Page 37 of Fighting My Demons

“Still, it was an invasion of privacy and kind of creepy. But go on, ask away,” I tell him.

“It said your brother killed your parents, so why do you talk to him after what he did?”

“Any question but that one,” I tell him.

“Why did he do it?”

“And that one.”

Latham pinches the bridge of his nose before shaking his head and muttering under his breath. The room is tense, and I suddenly lose my appetite.

“No, I want you to answer. You tell us nothing about the situation with your brother, and I am trying to understand it, but nothing I think of makes sense as to why you would have anything to do with him after he killed both your parents.”

“We can talk about anything else, just not my brother or my family. Just leave that part of my life alone,” I tell him before getting up and clearing my plate.

I rinse it in the sink, but Latham, pissed off, follows me dumping his own plate in the sink.

“Why is it a big secret? We barely know anything about you, Bella. Just answer that one question. Why do you still talk to him?”

“Thanks for dinner, but I am not doing this. I will see you later. I am heading home,” I tell Blaine and Xavier before heading for the door.

Is that why they asked me to come here just to interrogate me?

Reaching for the handle, Latham puts his hand on the door, slamming it shut as I pull it open.

“What the hell, Latham? I am not arguing over something that is none of your business,” I snap at him, trying to yank the door open.

“Latham, stop it. Let me leave,” I tell him, turning around to face him.

He has a murderous look on his face, one I have never seen before. Why is he so upset over something that has nothing to do with him?

“Latham, come on. Let her go,” Blaine says, coming up behind him.

“Not until she answers. It is a simple fucking question, Blaine. She can at least tell us something,” Latham snaps back.

“Looks like we are waiting by the door then because I don’t have to tell you anything.”

“That is where you are wrong, Bella. We have every intention of being in your business because you are ours, and I want to know whether or not I need to deal with your brother if he is going to become a nuisance,” Latham snaps, caging me in with both arms against the door.

“I am not yours or anyone else's.”

“No, just your brother’s, right? You belong to him, though. He owns you?”

“He doesn’t own me, Latham. He is my brother. No one owns anybody. If this is going to happen every time I come here, don’t invite me. I am sick of being interrogated by you.”

“Latham, walk away. Come on. Let her go,” Blaine tries to reason, but Latham refuses to move.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake, why the fuck does it matter, Latham? Let me out!”

“It matters because I can’t trust you with our secret until I know yours. I know you are hiding something, so tell me.”

“I don’t need to explain myself. He is my brother, and I have every right to have him in my life whether or not you disapprove of him. He's my brother, not yours. I am not asking you to understand it, nor do I care if you don’t. Now let me the fuck out, Latham.”

He doesn’t move, and Blaine pulls on his arm.

“Let her go,” Blaine says, and he reluctantly moves his hand and steps back.

I can see how angry he is, but some things are better left buried. Turning around to leave, he speaks again.