Charlie's Chaos

*Callum and Charlee*

Charlee pouted at Callum. "Why won’t you play Russian roulette with us?” Snapping her finger, she made the levitating gun trigger go off once again. The woman winced and Charlee laughed. "Oh look how lucky you are! I guess we still have a lot more of our game to play.” Callum tried to grab the gun. It burned his hand and he pulled back. His hands and feet locked in place, and he couldn’t move from the chair. "Welp, guess someone said you’re not allowed to play. That sucks.”

*You can’t stop it.*

"This isn’t right Lee.”

She placed her hand under her chin. “You know what? I agree. This isn’t even how you play the game…and so let me even it before we start over.” Grabbing the gun in her hand, she placed it on the table. "Well, go on mama pick it up…I want to be fair.”

"I-I’m not doing that Char.”

"DON’T FUCKING CALL ME THAT!” Charlee stood in front of her mother and wore an awful grin. She bent down, and turn her head. "Come on now, I’ll make it easy. Pick up the gun, I know you want to. Don’t you want all the credit? If I die or get injured…you get to be a hero again.” She shouted. "PICK UP THE GUN MOMMY DEAREST!” Shaking, Martha picked up the gun and placed it to Charlee’s head. Charlee's eyes locked with Callum. "Bye, bye cutie.”

"NO!” He heard the gun click and she laughed wildly, before covering her mouth. "Okay, NOW we can play right.” Charlee folded her arms to her chest. "Am I sick mama? You gonna heal me again? Are you going to give me some more capsules filled with rat poison?” Charlee waved her hand back and forth. "Or will it be mixing my Sunny D with alcohol, before I go to school? That was a joyous time for you, rushing your alcoholic daughter into the hospital to save her life.” Charlee looked at the terror on her mother’s face. "Ha-ha, YOU THOUGHT I DIDN’T KNOW?! Well, I have another one for you! Kelly told me how you sent her to steal all my money!”

A chill went down Callum back as he stared at Charlee’s mother. He wanted to say something, anything but his shock completely took over. "Isn’t he cute mama?” She snapped and the gun jerked from her mother’s hand and she pointed it to her own head. "You know what they say Cal, the apple doesn’t fall too far from the tree. Which reminds me-“ She lifted her leg and pointed to her thigh. "LOOK MAMA THE CIGARETTE BURNS ARE GONE!” Her head shook violently. "Why aren’t you smiling? I thought that would make you smile. Remember how you burned me over and over to the point I could hardly walk- you got a lot of sympathy taking care of your deranged daughter who couldn’t take care of herself.”

Charlee, pulled the trigger against her head and her mother jumped. Callum tried his best to reach her.

"Lee…she needs help, but killing her won’t do that.”

She stomped her foot. "Butttt Cal you said we have to be fair, and I’m just trying to be fair. Mama LOVES her some mischief and to never lose.” She tossed the gun to her mother. "I want to allow her to have a little of both, plus it’s not like she didn’t *shoot* me first. Remember when you almost caused my kidneys to fail from shooting me with insulin? What was it? Oh yes- because I became *diabetic* of course that was only after they almost took me away.”

"YOU WERE A SICKLY CHILD CHARLEE, I WAS BEING A GOOD MOTHER!”

"NO YOU WERE PLAYING A DEADLY GAME WITH MY LIFE AND NOW WE’RE GOING TO PLAY ONE FOR YOURS!” She snapped and the gun flew to her mother's hand and immediately went off. Quickly dropping it, Martha let out a wail. Charlee smudged her red lipstick and drew a streak down her temple resembling blood. "Remember when I tried to run away and you chain me to the pole in the basement? Starved me and hit me-“ She tapped the reddened spot. "Right here. And when I begged for your help…what did you say?”

"Charlee stop please…this isn’t a game and you know that.” Callum shouted at her.

She turned to Callum and glared at him hard. "It is to me, and since I’m in charge, it is to you.” Turning back she kicked her mother's chair. "TELL HIM WHAT YOU SAID”

Through tears, Martha spoke. "If you think you’re leaving me, think again.”

Charlee sneered and sang. "Now tellll him the rest.”

"B-because I never lose.” Charlee grabbed the gun hard and shot it repeatedly against her temple. Her grin widened, each time she heard it click. "YOU.NEVER.LOSE!” She dropped the gun on the table. "You poisoned me mama…you took away my childhood and any hope of me being truly good. You made me choose to take your *life-saving* medications, beatings, and lies to the world, so you wouldn’t do it to Kelly….” She leaned in and snarled. "You’re the sick one mama-they have a name for what you have.”

Charlee picked up the gun and turned to Callum. "Puddin, you’ve been awesome through this. Tell me, does this ring have some truth serum attached to it?” She laughed. "Because after your test, Kelly broke in after slipping up and telling mama about my ring. AND LORD BEHOLD she wanted it, and when Kelly tried to snatch it from me, all the other things came out of her, I didn’t know. How truly FUCKED up my mother made my life, even after I got away. SO THANK YOU FOR THAT! You did put things on a fair playing field for me.”

Charlee turned to her sobbing mother and tilted her head. "I learned this amazing thing for my anxiety, it might help you too. Now Cal don’t be mad. I know TECHNICALLY this is cheating.” Callum watched in horror as she started to fire the gun directly at her mother as she counted down. "30! Is for the bees you released in my room as a kid while I was sleeping so you could save me from anaphylactic shock. 29! For making me choose whether Kelly or I would have to overdose on your diet pills….28! MY PERSONAL FAVORITE! The grand larceny charge you filed against me when I used your car to try and escape.”

"LEE!”

"DON’T INTERRUPT MY COUNTING CALLUM OR I’LL HAVE TO START OVER!”

"27! My first of MANY false, secret accusations of arson to the police from you, stating I threatened to burn you alive in the house. 26! The countless surgeries to fix things that you told them were wrong with me. 25! Giving me your version of an exorcism BECAUSE I HAD THE DEVIL IN ME-when I was good mama, I was just different...but I was good. Y-you took the good right out of and now this is what’s left. AM I FINALLY CURED MAMA? BECAUSE I NO LONGER FEEL SICK!”

Charlee pulled the trigger over and over waiting for the perfect time to finally allow it to blow. "9-the first time you inflicted your Munchausen by proxy on me-the first of many times I cried for you to try to learn to love me in a way that didn't hurt.” Tears fell from her eyes, the pain of what her mother did to her, hitting her all over again. Her eyes burned bright white, and she snapped making the gun press against her mother's temple.

"YOU KNOW WHAT? FUCK THIS! I HOPE YOU FUCKING BURN IN HELL!” She snapped again laughing as the gun fired and her mother's blood splattered all over her face. She placed her hands on her hips. "I guess you do lose mama, you didn’t even make it to one.” Callum's body unlocked and he stood walking to her cautiously as she looked at him and chuckled. "I don’t have anymore powers ugh! They were so much fun!” He snapped and the blood on her body disappeared and she grinned. "Shit maybe I should steal something…since she already labeled me a kleptomaniac that she had to sleep beside every night so I wouldn’t take anything.”

Charlee pulled herself into his arms "Why are you so damn cute?” She wrapped her hands around his neck and then she started to wince. "FUCK!” She grabbed her shoulder in pain, and Callum ripped the sleeve. He did a double-take seeing his grandfather and Lucifer, standing in the corner. Lucifer smiled and him, placed three fingers up, and then put one down. He shook his head, and his eyes turned back to Charlee's new tattoo on her skin.

Upright it read SAINT and the other side read SINNER, the opposite of his.