My lungs constricted, and I struggled for air. Why was he doing this? Why was he digging up our pasts and splashing it all over the local news? It was bad enough dealing with the press the first time when they’d found Charlie’s and Jewel’s bodies in his mangled truck.
“Kennedy?” Jade’s voice sounded far way, like I was in a tunnel, or worse, like I was drowning. Her hands came to rest on my shoulders and she moved me towards the sofa until I was sitting down.
“Turn it off,” I said, watching images of Charlie and Jewel flicking onto the screen. I couldn’t stand to hear more. Jewel and Charlie were both dead, and I couldn’t stand to hear what they were saying anymore. My brother wasn’t a murderer. He loved Jewel more than anything. They were in love.
Jade shut the television off, and came to sit beside me just as our front door burst open. Dane filled the doorway, dressed in drenched sweats, and a grey t-shirt. His hair was dripping, and stuck to his face.
But it was his scowl that held my attention.
He stepped forward, his shoulders heaving like he’d run here, and his stance menacing.
“Is it true?” His tone was as thunderous as the weather outside.
“Is what true?” Asked Jade. She rose from her place next to me, and took a protective stance in front of me. Little did she know there was nothing she could to protect me from what was coming.
“Step aside Jade,” warned Dane. He glowered at her, but she stood firm, and folded her arms across her chest. She was preparing for a fight, but it wasn’t hers to begin with. It wasn’t really mine either, but with Charlie gone I made it mine, and I guessed Dane was doing the same for Jewel.
“I’m not going anywhere,” replied Jade. She lifted her chin, effectively saying ‘try me’. “I’m not going to let you hurt my friend.”
Dane let out a sadistic laugh that made my skin crawl. “I won’t touch her. Not after what her brother did to my sister.”
I screwed my eyes shut, and instinctively curled my hands into fists. If he wanted a fight, I’d give him one, but he had no right to throw accusations around when he didn’t know everything.
I shot to my feet, and shoved Dane backwards. “Don’t you dare say anything about Charlie when he’s not here to defend himself!”
“I asked you a fucking question, Kennedy!” He yelled. “Is what they’re saying on the news about Charlie and Jewel true?”
“Yes!” I yelled back. “They were in a relationship, but he didn’t kill her, Dane!”
He stepped back, and roughly pulled his wet hair through his fingers. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” he said looking up at the ceiling. “I can’t fucking believe it.”
“Your dad must be having a field day with this,” I remarked. “Any opportunity to drag my family’s name through the mud.”
Dane’s head snapped in my direction, and he closed the gap between us. “Oh no, sweetheart. This one is all on your brother, and it has been ever since he killed my sister!”
My blood had been slowly boiling, building up from a steady simmer, but it was now tipping over, and I’d lost any desire to control it. My hand came up, ready to slap Dane across the face but his fingers wrapped around my wrist before I could, like he was anticipating it.
“Not so fast,” he growled. His grip tightened until it was painful, and he pulled me until we were standing in front of the television. He turned it on, and the news channel was still showing pictures of our families, his sister, and my brother.
I turned my head away, but he grabbed my chin and I had no choice but to see the barrage of images.
“Look!” He shouted. “I want you to see what a monster your brother was! I want you to see how he ruined my family!”
He was hurting me in every way he could, and I lost the struggle to keep from breaking. A sob escaped my mouth, and I fell to my knees.
“You don’t get to cry!” shouted Dane. “It should have been you in that car, not Jewel! Your brother should have taken your life with his, and not hers!”
I started crying harder, and when I looked up at him, his eyes were red, with tears streaming down his face. This was ultimately the one thing that would have torn us apart eventually, but I never expected him to use it against me this way. I finally understood why he’d hated me so much after Jewel’s death. Charlie wasn’t here to take the blame, so Dane took all of his misplaced hatred out on me.
Jade came barreling out of her room, rushing towards us when she saw that Dane had my arm suspended in the air while I knelt on the floor.
“Let go of her!” She yelled, trying to push him away, but he refused to let go, even when I winced in pain.