Page 110 of A Violet Obsession

Emma.

The knot that’s been living in my chest for a week loosens instantly.

She’s already moving toward me, and I meet her halfway. My arm wraps around her while Hera gets squashed between us like an indignant furry pillow. The cat lets out a loud, outraged yowl.

Finn, however, looks considerably less thrilled. His gaze lands on Leo.

“I filled your sister in,” Leo says before Finn can speak. His words are clipped, nothing like the easy charm I remember from before.

“Why did you bring her?” Finn’s voice is terse.

“I don’t get paid enough to try to make her see sense.” Leo’s tone matches Finn’s.

“When you say something worth listening to,” Emma fires back without turning around, “I’ll see sense.”

Leo’s jaw flexes. Then he pushes off the SUV and stalks toward the other vehicle without another word.

Emma watches him go, and for a split second, something that looks a lot like hurt flickers across Emma’s face before she masks it.

“What was that about?” I murmur so the others can’t hear.

Emma scoops Hera out of my arms and climbs into the back of the nearer SUV. I follow her inside.

“Emma?”

“I don’t want to talk about it.” She strokes Hera a little too firmly. The cat turns her head and chirps in protest. “Sorry, Queen.”

“Did something happen?”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

That resolution lasts maybe ten seconds.

“Do you know I had to stay with him for four days?” she blurts out. “Alone. With him. Do you have any idea how annoying it is to be stuck somewhere with a person you don’t know and you can’t even doom-scroll to escape?”

“Yeah,” I deadpan. “I know a little something about that.”

Her expression immediately crumples. “Oh my God, Lily. I’m so sorry. I’m sitting here complaining, and I didn’t even ask about the cabin.” She grabs my hand, jostling Hera in the process, who glares at us. “How was it? Was it awful?”

I hesitate.

And in that hesitation, I realize Leo almost certainly spared her the worst parts.

No mention of the kidnapping.

No mention of the armed security force chasing me in the snow.

No mention of the compound in the desert.

How much of it do I actually want to tell her?

Not all of it.

Not yet.

“Oh, you know,” I hedge. “It was… eventful.”

“It was boring, right?” Emma barrels ahead without waiting for an answer. “Finn probably brought some stupid computer and ignored you the whole time. You must have been miserable⁠—”