Emma’s POV
“It’s tight, isn’t it?” Sienna said mockingly.
I stopped trying to free my hands and looked up at her.
“You will never get your hands free,” Sienna said, chuckling darkly. “You will die in that chair.”
Anger blinded me.
“Well, if that is the only way to get away from you, I won’t object much,” I said, clenching my fists repeatedly.
Sienna laughed, throwing her head back.
“What would Logan and Andrew say to that, Emma?” she asked and I regretted my words immediately. “Would they really want you to give up so easily after all they’ve been through to save you?”
I tightened my jaw and swallowed the lump in my throat.
“Or maybe they wouldn’t even care,” she said as she stood up and approached me.
My heart tugged painfully.
Sienna placed her hands on each side of my head and leaned in. Her face was so close to me that I could see all the different color freckles in her eyes. I was still wondering how was that possible when we were in complete darkness.
“You took what I said for granted, Emma,” she said. “I told you the truth the day Rolf kidnapped you. Why didn’t you listen to me? Why did you forgive them?”
I furrowed my eyebrows. I spent years trying to forget what she said on that day. I didn’t want to remember it. It hurt too much to remember it. A part of me knew what she said. A part of me would never forget it. But I never wanted to remember it again.
She smirked and lifted her hand to caress my cheek. Her hand was icy cold and I pulled back immediately. I didn’t want her to touch me.
Sienna smiled and stood back up.
“They don’t love you, Emma,” she said. “They never loved you. Andrew hates you and you were always just a burden to him. Logan accepted you out of pity. He felt guilty because you got hurt and he tried to fix it by accepting you as his mate.”
I was staring at her with a shocked expression on my face.
Did she really think that would work? Did she really think I would believe her?
I laughed and shook my head. Her eyes widened in surprise.
“I am not that naive 18-year-old girl anymore, Sienna,” I said. “You can’t expect me to believe that again.”
Sienna tightened her jaw and forced a smile on her face.
“Why not?” she asked, shrugging. “Do you think that I am lying just because they’ve been playing happy family with you all this time?”
Leon growled loudly making Sienna look up at him.
“Does this mutt really have to be here?” she asked, sighing quietly.
I saw red when she called him a mutt.
“Leave him alone,” I said, growling quietly. “This is between you and me.”
She looked back at me and rolled her eyes.
“Don’t worry,” she said. “I can’t do anything to him. I can’t reach him.”
I furrowed my eyebrows and glanced back at Leon and Eliza. It looked like they were just a few feet behind us.
“You can’t see it, but there is glass between us,” Sienna said and I turned back to look at her. “We can’t reach them and they can’t reach you.”
A small wave of relief washed over me. Sienna couldn’t hurt them.
She sighed and walked back to her chair. She sat down and crossed her arms over her chest.
“Where were we?” she asked, smirking at me. “Ah, yes, playing happy family.”
Leon growled again, but this time Sienna ignored him.
I swallowed the lump in my throat and grabbed the armrest tightly. I knew that she was lying, but my heart still tugged painfully. Just imagining that her words could be true was hurting my entire body and soul.
The rope around my wrists tightened. I looked down and furrowed my eyebrows. Why did it tighten? That had never happened before. The ropes were tight, but I never felt them tighten until now.
“Do you really think that they love you just because they took you back?” Sienna asked mockingly. “They just felt guilty, Emma. Don’t confuse guilt with love.”
I looked back at her and scoffed.
“I am not,” I said, clenching my fists. “They didn’t do it out of guilt. They did it out of love.”
The rope around my wrists loosened a bit.
I looked down and my eyes widened.
“They love me,” I said, tugging on the rope. “They always loved me. I was never a burden. They made mistakes, but they love me.”
The rope was getting looser with each word I spoke.
I smiled and looked up at Sienna. She was staring at my hands with an angry look on her face.
“They never loved you!” she exclaimed as she stood up. “Logan always wanted me. Andrew spent more time with me than with you. Why do you think that was? You were nothing but a burden to him, Emma.”
I smiled at her. She really thought I was going to believe her. She really thought that I was still that naive 18-year-old girl.
“Their lives would have been so much better without you,” Sienna added as she approached me slowly. “I should have let Rolf kill you right then and there on your kitchen floor.”
I chuckled and shook my head.
“You are wrong, Sienna,” I said. “Both of them love me so much. I made their lives better. They made my life better. We are a family and we love each other so much. I wouldn’t be where I am today if it wasn’t for them. Nothing you said is true and I know it with my entire heart.”
I believed every word I said. Nothing and no one could tell me that I was wrong. I knew that I wasn’t. I knew how much my family loved me and how important I was to them. Sienna was terribly wrong if she thought that I would fall for her lies again.
I could feel the rope around my wrists disappearing. I looked down and smiled. I was free.
I stood up and looked at Sienna. Her eyes widened.
“I am sorry about one thing, though,” I said. “My brother and Logan really loved you. They really thought of you as a friend. I looked up to you when I was a little girl. I am sorry you couldn’t appreciate all the love we had for you. I am sorry that you let your jealousy destroy what could have been a wonderful friendship.”
Sienna screamed and fell to her knees.
I closed my eyes and took a deep breath, praying to the Goddess that I would be back with Logan when I opened them again. Maybe this was the end. Maybe I finally defeated the darkness.
