“What do you mean you killed my dad?” Sitting up, I turn my head, eyeing River suspiciously.

Rolling my body to the side, she sits up, crossing her legs.

“That day we skipped school, I knew your dad was going to come home and give you a hard time, so when we were napping, I woke up and went to the bathroom. I was looking in the kitchen and saw a bottle of whiskey… I put some Belladonna in it.” She shakes her head, her eyes filling with tears.

“What the fuck is that?” My tone sour.

“I use it for motion sickness, and pain management. I broke my leg when I was a kid and it hurts real bad when it rains sometimes. Belladonna is natural and is fine if used in the right dosage. It can cause you to get sleepy and loopy if you use too much, but I must have put way too much in the bottle of whiskey, or he drank the whole bottle too fast. I’m not sure, but I know too much can cause death.”

Her eyes wide, face pale, she explains how she killed my father, poisoning him with her hippie fucking medicine. Biting my bottom lip, I continue to listen to her go on about how it’s originated from Italy, and so on. But, I can’t decide if I’m in more shock that she killed him, or that he’s really gone. This whole time I thought he didn’t care and wasn’t calling me or trying to find me and he’s been dead because of her.

“He polished the whole bottle off,” I interrupt her rambling. “He’s a hard drunk.”

Her mouth opens to say something, gaping open like a fish out of water but then she finally shuts it. Her pouty lips trembling.

Staring at her I can’t decide if I’m mad at her or not. She tried to knock my dad out so I wouldn’t take a beating that night. Nobody has ever done anything like that for me before, even those who knew my dad was knocking me around. They turned the other way, but River… she stepped in before we really even knew each other.

“I’m sorry.” Closing her eyes, she lowers her head.

Reaching out, tucking a finger under her chin I make her look me in the eyes. “I still love you,” I whisper. Her thick lashes flutter in confusion.

“I lost my dad when I lost my mother. When I left, he was as good as dead to me anyways.” I shrug. She flings herself at me, her breasts pressing into my chest. Curling my arms around her sweaty body I pull her into me, smelling her natural scent. My hand in her hair, and chin resting on her shoulder.

“I’m so fucked up. I’m killing people left and right,” she sobs. “It’s like my love for you has made me crazy.”

With her close to my body, I lay down with her beside me, petting her until she falls asleep. Huey next to her knocked out.

I’m not mad at her, if anything, I love her more for what she did.

My eyes getting heavy, I wonder what they did with my dad’s body. If anyone showed up to his funeral, and if they put him next to my mother in the graveyard.

They better not have, she deserves to rest in peace away from that fucker.