Children of Fire (Complete)

thirty-three

Gideon

The hour and a half that Emerson had spent in the bathroom had been some of the most nerve-wracking minutes of my life. I knew that shortly, Emerson would be vulnerable before me, spilling her darkest secret. I had a feeling that whatever she was going to tell me about Greyson had something to do with at least one of those sealed files in her background check. Which reminded me that even if she didn't tell me anything about those, I would have to press her for different answers after tonight-- which made this more difficult.

I had never seen a woman as strong as her tremble before men, and it was unnerving to know that something had happened to her that made her this way. I took a deep breath to keep my anger from spilling over again. I needed to be strong for her, because she wasn't in top shape right now-- anyone with a brain could see that. I needed to go and let the brothers know that I would fill them in on whatever was necessary, but I was afraid to leave her alone in this room. I knew that nobody would go in my room, but I didn't want her to come out of the bathroom and feel alone.

I decided to quickly lock the door behind me and let my brothers know what was happening. I entered the common area and saw Killian sitting next to Butters by the bar, both nursing a beer and carrying on a quiet conversation. "Hey." I said, standing in front of them.

"Everything okay with her?" Killian asked, and I could see the genuine concern in his eyes.

"Yeah, everything's fine now. She's taking a bath." I told them, gesturing down the hallway lazily. Butters wiggled his eyebrows suggestively and I chose to ignore him. "Listen, I'll let you guys know what had her so shook up that she tried to leave town. I don't know how much I'll be able to say, but I just wanted you to know that I appreciate you both helping me look for her." They both gave me a nod before falling silent, and I took my leave.

When I made it back to my room, I locked the door again and stretched out over my bed and stared at the ceiling to pass the time while I waited on Emerson to get out. Finally, I heard the door click open and tilted my head forward to get a glimpse of Emerson as she emerged from the steamy bathroom, fog billowing around her like she was some kind of mysterious creature--which I guess wasn't that far fetched.

"Hey." She whispered lowly, crawling onto my bed to flop down next to me. Ever since I had kissed her earlier, I found it increasingly difficult to refrain from doing so again, and I let my instincts take over as I rolled over and pressed my lips against hers briefly. She smiled up at me and I knew she didn't mind, which only made my heart want to explode all over again. "So," she started, her eyes focused on the ceiling again. "I guess you want to know what happened?" She asked.

"I do. If you need to stop at any time, let me know and we can--" She cut me off.

"No, Gideon. I need to get this off my chest. I have to tell someone." She cut her eyes in my direction, only briefly, before staring back to the ceiling. She took a deep breath when I said nothing and took it as her cue to launch into her story.

"I haven't been home since I was twenty one." She said, her voice was soft but determined and I found the admiration I had for her growing. "I left because my ex was.. well, he was really shitty."

"Shitty how?" I asked, pressing her for more answers. I know she needed time to tell the story on her own, and I apologized for urging her on. "I'm sorry, I'll let you continue."

"He was a... Well, he's in prison. They say he was a murderer." She glanced at me to see how I would react. Okay, I couldn't really judge him for that... I was too. I just had valid reasons for why I've killed the men I did. "A serial killer, I guess." I could feel my eyes widen, where was she going with this?