"How dare you talk to us like that?" Her father shouted before rushing toward her. "You ungrateful brat."
It was over before she realized what he intended to do. Her head twisted to the side, and her cheek stung from the strong impact. Seconds later, she tasted the metallic liquid that gushed through her broken lips.
"Just because you married a billionaire, you think you can finally look down on us. We are still your parents. You still owe us your life." Her mother grabbed her by the hair, pulling her head backward to make her point.
This was the first time that her parents laid a hand on her. Usually, they settled with harsh words, but she guessed she had finally pushed their buttons when she refused to be their lap dog anymore.
Now, she could not help but wonder if they ever physically hurt her brother after she had left him under their care.
"No, I don't owe you anything." She spat out. "Whatever you spent on me and my brother, I already paid in full." She bravely braced herself, knowing that they would not let this go without a fight.
Emily pried her hair out of her mother's hand and tried to escape from her clutches. But her father grabbed her by the arm, stopping her from pulling away.
"No, you're not getting away from me that easily." Her father tightened his grip on her flesh, cutting the blood supply to her veins. "And do you think you can just turn your back on us?" He threateningly said as his fist swung backward.
Instinctively, she raised her arms upward, shielding herself from the blow, but it never came. Instead, she felt someone yanking him off her. The next thing she knew, her father dropped to the ground with a thud.
"What the hell?" Her father scrambled on the floor, clearly stunned by the sudden turn of events. "Who dares to..."
But his words died in his throat as a man loomed over him and kicked him on the side. Immediately, her mother came to his rescue. "Stop! Who are you? What are you even doing here? You have no business meddling with our family affair."
Emily blinked her eyes, wondering if she had been hallucinating. But she could see clearly that she was not mistaken. She easily recognized the man who came to save the day.
"What are you doing here, Nolan?" Emily asked, surprised to see her husband. She remembered leaving him at the airport. Did he follow her?
"I have every right to be here," Nolan answered her mother with his no-nonsense voice. "And how dare you hurt my wife?" This time, he turned to her, picked her up from the floor, and helped her to the chair.
"Are you alright?" Nolan asked, concern written all over his face. "What else did they do to you?" He checked her face and inspected her arms as if looking for other bruises on her skin.
"I'm ok." Emily quickly replied, not wishing to make a big deal out of this. "I think it's time for you to leave." She turned to her parents, wanting this nightmare to be over.
As much as she wanted to press charges against her parents for hurting her, she stopped herself. She could not do it. After all, they were still her flesh and blood. For now, she just wanted them out of her sight.
Anytime, Jonah would wake up. The last thing she wanted was for her brother to witness what their parents had done. Her brother had already been through a lot. She didn't want to add to his burden.
"Are you sure you don't want them to pay for what they did to you?" Nolan asked, blatantly opposed to her decision to let her parents leave unscathed.
"Just let them go. They are not worth the trouble." Emily had had enough of their family drama. She believed the sooner she cut ties with them, the better it would be for her and her brother. "I just hope this will be the last time that we'll see each other."
"You can't do this to us. We are still your parents." Her mother indignantly exclaimed, while her eyes shot daggers in her direction. "Jonah is still our son."
Son? She could not help but laugh upon hearing her mother's claim. Jonah didn't need an irresponsible father who never put his needs first. Her brother had no use for a selfish mother who could only think about herself.
"Not anymore. From now on, I'll be taking care of Jonah. I'll be taking custody of him." Emily declared, something that she should have done long ago. "Expect to hear from my lawyers." She confidently told her parents.
This time, she would not let her parents hurt Jonah ever again. She would hire the best lawyers to handle her brother's case and ensure that he would be taken care of.
"You heard my wife. Unless you want me to call the cops, you'll leave quietly and never bother them again." Nolan warned her parents as he showed them the door.
It was the only time that she noticed that they had finally attracted the hospital staff's attention as they gathered outside her brother's room. Then, she heard that her parents were escorted by the hospital's security outside the hospital.
"Don't worry, Emily. I'll make sure that they won't come near you again." Nolan enveloped her in his embrace in a protective stance.
Normally, she would have shoved his body away from her. But for some reason, she didn't. It could be the shock from dealing with her parents or the fact that her husband showed up like a knight in shining armor. But whatever it was, she found herself seeking comfort in his warmth, grateful for his presence.
Emily had become so used to dealing with her parents' shit alone. She thought she didn't need anyone else to fight her battles for her. But at that moment, she felt like a ton of burden was lifted off her shoulders as her husband defended her.
Looking up, Emily stared into her husband's eyes. "Thank you." She uttered, finding herself lost in the moment.
Then, she felt his fingers as he touched the cut just on the edge of her lips. "Those bruises need treatment," Nolan informed her. Besides her busted lip, she felt the swelling on her cheeks where her father had hit her and the throbbing in her knees and arms, probably from the fall.
"Hmm!"
"Jane, is that you?" The hoarse sound of her brother's voice resonated behind her, snapping her out of the spell that Nolan had put on her.
Quickly, as if electrified, she jerked away from her husband's arms. Then, she turned to face her brother before running to his side. "Hey, Jonah. You're finally awake. How are you feeling?" She rattled on, both embarrassed to be caught with what seemed to be a passionate embrace and worried about her brother's condition.
Slowly, Jonah pulled the mask off his face while his other hand reached out to her. "What happened to your face?" He asked, his face covered with anxiousness. "Who did this to you?" Then, her brother's eyes looked beyond her shoulder. "Who are you?" He asked, finally noticing the man behind her.
Then, "Did he hurt you?" Jonah seemed to put two and two together and came up with his conclusion.
If looks could kill, she believed at that moment, her brother was about to commit murder.