“That’s true, Mom. I am happy we have him around. Even the customers are enjoying seeing him here. His energy is contagious.” I held my chest. It felt like I had a newfound connection to the kid. He was like a son to me.
“Yeah, anyone would love to be around Vince. I even like him.” She patted my shoulder, which made me face her. She looked unimpressed, as if the things she just uttered did not match what she was thinking.
I looked at her with a confused stare.
She continued. “I know you are doing things for Hunter and Vince to help them out in their time of need. I am so proud of you being a kind and big hearted woman I wished you to be.” She smiled at me, but her happy expression soon escaped her face. “But you should look out for yourself too.”
I wrinkled my brows in disagreement, baffled by what she really thought. “Mom.”
She ignored me. “Trust me, I know a lot of things, and I have experienced a lot of things. It’s just not right. You should be careful of Hunter and your feelings for him. Remember that you are just helping a neighbor, not pouring yourself into someone else who just sees you as a tool to fulfill his needs.”
I shoved her hand away from my arm, agitated by her words. She was acting cruel and bizarre. Hunter wasn’t that type of man, and she knew nothing about what he was going through.
“Why are you telling me these things out of nowhere? You don’t know anything about them. Hunter and Vince need help. I can help out; that’s why I’m doing this. I really don’t get why you are acting like this, Mom. You should not judge him based on the way you see the world.” I stormed away the convenience store, taking my things with me. I couldn’t stand listening to her down Hunter another minute. I’d definitely say something that I would come to regret.
I could still hear her calling out my name as I drove off, trying to stop me as I left. As much as I wanted to beg for forgiveness, I knew her all too well. Apologizing would only worsen things as she reiterated the words she said and try to push her beliefs onto me.
It was getting dark when I finally arrived home. The sun had just set, the day coming near to an end. I stepped out of the car, my head aching. I shouldn’t have said those disrespectful things to my mom. I should have turned the car around. I should have apologized and told her I was sorry for talking back to her. She deserved my respect, nothing less.
With guilt running in my chest, it was only when I stepped on the green lawn that I realized that my front door was hanging open again. My pulse spiked, and I stopped in my tracks. Fuck.
I reached into my purse and pulled out the gun I had gotten for this exact situation. I kept my steps as inaudible as I could, clearing my path as I entered the house. I needed to keep myself safe. I could not afford any mistakes this time.
I pointed my gun in front of me, just in case something went wrong. As I tiptoed inside the front door, I looked cautiously from all sides. The burglar could be anywhere; I had to be ready to attack if the need arises. I pulled my phone in my pocket, carefully dialing 9-1-1 as I kept my guard around the place. As soon as the other line picked up, I told them to come to my place as soon as they could.
“Please hurry up.”
Just as I finished saying the last word, I spotted a shadow of a man walking out the back door of my house. He wore all black, and his mask was black as well, covering everything except for his eyes. My hand which held the gun vibrated hard, my heart jumping out of my chest. I could easily shoot and kill my target, but why would I? Instead, he fled without any problem as he crashed through the back door and ran out into the backyard.
I melted to my knees, sinking down on the ground. My hands were still shaking desperately as I dropped the gun on the floor. It was the most life-threatening experience I had ever had, and where I was terrified, I still wasn’t willing to kill someone.
I broke down and cried. I heard the police car siren pull up, which forced me back into reality. The police came inside and searched the area to see if the burglar was still around.
“What happened, miss?” One of the police officers came to my aid, helping me stand to my feet. I tried my best to return to my old self, recalling how things were when I came to my house so I could answer the man’s questions.
“I came here and found that the front door was open. I was frightened, but I wanted to find out what happened. I carried my gun and walked in.” The police officer was jotting down notes as I spoke. “And when I went inside, I saw a man. He wore a black mask and black clothes, so it was hard to get a visual on him.”
In between our conversation, Hunter came running over to the house with Vince in tow. He stood beside me and wrapped an arm around me as he held Vince’s hand. “Kylie. What happened?”
“Someone broke in again.” I leaned against him.
He looked worried and saw that the gun he gave me was still lying on the ground, unused. He picked it up and gave it back to me. The police stared at me with a suspicious look on his face.
“That your gun, miss?” he asked.
Hunter spoke up. “Yes. She has a permit and a license to carry the gun. She purchased it from my gun shop.”
The police nodded, satisfied by Hunter’s statement. He pocketed the notes and pen, turning back to me for additional inquiries. “So, I suppose you know how to use a gun, miss.”
Hunter interrupted me. “Yeah, Kylie. I know you can shoot any target accurately, but why didn’t you fire it?”
I faced Hunter, my eyes filled with fear. I shook my head, disappointed in myself.
“I couldn’t pull the trigger. When I was about to shoot the man, something inside of me stopped me. I just can’t kill another person.” I looked down at the gun, grasping it.
The policeman gave me a warm look. “That’s okay, miss. You did the right thing. We don’t know if the man had an accomplice or any weapon. Shooting him might have only caused things beyond your control in case you failed to shoot your target.” He looked over at Hunter. “You need to stay somewhere else, miss. We can’t let you hang around here, especially now that your doors are broken.” I looked around to see what he meant. Both doors of my house were knocked down by the culprit, the locks broken. I looked around the house. It was a mess. Almost all of my things were scattered about.
“I see. I guess I’m going back to my mother’s house then,” I whispered half-heartedly. It felt like a bad move, seeing that we weren’t exactly on good terms.