เข้าสู่ระบบEmily didn't answer right away."Have you forgiven him?" Jems asked carefully, watching her mother's face in the dark. "Are we going back because you've forgiven Dad?"Emily shook her head slowly. "No," Emily said quietly. "I haven't forgiven him." Hot tears were already welling in Emily's eyes by the time she finished the sentence, though she fought visibly to hold them back, blinking hard and staring out the window instead of at her daughter."Have you decided to live with him again, then?" Jems asked gently."No," Emily said, her voice firmer this time. "Absolutely not."It was Nana who finally spoke, glancing at Jems in the rearview mirror. "Richard is no longer staying at the mansion," she said simply.Jems frowned, confusion cutting through her exhaustion. "Why would he leave all of a sudden? I thought..."That was when Emily broke. She pressed a hand over her mouth, her shoulders shaking, tears finally spilling freely down her face."Mum?" Jems reached forward from the back sea
The surgeon's words hung in the air, and for one terrible, suspended moment, nobody in that waiting room dared to breathe."The surgery was successful," he said with a heavy sigh. "We were able to repair the internal damage from both gunshot wounds. He's stable now."A ripple of relief moved through the small crowd, Sarah's knees nearly buckling, Josh's arms tightening around her to hold her upright, Emily's hand flying to her chest, and Jems letting out a joyful sob.But the doctor wasn't finished."However," he continued, "he's in a coma. It's not uncommon after this level of blood loss and trauma, especially combined with the extended time before he received treatment. His body has been through an enormous amount of shock.""A coma," Sarah repeated, the word barely making it past her lips. "What does that mean? When will he wake up?""I wish I could give you a timeline," the doctor said gently. "I truly do. But comas like this are unpredictable. It could be days. It could be weeks.
Richard, who had been standing quietly a few feet away, stepped forward and gently placed a hand on Jems' shoulder, guiding her toward a nearby bench."Come sit down, princess," he said softly. "These aren't things Sarah needs to hear right now, not in the state she's in. Let her calm down a little. Give her some space to breathe."Jems allowed herself to be led away, sinking down onto the hard plastic bench, wiping at her face with shaking hands, watching as Emily continued to hold Sarah, murmuring soft, steady reassurances into her hair.A few minutes passed in tense, exhausted silence.Then the front doors of the emergency wing burst open, and Josh came sprinting through them, sweat soaking through his shirt, his chest heaving like he'd run the entire way from wherever he'd been when he got the call."Aunt Sarah!" he shouted, his eyes wild, scanning the waiting area frantically. "I came as fast as I could, what happened? Is he okay? Somebody tell me what's going on!"The moment Sar
The moment Jems and Emily walked through the hospital doors, the sound hit them first.A woman's voice, sharp and broken, echoed down the corridor where she was pacing back and forth. Jems recognized her before she even saw her.Sarah Reynolds.Ethan's mother stood near the waiting area outside the surgical wing, her arms wrapped around herself, her whole frame shaking as she paced back and forth across the same six feet of tile floor, over and over, as if she just kept moving the waiting might somehow end faster.The moment her eyes landed on Jems, her expression changed."You," Sarah said, her voice cracking through the quiet hallway. "So you're the reason my son is in this condition."Jems froze mid-step, her stomach dropping straight through the floor."What did I ever do to you, Jems?" Sarah's voice rose, tears streaming down her face even as fury twisted her features. "What did I ever do to deserve this? That you would want to take my son away from me?""I'm so sorry," Jems said
Emily and Jems left the station together, Emily's arm wrapped tightly around her daughter's shoulders, guiding her toward the car without another glance back at the room where Mira sat, alone, waiting to give her full statement.Mira was kept in custody, placed in a small holding room down the hall from the interview rooms, the door left unlocked but a uniformed officer stationed just outside as a formality more than anything else. She sat with her knees pulled up to her chest, her arms wrapped around them, staring blankly at the wall.It was barely twenty minutes later when the door burst open."MIRA!"Her mother's voice cracked through the small room, and Mira's head snapped up just in time to see both her parents rushing toward her, her mother's face streaked with tears, her father right behind her, his expression a mixture of confusion and barely restrained panic."Mum," Mira started, but her mother had already crossed the room and pulled her into a fierce hug."What happened?" he
Captain Miller crouched down slightly, bringing himself closer to Mira's level where she still knelt on the cold station floor, her face red and swollen from crying, the mark of Emily's slap still visible along her cheek."Mira," he said, his voice steady but firm. "I need you to listen to me carefully."She looked up at him, her breath still hitching, her hands trembling in her lap."Given everything you've just admitted to," Miller continued, "there's a very real possibility that you're going to be arrested. Not just questioned. Arrested. As an accomplice in a kidnapping case, potentially in an attempted murder case as well, given what happened at that mansion today."Mira's eyes went wide with panic. "What? No, no, you can't, I'm not an accomplice, I didn't,""You provided the location that led directly to Jems being taken," Miller said evenly. "Twice, in fact, counting the hotel incident. That makes you materially involved in this crime, whether you pulled a trigger yourself or no
Emily stood up, her legs nearly giving out. Richard caught her arm to steady her, but she pulled away, stepping toward the doctor alone."Doctor?" she whispered.The doctor offered a small, tired smile, which was the first piece of light Emily had seen in hours."She’s a fighter, Mrs. Dawson," the
Jems’ mum was on the couch watching TV. Her hair was pulled up in a messy bun with a few strands falling across her face. She was wearing a pink jersey, shorts, and socks while eating a bag of chips. Just then, Jems, who had just gotten back from school, opened the door and walked in with Derick.“
Don Emilio sat at the edge of the massive pool in his safe house smoking a cigar. He lived on the outskirts of town with the rest of his syndicate; the villa was heavily fortified with high-tech security and surrounded by a dense, lush forest.“He still hasn’t changed his mind,” Don Emilio said int
One month later.The continuous ringing of Jems’ phone woke her up from sleep.“Hello?” Jems said with a sleepy voice.“Miss Jems, I’m sure you’re awake and almost ready for school?” Derick said with a stern voice.“Umm… yes, Derick… I’m definitely awake,” Jems said as she jumped out of bed and rus







