Forest Lake

Chapter 70

Emma POV

“Thank you, detective.” Mason said as he paced back and forth around the room. “Yes, I will.”

His face was a mixture of anger, sadness, and confusion. It made me nervous, and I couldn’t wait for him to hang up and tell me what detective Peters told him.

“What’s wrong, Em?” Chris asked softly as he placed his hand on my back.

“I’m nervous.” I mumbled, keeping my eyes on Mason, who was nodding his head at something that the detective was telling him.

Chris took my hand in his, lifted it up, and placed a small kiss on my knuckles.

It definitely distracted me.

I looked at Chris, and I felt all the blood in my body rush to my cheeks. He was smiling at me.

“Don’t be nervous.” he said softly.

I think I forgot how to breathe.

Jax’s and Hazel’s chuckles broke me out of the trance I was in. I looked at them. They were staring at Chris with small smirks on their faces.

“Okay.” I heard Mason sigh, making me look back at him.

He just ended the call, and he was placing his phone in his back pocket.

“What did he say?” Chris asked, tightening his hold on my hand.

“Annie is going to the psychiatric hospital.” Mason said as he sat down at his desk and reached out for me.

I stood up, let Chris’ hand go, and walked over to my brother. I sat on his lap, and he wrapped his arm around me. He lifted my head and looked at my neck.

“It’s not going to go away in two days, Mason.” I said softly.

“I know.” he mumbled angrily. “I wish it would, though.”

I looked at him and gave him a small smile. He was checking on my neck every couple of hours. He hoped that the bruises would just disappear.

I understood him. If he was hurt, I would want the wound to go away as soon as possible.

“So, Annie?” Jax asked, clearing his throat.

“Well, Peters said that they couldn’t talk to Annie.” Mason sighed. “She was too distraught to talk. They talked to her parents and her brother. Annie had a cousin who died when she was a child. They were really close, and she always said that no one loved her like he did.”

My heart clenched painfully. Poor Annie.

“When they rescued Annie, she told them that she tried to play his game at the beginning.” Mason continued. “She told them that she tried to get him to like her so that he wouldn’t hurt her. They think that he did or said something that reminded her of her cousin, and she lost it. The childhood trauma of losing her cousin, combined with the fear and the instinct to survive, made her believe that she loved Derek and that he should love her back.”

I felt a tear fall on my cheek. I couldn’t even imagine what she went through. I couldn’t even imagine how scared she must have been. I couldn’t even imagine the pain she felt when she lost her cousin.

“Oh, my God.” Hazel mumbled, leaning her head on Jax’s shoulder. “Poor Annie.”

Mason looked at me and sighed quietly when he saw that I was crying. He lifted his hand and wiped my tears away.

“I am glad that she is getting the help she needs.” I said quietly. “She deserves to get better.”

“She will get better.” Chris said, making me look at him. “And she has you to thank for that. You could have insisted on sending her to jail, but you didn’t. You are an amazing person, Emma.”