Chapter 16
CHAPTER 16
EMILEE
E milee's eyes fluttered open, sunlight streaming through the curtains. She reached for Arrow, finding only empty sheets and a folded note on his pillow. Her heart sank as she read his neat handwriting:
Gone to the clubhouse. Back soon. Stay put.
“Damn it, Daddy,” she muttered, crumpling the paper. “I'm not a dog you can order to stay.”
But as memories of the surveillance footage flooded back, a chill ran down her spine. She needed to talk to someone other than Arrow about what was going on. Grabbing her phone, Emilee fired off a group text:
Emilee: SOS. Need to talk. Coffee?
Trinity replied first: Working at D&N. It’s quiet. Come here?
Emilee: Perfect
Twenty minutes later, she pushed open the door to Day & Night, the familiar scent of coffee beans enveloping her. The place was mercifully quiet, only a couple of regulars hunched over their laptops.
“Hey, Em!” Trinity called from behind the counter. “Usual?”
“God, yes,” Emilee replied, sliding into a booth at the back. “And keep 'em coming.”
As Trinity brought over her caramel latte, Emilee's phone buzzed. Makenzie and Delilah were on their way. She sipped her coffee, trying to calm her nerves.
When her friends arrived, Emilee couldn't hold back anymore. “You're not gonna believe this shit,” she blurted out.
Delilah raised an eyebrow. “With that kind of language coming out of your mouth, it better be good. Spill, girl.”
Emilee took a deep breath. “Last night, Arrow showed me the actual footage from that night… you know… the one where Catie was kidnapped, and Mills ran me over? Here’s the thing, he talked about it with someone before he did it. He was ordered to hit me. It wasn’t an accident. All this time, I thought he accidentally ran me over and had to make up a story to protect himself. In reality, he hit me on purpose! He could have killed me! And he never followed up on Catie being kidnapped!”
Makenzie gasped. “What the actual fuck?”
“I know, right?” Emilee ran a hand through her hair. “It's like, who the hell was he even talking to? And why me?”
Trinity leaned in, lowering her voice. “Could it be connected to the cartel? Like maybe he was in on it?”
Emilee's stomach churned. “God, I hope not. It’s one thing to be a crooked cop but to be one in the cartel’s pocket? That would make him even more dangerous.”
Delilah reached across the table, squeezing Emilee's hand. “We've got your back, Em. No matter what.”
Emilee managed a small smile, fighting back tears. “Thanks, guys. I just... I thought I was finally getting my shit together, you know? And now this...it’s definitely triggering.”
“Hey,” Makenzie said firmly. “You are getting your shit together. This doesn't change that.”
Emilee nodded, trying to believe it. But as she stared into her coffee, she couldn't shake the feeling that her past was catching up to her, threatening to unravel everything she'd fought so hard to build.
The bell above the door chimed, drawing their attention. Her heart skipped a beat as she saw Mia and Catie enter the coffee shop. Instinctively, she shrank back into the booth, her fingers tightening around her mug.
“Shit,” Emilee muttered under her breath, her eyes darting to her friends. “Don't look now, but trouble just walked in. Not what I needed, not today.”
Mia's gaze locked onto Emilee, her face paling. She turned abruptly, reaching for the door handle, but Catie's hand shot out, gripping her arm.
“Wait,” Catie said, her voice barely audible from across the room.
Emilee watched, her stomach doing somersaults, as Catie steered Mia towards their table. Both women looked like hell— dark circles under their eyes, clothes rumpled. Mia's face was puffy, telltale signs of recent tears etched into her features.
“What the fuck do they want?” Emilee whispered, her defenses rising. She straightened her spine, chin jutting out defiantly as Catie and Mia approached.
Catie motioned for Mia to follow, her steps hesitant but determined. As they drew closer, Emilee could see the strain on their faces, a mix of exhaustion and... was that remorse?
“Well, well,” Emilee drawled, unable to keep the sarcasm from her voice. “If it isn't my two favorite people. Come to brighten my day?” She was just as shocked as everyone else that those words came from her mouth. She would not, could not, resort to being a mean girl like they were.
Makenzie kicked her under the table, shooting her a warning glance. Emilee bit her tongue, her heart racing as she waited to see what fresh hell this encounter would bring.
Catie took a deep breath, her eyes meeting Emilee's. “Listen, Arrow showed Zach the video last night. I... I owe you an apology. I should've believed you, or at the very least, heard you out.”
Emilee's eyebrows shot up, her defenses wavering. “Well, shit. Didn't see that coming.”
“Don't get too excited,” Catie continued, her voice strained. “This doesn't mean we're gonna be braiding each other's hair and sharing secrets. We can't... we can't be friends again.”
Emilee's chest tightened, memories of their shared past flashing through her mind. “Why not?” she asked, hating how small her voice sounded.
Catie's eyes softened slightly. “You know why, Em. We've come too far. The shit we did together... it's not exactly the foundation for a healthy friendship.”
“Our greatest hits included needles and petty theft,” Emilee quipped, her tone bitter. “Not exactly scrapbook material.”
“Exactly,” Catie nodded. “We both need to stay on our own paths. But... I can be civil when we run into each other. Just don't expect more than that. Honestly, you remind me of my past, of who I was. I need to focus on the woman I’m becoming.”
Emilee swallowed hard, fighting back the sting of tears. She turned to Mia, who looked like she wanted to melt into the floor. “Come to kick me while I'm down?”
