Chapter 53 - Papa Don't Preach

Leila POV

I looked at the face that shared the same genetics as mine, I would admit that I was expecting a visit, after all only months ago I had my mother at my door.

I knew my father would soon make himself known, and turn up expecting the world, as if I owed it to him because I was born.

"Baby Girl"

"Don't call me that" I snorted, arms crossed defensively, standing in the doorway of my home "What are you doing here?"

While Alec was right, I still indeed loved my mother, the memory that I clung on to that I had of her, from when I was a small child, before the addiction and the mental deterioration had consumed her.

My father, on the other hand, I despised.

I had blamed him for many things in my life.

The poverty, the drugs, the alcoholism, my beautiful mother's mental and physical deterioration, hell, I even blamed him for Tommy's death.

I told myself how irrational it was, because he wasn't even there when Tommy got shot, we don't even know where my father was at that point, he had been on a bender for days.

I blamed him mostly because if he was even a small part of the father he should have been he would have been raising his family, instead of my brother having to step up and being a father figure and doing the job for him.

Instead of days out partying with my mother, they should have been home in bed, ready to rise the next day to see their children off to school and head to work, to ensure we had money for food and a safe roof over our heads, in a nice suburb of Detroit, instead of getting robbed every other week so often that there wasn't anything else to steal, let alone eat at the best of times.

If they had done that, then possibly, Tommy wouldn't have fallen into the life of dealing drugs to support us and he wouldn't have gotten shot.

How different our lives could have been.

Perhaps I wouldn't have ended up in law enforcement, being treated like shit and beaten by perpetrators.

I wouldn't be doing what I am now, making men pay for their ill deeds to their innocent wives.

My hate for my father had truly started it all.

Perhaps I would have ended up in the music industry instead, I did love the background of music, much as Tommy and Alec did.

Would I still have met Marshall that faithful night? Or would I have been out with a horde of giggling girlfriends, celebrating my 21st birthday in the city?

I turned back to my father who was talking to me while I had done out.

"What did you just say?"

"I saw your Ma, she said you gave her some money... Well not actually her, she mentioned a new fella you were dating gave her a wad of cash"

"I thought Alec dropped her into the clinic"

"Your mother, clean? She was more fucked up than I had ever seen her, acting all high and mighty, standing next to James" He snorted, his vile twisted features making the anger in me spike "Once a whore, always a whore"

My heart had sunk as soon as I heard the name, it only meant one thing if she had started her relationship up again with James.

James had been her longtime Pimp, while my father's reaction was called for, it still made him no better.

"I'm not giving you any money"

"Why not baby girl, you know I'm good for it" He pleaded.

"I'm sick of it all, I don't know if you're both either dead or alive most of the year until you turn up wanting a goddamn handout, I can't do it anymore" I breathed as I shook my head, I was exhausted by acting as a halfway house for the people who were meant to be my parents "I'm done with the both of you, you're dead to me"

Anger flashed across his face as he slapped me hard.

I glared at him unmoving.

"If I were you, I would start to run" I said calmly "You have less than 5 minutes before I tell Alec and Christian"

I slam the door, turning to lean up against it, then sliding down to the floor grabbing myself as I felt the tears that I had held back fall down my cheeks.

I knew I had to draw the line in the sand at some point but even after everything, I never thought it would be this hard.

---

"Fuck"

I sat up on my couch after being startled awake by a loud thud coming from the back of my house followed by swearing.

I started to reach under the couch cushion for my gun as I hear somebody stumble and curse some more.

It definitely wasn't Alec.

I wasn't in the mood for being robbed by some kids tonight.

I cocked the gun.

The hooded person rounds the corner, eyes widening at throwing their hands up as they see me, pale face, staring down the barrel of my gun.

"FUCK LEILA CHILL, IT'S FUCKIN' ME, MARSHALL"

"What the fuck are you doing breaking into my house you fucking dumbass? You almost had a bullet through your head!" I say dropping the gun.

"Well excuse me for being fuckin' worried about your ass, you ain't answer my calls or texts all night, so I came straight here as soon as I landed, I was knocking for fuckin' ages, Alec said you were home!"

"So you broke in?"

"What the fuck else was I suppose to do?" He said dropping his hood running his hand over his face in shock "The fuck you just waving around Glocks for bitch? Who fuckin' are you fuckin' Beatrix Kiddo?"

I snort "You ain't dead calm down, if I wanted that you'd be on the floor"

I look at the clock, it was 4 in the morning.

I must have fallin' asleep after the drama with my father yesterday.

"Sorry, I fell asleep, I had an unexpected visitor last night that drained me"

He sat down next to me "Your Ma come back?"

I shook my head "Nah it was my dad this time"

"Oh shit, how did that go? Want money or something? One favour my father did for me is never contact me which made it easier to pretend he never existed"

"I'd rather that than have to guess if they're either dead or alive in the first place... I cut them off" I sighed, my heart betraying me as I felt the dull ache "I told him that can't do this anymore, that I'm done, they're both dead to me"

"Ouch," Marshall said sitting next to me stiffly "You alright?"

"I will be"

He wrapped his arm around me suddenly.

It was the smallest of gestures but it was comforting after last night.

Knowing him he took the gamble since I wasn't the easiest to read of people, I wasn't a big person on emotional gestures either.

"Where is he now?"

"He hit me, so I gave him a 5-minute head start then told Alec"

"HE WHAT?" Marshall snarled jumping up "Why didn't you fuckin' text me?"

"What were you going to do from another city?"

His shoulder slouched "I don't know, but I still would have liked to know if someone had laid hands on my girl"

"That's sweet Marshall but I didn't need to bother you with it, Alecs on it"

Marshall sighs and sits back down next to me.

"You ain't gotta deal with this alone you know, I know what it's like, I know you got Alec, but I'm here for you too"

I nodded.

I had been irrationally angry at him for being in another city, for no reason and had played the cold shoulder card and for what?

He still comes to my house at 4 am in the damn morning to check on me.

Regardless of whether he was really worried or if he had other motives, it was still nice to have someone else in my life that cared for me other than Alec.

It was a long road and I still had masses of trust issues to navigate through, but this was for sure a milestone.