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Slowing back down to a walk, I continue making my way home. I haven’t made it far when sprinkling raindrops begin to fall, renewing my shiver. It’s going to be a long, miserable walk home. Then I’ll have to face my parents when I arrive.
* * *
I tell my mom I was late because I stopped for food on the way home, which she has a hard time believing. She was upset that Emmett didn’t drive me, considering the rain, and she could see that I look like shit. I convince her that Emmett and I grabbed food together, and then I felt sick and asked to walk the rest of the way home. She still seems suspicious but lets me go to my room to lie down.
After a long hot bath, I climb into bed with my phone in hand and wait for Emmett’s call. I am starting to doze off by the time it rings.
“Ophelia, it’s me,” his voice comes in across the line. “I took care of everything, okay? You don’t have to worry.”
“What do you mean…everything?” I ask in disbelief.
“You can come back to school tomorrow and you’re back on the track team,” he continues, explaining confidently.
“You’re kidding me!” I exclaim in shock. “How did you fix it all so fast?”
“I run Jameson Automobiles now, which basically runs the town. All of which was founded by my father,” he reminds me. “All I had to do was talk to Principal Brown. I told him I knew for a fact you were framed and that I would personally take care of the people who did this to you, as long as he fixed everything on his end.”
“So…I don’t have to tell my parents?” I sob in relief.
“It’s like the whole thing never happened,” he promises. “It won’t even be on your record.”
I cuff my hand over my mouth to quiet my happy cries, but then something he said stands out to me. “You’ll personally take care of who did this to me…what do you mean by that?”
“I’m going to confront Vivian and Lily about this. They can’t get away with it. They have to know things aren’t going to be like they used to be. I’m in charge now,” he says sternly, in a way that I have to admit turns me on. “I’m on my way to talk to them now.”
“I’m coming with you!” I blurt, knowing I don’t want him anywhere near either of them without me. “Come by and pick me up first.”
Emmett agrees and I quickly hang up the phone to get ready. A few minutes later, he arrives, though it’s no easy job convincing my mom I am well enough to go out again. But I manage to get past her and back into his car. He drives us to Lily’s mansion, which is almost as big as his. I can’t help but feel uncomfortable knowing my house is the size of one of their living rooms, and these are the only people I have any contact with these days, outside of my parents and the occasional teacher.
“How do you know they’ll talk to us?” I ask, as I unbuckle my seatbelt.
“For one, they don’t know what it’s about or that you’re with me,” he explains quickly, as he combs back his hair in the rear view mirror. “Two, they know they can’t afford to piss me off more than they suspect they already have.”
I’m not so sure I know what that means, but I follow along and feel the same surge of desire I felt on the phone. I’ve never really seen Emmett take care of things this way. At least not for me. It matches his actions towards Lily before she aligned with Vivian, the way he called and made sure the Elites wouldn’t stop her from getting into Juilliard. But her actions after that make even less sense now.
Emmett rings the doorbell and I expect to see Lily or her parents behind the door, but of course it’s some kind of butler. “Good evening, sir,” he says in a ridiculously snooty voice.
“Lily is expecting me,” he says coldly, breezing right past.
“Thank you,” I offer gently as we walk by.
The butler rushes to close the door and show us the way to one of the many living room-type areas of the house. Lily and Vivian are huddled on the couch together doing homework, and I start to wonder if maybe Vivian is staying here because of everything going on with the investigation and her parents at home. They both jump up the minute they see us, their eyes planted firmly on me in shock.
“You didn’t say you were bringing that skank with you,” Vivian scoffs.
“Did you think he was coming over just to hang out?” I ask sarcastically.
Emmett marches right over to Vivian, getting closer than I’d like him to. But the anger surging through him puts all of us off, and no one bothers questioning him right now. “What the fuck were you thinking, trying to pull that shit on her!?” he growls into her face. “You know she’s with me now. Did you really think I would just let that slide!?”
“Did you think I’d let what she did to my parents slide!?” Vivian barks back, not cowering away from his intimidating stance.
Suddenly, Emmett lunges forward, taking Vivian with him. He pins her to the wall with his hand around her neck. I am horrified, but I don’t know why. I’ve seen him like this plenty of times before, but I was the one in his grip.
“You’re hurting me,” she squirms against the wall, but he doesn’t stop. Lily and I step back and stay out of the way, our mouths open wide as we watch it all go down.
“She didn’t do a damn thing to your parents!” he hisses, viciously pointing his finger against her face. “Your parents and my dad all knew exactly what they were doing with that sex trafficking ring. They broke the law and now they’re paying for it. The end. Ophelia had nothing to do with it, so lay the fuck off. Or you answer to me!”
“You think you’re real hot shit now that your dad isn’t around,” she teases coyly with his hand still stretched across her neck. I grimace at the way she writhes in his grip and looks back at him defiantly. Like she’s getting off on the whole thing. “Lucky us, Lily. The new Thomas Jameson is right here in your living room. How kind of you to grace us with your presence.”
