The Lost Tarzan

Chapter 25

A/N:
I'm sorry I haven't been actively publishing Tarzan's story these past few years. Life has been hectic and university has definitely taken it's toll on me and writer's block has not been very helpful for the past years. But I'll try to keep up with my progress as hard as I can and make it up to you guys. Hope you enjoy upcoming chapters.

Love,
DNA ❤️

***

"No! You're doing it wrongly. The string is supposed to be tied around the worm. Then, you submerge it enough so the fish below capture the bait." Berry said in frustration. Her hands were at each side of her hips as she glared at Emmy.

Emmy huffed, but continued on doing just like Berry had instructed him. It'd been a few minutes, and he's still struggling with the fishing rod he had made from the wooden stick he'd found nearby, with a string tied at one end which resembled that of a fishing rod his father had kept in the basement in their house.

When he finally got the string tied securely around the worm Berry had collected for him earlier, he quickly portrayed a proud smile on his lips at her. Berry rolled her eyes playfully and quickly took a seat beside him. She nudged him, "Well, go on then. Do as I say."

Nodding his head attentively, Emmy slowly lowered the wooden stick enough to submerged half of the string into the pond. They waited and waited until a tug captured their attention. Berry squealed excitedly. She looked at him with a new hope shining in her eyes.

"Tug the stick back, Emmy! My daddy said to tug it carefully as to not lose the fish." Berry said enthusiastically. She squealed and jumped on her feet as Emmy tried hard not to lose the fish.

A few minutes had passed and Emmy triumphantly pulled the wooden stick away from the pond. The smile quickly died down when he stared back at the empty loop of the string where the worm had been. It was missing now, and he had no fish in his hands. He slowly dropped the stick and looked up from the ground. His eyes caught Berry's. Emmy's lower lips began to quiver, his face contorted and the tears began.

Berry quickly placed the palm of her hands on both side of Emmy's cheek. His silent cries stopped, but he'd still whimper, inhaling back the snot that was hanging at the end of his nostrils. Berry smiled a toothy smile, showing him her small teeth gaps and hole in between where her milk tooth had been a few nights ago.

"It's okay, Emmy. We don't need the fish. We can still play house without it."

"B-but, you wanted to cook the fish. Then we'd have dinner together like husbands and wives do every night." Emmy said, sobbing in between words.

"We can still have dinner. I brought chocolate from home. We can share that." Berry grinned. She wiped the remaining tears on his cheeks, grabbing his hand as she guided him to the tree before sitting down, with her back against the tree. She tore the packaging open, breaking the chocolate into half. They ate together in silence, holding each other's hand.

A rustling sound caught their attention when Emmy's father suddenly emerged from the bush nearby. Emmy stood up quickly, brushing his pants to get rid of the dirt. His eyes wide, his breaths were short when his father finally stood a few inches away from them.

Berry stood up a few seconds later. She carefully watched the silent interaction Emmy had with his father that moment. Puffing out her chest slightly, she quickly toughened herself up and approached his father.

"Mr. von Heiden, Emmy and I are just–"

"No need to explain, Ms. Jacobs." Keiran von Heiden silent her quickly. He turned to face his son. "I thought I warned you enough, boy."

Emmy fisted his hands as he moved a few steps towards his father. "Berry is my only friend, father. I promise I'll do anything you want–no more pranks or playing truants as long as I can continue seeing Berry every evening."

Keiran roughly grabbed his son's arm into a painful grip. The little boy's suppressed cries of pain did not faze him one bit. He pulled Emmy against him as he looked back at the little girl who began to cower in her stance. Emmy struggled against his father's grip but a little boy's strength could only do so much against that of his father's.

"From this time onwards, you will not see my son anymore. He's very busy and he doesn't have time for your petty and useless playdates."

Keiran took a last glance at Berry and hastily walked away from the pond back to his house, leaving Berry alone, sobbing. With anger building up in his chest, Keiran roughly pulled his son with him back to their house. Emmy was trashing against his hold, his grip tightened painfully against the frail arm of his son. Once they were inside, Keiran forcefully pushed his son into the library as he turned to lock the door. He quickly commanded the help to leave the room, locking the door immediately as soon as everyone left.

"You've defy my instructions, boy, and this time, my tolerance towards insubordination is zero. I don't tolerate with brats in this house, and I definitely won't let my son become one. Your disobedience will end today, right now–even if I have to get rid of that attitude of yours with my own bare hands," his voice dropped, full of menace. He swiftly took off his belt, folding it in two. Grabbing Emmy's arm in his hand, he tightened his grip when Emmy began to struggle against his hold.

"Father, no! Please, father. Please! Please no!" Emmy pleaded. He cried and screamed when the feel of the expensive leather of his father's belt hit the frail skin of his back. His screams and cry for help became loud when a second whip reached his back again. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

After a few strong whips, Keiran threw his belt across the room. He breathed heavily and slowly wiped the beads of sweat across his forehead as he stared at his weeping son.

"This is my last warning boy. The next time you go against my warning, the girl gets it." he warned, fixing his attire before leaving the house for his next meeting as if he hadn't just lash the hell out of his nine-year-old son's back.