BLOOD LEGACIES
Chapter 488: Hollow Shell

Chapter 488: Hollow Shell

DACE

~

It’s quiet, too quiet. Silenced by the rest of existence around me I’m left with nothing but an empty shell, a faint echo getting to my ears but that is all there is to it. The sudden coldness around me was hard to comprehend, I’m naturally a hot-blooded being but right now I felt more cold-blooded than the damn winter.

My eyes remained on the pictures scattered on the table before me, I just printed them out of the small camera. In our short stay here Emma has been taking pictures. It happened mostly when I stayed on my werelion form for days. She took pictures of birds and all the other things she found interesting. But looking at this she seemed to find some peace through taking nature along with her, it was almost like I could feel it through them.

But the ones that caught my attention were the ones of me. I must have been so lost in my head daily and zoned out for hours, and she took those pictures as a means of comfort.

I turned another round of vodka into the rocks glass but it was already an empty bottle. There is no more here, next time I’ll make a mental note to stock this place to the brim with drinks or perhaps build a wine cellar. I noticed Emma loved champagne more, When I kidnapped her back here and stocked more wine, would she forgive me then? Forgive the fact that I want to kidnap her again, becoming what it takes to keep her glued to my side.

I’m at my wit’s end here, I feel so fucking frustrated with the situation, and all I want to do is drag her little ass down here and chain her to the fucking bed, maybe a few spanks will teach her not to defile me again.

She walked away, turned her back, and dared me to hurt her. She doesn’t realize the gravity of what she did, what it meant. I’m done trying to share her with a world that wants nothing but her ruin, her family might not bring her ruin but being away from me can cause a shit ton of things.

Am I being selfish? Probably.

"There you are, Dacey! Mind if I join you?"

Emilia took the rock glass just halfway to my lips. I glared as she took a shot and her face wrinkled in disgust. "Fuck! You drink the hardest shit" She took a seat opposite me with a smirk that said no good on her lips but then it quickly vanished.

"You’re being an asshole"

I licked my lips. "Tell me something I don’t know"

"You lied to Emma"

"For her own good"

"You tried to keep her from seeing her family!"

"Guilt trip me all you want it wouldn’t change a thing" I don’t regret what I did, the only thing I regret was letting her walk away from that door.

As if Emilia could read my thoughts, she said. "Even if it meant hurting Grayson"

A strong silence passed between us and it was enough threat said, well mostly from my sweet sister who glared holes to my forehead, I’m full of them already.

"Your Pride needs you, Dace" She quickly changed the topic, a sign of surrender but I knew we would resume threats like the sun at the first break of dawn.

"That’s why I left you there, in charge," I remarked.

She rolled her eyes. "In charge of a bunch of smelly rapid dogs, no thank you"

Disregarding her rants, I take my eyes back to the pictures, I took one observing it closely. It was one with Emma in the shot, just her, standing in front of the mirror and taking a photo of herself with her stomach exposed. With my eyesight, I could see the hickeys around her scar, the ones I left.

"Dace"

Gently, I brought my gaze to Emilia’s dark hazels. "How long did I zone out just now?"

"An hour" she replied with a tone mixed with emotion.

"It’s shorter this time"

"Forget about what I said about coming back to the Pride, you need more time"

A smirk found my lips. "You were determined an hour ago"

"I didn’t just come to bite your ass for what you did to Emma. I came because I’m a sister worried about her brother who almost let himself bleed to death"

I stiffened, my chest squeezing in pain, I ignored it speaking strongly. "You saw that?"

"Half of it and it was one of the scariest moments of my life. We lost Dad and Mom, I don’t want you added to that list yet" Her lips quivered and her eyes turned glassy.

I feel hollow... I should tell her I’m sorry, and I won’t let that happen again but I can’t, because if I did she would know I didn’t say it from my heart. Right now the emotional support I could give her was allowing her to bicker with me to no end.

"I would have come to you but you needed Emma more" She looked away quickly wiping her eyes.

"The five years with me was tough, huh?"

She huffed. "Don’t speak to me as if you were a different person entirely, that person was you as much as you are now" Her eyes softened. "Just one without emotions, I don’t want to ever see you like that"

"I can’t guarantee" I confessed. "Like you said I wasn’t a different person I was very much the same. I’m still the same or even worse"

I’ve changed. I know that much, I can’t feel emotions to an extent, there was a limit to it, the only reason I’m a little humane was because of Emma—heremotions—I felt were what kept me going.

She gulped at my words but said nothing, she finished the remaining vodka. "Not going to share your mate’s happiness in finding her family? Or are you thinking of some fucked up plan right now"

"Depends" I take a cigar between my lips. She read me well.

"Don’t" she warned.

I said nothing to her warning as I lit the bottom of my cigar with the zippo and took a drag.

"Dace," she said my name this time.

"Your warnings are becoming annoying"

"She needs her family"

My teeth clenched. "You think I don’t fucking know that?!" I snapped. "Who do you think rocks her to sleep at night when she cries for them?"

"Then you know how much this means for her"

"Of course I do but I won’t forget the reason like everything is fucked up from the start. The clan’s bullshit about bloodlines not mixing, the struggle she had to go through just because she had to choose. I’m very much fine with them never remembering her!" I flung the table against a wall.