudly, boldly, passionately a Callahan. As Callahans, she and I did what was good for this family. We did so over and over again with no regard to our own personal pain or sacrifice. We destroyed ourselves for this family. But you…” For a brief, second, I saw something I’d never seen in him…hate, hate toward me. His grip tightened, and I was sure if he pointed that gun at me he wouldn’t miss; I wouldn’t be able to escape. However, he blinked, his green eyes numb again. “You’ve always been selfish…. you’ve never once thought about those around you. It’s always about you. Now we are here because of you.”
“I can’t imagine how you feel—”
“But it’s not your fault?” He asked me, eyebrow raised. An evil smirk appeared on his lips as he said, “Your girlfriend in Boston, I had her killed.”
I knew it.
“You knew.” He replied as if he could read my mind. It wasn’t a question. It was a statement. “You knew I had her killed, and I’m sure you knew why.”
Courtney, that was her name, and she was the most air-headed doctor I ever met. I knew she was the one spreading rumors about the Callahan family.
“They were harmless rumors,” I whispered. Just her claiming to go on family vacations and being part of the family with us.
“Everything becomes harmful when it is attached to us,” he replied. “She was on your arm, running her mouth about this family, claiming we were in places we weren’t, spending money on things that would make people raise eyebrows, and you did nothing. Why?”
“I...”
“You didn’t give a shit. You enjoyed fucking her, pretending to be like everyone else who’s useless. Ironically, they want to be us, all those useless people. You also knew she might get herself killed. But you didn’t care. You never care about anyone else but yourself—”
“Am I supposed to apologize for not killing my girlfriend?” I snapped, already done with this fucking lecture. “You want someone to blame your—”
The bottle flew right at my face, forcing me to duck quickly.
“I will blame you!” He hollered back. “Twenty-six years I have spent watching your back! Cleaning up your fucking messes! I couldn’t do my job because you couldn’t do yours. Every moment I spent on you was a moment taken away from something else. It was a moment I could be blindsided. And I was! You came back, but you were so hurt about Dona and busy fucking maids, you still couldn’t have my back. You never have my back until everything goes to hell. I let myself get shot to bring you back home. My wife…we lost our child to get you back to WHERE YOU SHOULD HAVE ALREADY FUCKING BEEN! I made a mistake. Fucked up because of YOU. YOU, WYATT!” He gritted his teeth and clenched the gun even tighter as his eyes glazed over with tears he’d never let fall in front of me.
I couldn’t speak because I now knew why I couldn’t come inside his room…what I was feeling. It