Mia flinched. “No, I... I'm sorry too. Catie never told me to be a bitch to you. I just... I had bad information.”
“Oh, is that what we're calling it now?” Emilee snorted.
“The video changed everything,” Mia continued. “How was I supposed to know before that? And... God, this is gonna sound stupid, but you remind me of this girl from high school. She made my life hell.”
Emilee's anger deflated slightly. “So, what? You decided to return the favor?”
Mia's eyes welled up. “I know it was wrong. I became the very thing I hated— a mean girl. We won't be friends, but I'll make sure people treat you decent at The Citadel and around town.”
Emilee sat back, her mind reeling. Part of her wanted to lash out, to make them hurt like she had. But another part, the part that had fought so hard for her sobriety, knew that holding onto that anger would only poison her.
Emilee took a deep breath, her Daddy's words echoing in her mind. She looked at Catie and Mia, her blue eyes sharp but not unkind.
“My Daddy says grace is when someone owes you penitence for what they’ve done but you forgive them without making them pay,” Emilee said, her voice steady despite the tremor in her hands. “So, I'm gonna give you both some grace. I forgive you, but I won't forget how you treated me.”
Catie's eyebrows shot up in surprise. Mia's lips parted, but no words came out.
Emilee continued, a hint of her usual sarcasm creeping in, “You're right, we won't be braiding each other's hair anytime soon. But we can coexist without all this drama. Deal?”
“Deal,” Catie nodded, relief evident in her voice.
Mia wiped at her eyes. “Thank you, Emilee. Really.”
As Catie and Mia turned to leave, Emilee called out, “Hey, Mia?”
Mia paused, looking back hesitantly.
“That girl from high school? She doesn't define you anymore. Her words weren’t true and you should evict her from living rent free in your head.”
Mia's lips curved into a small smile as she followed Catie out of the coffee shop.
Emilee slumped back in her seat, suddenly exhausted. “Well, that was about as fun as a root canal.”
Makenzie reached across the table, squeezing Emilee's hand. “Em, that was incredible. I'm so proud of you.”
“Seriously,” Trinity chimed in, “you handled that like a boss.”
Delilah nodded enthusiastically. “You're amazing, girl. And we want you to know, you're part of our friendship group. No question.”
Emilee felt a warmth spread through her chest, chasing away the chill of her past. “Thanks, ladies. I might need a shirt that says 'I told you so,' though.”
They all laughed, the tension finally breaking. As Emilee looked around at her new friends, she felt something she hadn't in a long time – a sense of belonging.
“Do we want to talk about the way Mia looked?” Delilah asked.
“You mean her swollen eyes?” Emilee followed up a question with a question.
“Come on, girls, we know damn well why she looked like that. It’s not like none of us have ever had a session over our Daddies’ laps that didn’t end up with swollen eyes and a sore butt the next day.”
“I haven’t,” Emilee said. “Arrow’s only spanked me twice in the last couple of weeks and both times was with his hand. It’s never hurt for more than an hour.”
“Arrow?” Makenzie gaffed. “Uncle Arrow accompanied me to The Citadel when my Daddy was out of town and let me tell you… if I had a quarter for every time he threatened to spank me… I’d be rich.”
“Maybe I’m just better behaved than you,” Emilee said with a slight shrug.
“Or maybe, you are in the honeymoon period,” Delilah countered.
“The correct word is, yet. You haven’t been spanked like that, yet.” Trinity said. “Believe me, I have felt Mia’s pain several times over. I’m just glad her Daddy took the situation seriously. She needed a wake-up call. Hopefully, she can get back to being the sweet girl we all knew.”
Emilee's phone beeped, the sound that played when someone used the Find My iPhone app. She searched in her purse until she found it. Crap. She’d forgotten to take it off of silence. Arrow must have pinged it, trying to find her.
Daddy: Where are you?
Daddy: Why aren’t you answering your phone?
Daddy: Little girl you are in so much trouble.
“Shit,” she muttered, her fingers flying over the screen.
“What's up?” Makenzie asked, leaning forward with concern.
Emilee bit her lip, a mix of guilt and anxiety washing over her. “It's Arrow. He left me a note this morning telling me to stay put, and I forgot to text him that I was coming to have coffee with you all. He wants me home. Like, yesterday.”
Trinity's eyes widened. “Ooh, someone's in trouble with Daddy.”
“Shut it,” Emilee retorted, but there was no actual heat behind it. She quickly typed out a response:
On my way, Daddy. Sorry I didn't tell you. Won't happen again.
As she hit send, her stomach did a little flip. Arrow's protectiveness was both thrilling and terrifying, like riding a motorcycle at top speed on one of the back mountain passes.
“I gotta go, ladies,” Emilee said, sliding out of the booth. “Thanks for... well, everything.”
Delilah gave her a knowing look. “Go on, girl. Don't keep your man waiting.”
Trinity shook her head at her. “I told you, yet. Yet might be sooner than you wanted.”
Emilee rolled her eyes but couldn't hide her smile. “Yeah, yeah. I'm going.”
As she hurried out of Day & Night, her mind raced. Arrow's text had been short, but she could practically feel his concern — and displeasure — radiating through the screen. Part of her bristled at being told what to do, but a bigger part... well, that part liked it… a lot.
“Get it together, Em,” she muttered to herself as she climbed into her car. “You're a grown-ass woman, not some teenager sneaking out past curfew.”
But as she started the engine, she couldn't shake the feeling that she was in for one hell of a talking-to when she got home. And maybe, just maybe, she was looking forward to it.