05.
EMMA.
There’s an edgy silence surrounding me as my eyes zero in on the man standing at the top of the stairs, his presence all-consuming and large.
I hold my breath and find my hands clutching my skirt by the sides as I stare into the familiar cold eyes.
I haven’t seen my father in four years, yet his gaze is still as punishing as ever. He looks down at me with the same look he had in his eyes on that night four years ago—like the sight of me disgusts him and he wants nothing more than to be rid of me.
“D—Dad.” The phrase leaves my mouth in a breathless stammer and I’m hesitant as I try to take a step toward him, my heart pounding in my chest.
“I brought her.” Will appears in front of me, his frame hiding me from my father’s ever-torturing gaze.
No other sound can be heard other than the noise of heartbeats that belong to me alone as I watch my father take a stair down, then another and another.
“You… brought her?” He speaks slowly, the anger lying beneath his words reaching me even without being able to gaze at him.
“I did.” Will answers, sounding confident and unwavering.
“Under whose command?”
“Sir, I—“
“UNDER WHOSE COMMAND?” I jump from the loudness of his voice and panting breath escapes me as I try not to shake in my stand.
“WHOSE?”
“I—“
“She was banished! She was never to be brought back. Not here. Not before me. Not to this pack.” Tears fill the brim of my eyes with each word that comes out of his mouth and I pull my bottom lip between my teeth to hold the sobs that threaten to fall. “Why’d you go against that? Why’d you bring her—“
“I’m the Alpha.” Will’s voice remains unshaken and I lift my head to stare at his back. “Not you. I control the pack now and I decide the fate of each of my members; not you. Emma has always been a member of this pack. She has in no way gone against its rules and isn’t deserving of the punishment of banishment. I only right what I felt was wrong.”
“Right what you felt was wrong?”
“You gave me that power.”
“Not for you to go against my words and my order! I gave you that power to lead. Lead those deserving of it; not bring back the one who’s inflicted unimaginable pain upon this pack than anyone else ever has.”
“She was—“
“I gave you that power,” Dad cuts in before Will can speak. “And you should know I can take it from you just as quick.”
“It doesn’t work that way, and Emma has done nothing wrong. You were punishing her for a crime she didn’t commit. You were punishing her for something that was out of her control. You were—“
“Wilson!” My eyes widen at the roar from Dad and I rush to step forward when I see his hand go up in the air, but a hand drops on my shoulder, stopping me. I look back to see Ryan standing next to me and he gives me a shake of his head.
“Killian!” Another scream tears through the thick air, and I look back to see my stepmother standing behind Dad with panicked eyes. “Killian, please. Please, people are watching.”
Dad’s hand hangs in the air, and it shakes a few times before he drops it. “I want her out of this pack before tomorrow.”
“I can’t do that,” Will replies. “I told you; she’s a member of my pack and I’ll not abandon her.” A tear finally falls from my eyes at his words, and I swallow through the tightness of my throat.
“Killian, please. Let go of this for now. Just calm down and come with me.”
“I’m calm!”
“Killian!”
Several heartbeats pass before I hear the sound of their steps receding and though he stood unyielding and powerful before my father, I see Will’s tense shoulders visibly relax as they walk away.
“Come on. The show is over. What are you all staring at?” Ryan shushes at the small crowd that’s gathered around us, and I approach Will.
“Hey,” he turns at my voice, and my heart races as the greens meet mine, his gaze giving nothing away no matter how hard I try to decipher him. “You didn’t have to—“
“You’re a member of the pack, Emma. I meant that.”
I’m unable to control my smile at his words despite the heaviness I feel in my chest from being before my father again after years.
“You know how it is.”
“Settle in. Your room is just as you left it.” He says and when he tries to walk past me, my hand shoots out to grab him without thinking. My heart thumps harder at the contact, and electricity buzzes at the tip of my fingers as they graze his skin. My lips parts but before I can speak, Will draws his hand back and put a distance between us.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to. I was just—“
“You should rest.” He utters and walks away. I sigh and stare at his back as he stops by Ryan before continuing his walk out.
“Thank you,” I mutter into the air as his frame slowly fades till he’s completely out of sight.
I become conscious of the eyes on me once I’m standing alone and with a lowered head; I avoid their gazes and hurry up the stairs. I walk down the hallway and my room is open when I stand before the door.
With an unsteady hand, I grip the knob and turn it. The door opens and I slip in before gently shutting it back.
My face splits into a smile as my eyes glide across the corners of the room and it’s truly as I left it. Everything is exactly as it was and though it looks untouched, it’s surprisingly clean with not a single dust in sight.
I walk further inside and sniff in the fresh fragrance of the space. My heart warms at my presence here once again and I inaudibly scream as I jump into my bed. I grab a pillow and throw my face into it, the sound of my chuckles muffled by it as my body shakes repeatedly.
I didn’t think I was ever going to see this room again. I didn’t think I’d ever even step foot at the entrance of this pack again. Yet here I am, all thanks to Will.
My heart skips a beat just as his name comes to mind and I turn my head to the side, heat spreading through my body as I remember each time I’ve looked into his eyes through the last hours. I’ve looked into Will’s eyes countless times in the past, but something about this time just feels so… each eye contact shakes me in a way I can’t describe. Could it be because it’s been years and I’m just taken aback by how much he’s grown?
He’s grown a lot. His face and his demeanor. The aura he radiates and his—
I sit up when my thoughts start to drift where they shouldn’t. “What the hell are you thinking, Emma?”
Why the hell is my heart pounding so hard?
The occurrences that have taken place must still overwhelm me.
“I should wash.” I move out of bed, beaming as I take a look around my space again. I walk to my mirror and my reflection stares back at me; my eyes look heavy and the blues are so dulled. My face looks puffy too and my skin feels rash.
My chest falls in a defeated sigh as I run my hands through my hair, the black curls thick as they slip through my fingers.
Living in the BlueStone pack, I had no time to care for myself. All that mattered was surviving another day. Each day was lived in anxiety of what would pop up next and what crime I’d be punished for next. How hard would I have to bear it without breaking and how much would I wish for death to just take me?
I wipe the tears from the corner of my eyes and take a step from the mirror before undressing. I walk to my closet to grab a fresh towel and I’m wrapping it around my back when the door unexpectedly opens and my movement freezes, my pupils enlarging as my eyes meet his.
