Episode 37

The silence in the house was a heavy blanket, suffocating and thick. Emily’s parents sat across from each other at the dining table, the remnants of dinner untouched. Her mother’s usual warmth had evaporated, replaced by a tight-lipped anxiety. Her father, ever the stoic, seemed to have aged ten years in as many minutes. The weight of the day’s revelation, the dizzying dance of deception and protection, had settled upon them.

“He… he can’t have her,” her mother whispered, her voice cracking. Her eyes, usually so full of a gentle humor, were wide with a fear Emily had never seen before. She reached out, her hand trembling, to cover her husband’s. “We promised. We *promised* them.”

Emily’s father squeezed her hand, his gaze fixed on some distant point, perhaps the past, perhaps a future he’d desperately tried to shield his daughter from. “I know, Eleanor. I know. But this is… this is more than we anticipated. He’s not just making a polite inquiry anymore. He’s… claiming.” The word hung in the air, a dark omen. He looked at Emily, his eyes filled with a sorrow that went deeper than any reprimand. “We did this to protect you, Em. To give you a normal life. A life free from… from all of this.”