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Hi, this is a short story I began writing three days ago and this is the final part. If you missed the first two parts, check them out below:

Part 1

Part 2

Her father, now woke, was standing in the doorway as she got home. "Mary, you were gone for too long," he said, raising his voice as soon as he saw her nearing the house.

Mary gave no response.

He continued, "I was starting to think you had run away again," then he chuckled, "but I thought to myself, no, she wouldn't abandon her darling kids here, alright."

Still, she said nothing. She got right in front of him and gave him a kind of stare that said, "move!"

As soon as she entered into the house, the old man shut the door, bolting it behind them again, "why aren't you saying anything, child?"

Child? Was he really being serious right now or was he the only one who hadn't noticed that she was a grown woman now? She turned to face him and then asked calmly, "why do you always keep the door bolted?"

"I thought I explained to you already, there are mischievous kids -"

"Oh, stop bullshitting me. You and I both know that's not true," she interrupted him.

He moved towards her, "see, Mary, I don't expect you to warm up to me easily after all I made you go through in the past. But I'm doing my best to make things right between us now and for that reason, I can't be lying to you. That'll be undermining everything."

"But that's exactly what you're doing now. You know, I ran into Mrs Jackson earlier and she told me there weren't any kids pulling pranks here," said Mary, now on the verge of tears as she noticed the guilt written all over her father's face.

"Dad, it's either you tell me the truth or my kids and I will be leaving Huntsville sooner than you think."

Her father knew there was no need to lie anymore, "Ok, you want the truth, don't you?"

He moved back to the door and secured the bolt with the padlock. Then he faced her, "Mary, I can't let you leave me again. I'm your father and you're my little girl. I'm supposed to take care of you."

Still not understanding him, Mary retorted, "well, you didn't exactly do a proper job at that, did you?"

"Yes, I know. And that's why I'll not mess up this second chance. Now that you're back, I'll be a proper father and you'll never have to leave Huntsville again," he said, making that ominous smile again.

Mary, finally understanding the situation, trembled, lost of words. She finally understood why he had been referring to her with the phrase, "little child." It now made sense why he was being overly apprehensive of leaving the door unbolted. Her father was crazy and he had lured her back to town to make her his daughter again. Except this time as a hostage.

"But I'm all grown up now. I have my own kids and it's my responsibility to take care of them. Don't you think?"

"Oh, Mary. They don't matter. Nobody does. Except you and me. That's how it's always meant to be. It's what your mother would have wanted, think about it," her father answered.

Terrified, she moved backwards in fear, thinking about her children, "Maddy and Kelvin, where are they? Are they even safe?"

He neared her as she recoiled, "Relax, child. I'd never hurt you, my baby."

In an instant, he swooped to get hold of her but she acted faster by kicking him in the groin and pushing him so hard that he fell to the ground, groaning in pain. Then she seized the moment to run upstairs for her kids.

"Maddy, Kelvin, c'mon, wake up. We're leaving now," she jerked them awake in a deeply troubled tone.

"Mom, do we have to leave so fast? But grandpa is -"

"Yes, Maddy! Now! We're not safe here," she interrupted her daughter, raising her voice this time around. She carried little Kelvin on her shoulder as they dashed out of the room into the hallway.

"Maddy, hurry, get my keys," she ordered, pointing towards her old room. The little girl ran in and back with the keys. In a flash, they were downstairs. Her father was still on the floor, writhing in pain.

"Please, don't leave me again, Mary," he groaned, weakly.

She reached for the keys to the door, "I'm sorry, daddy, but you've still not changed" she said as she opened the door and ushered her kids outside, abandoning the old man to his fate once again.

The end.

Thanks for reading. Your feedback and criticism are highly welcome!