Weeping Angel: Malvada (Book 1 of the Weeping Angel Series)

Chapter XXXVIII

I distinctly hear Josh's footsteps fade away into the distance, and I try to ignore the gaping hole in my chest where my heart had been as I walk towards Gabby, Mason, and Ethan.

Gabby notices my grim expression. "Emma, what happened?"

I shrug, telling myself to focus on anything else but Josh's stoic face and stormy eyes that sent chills down my spine. It felt as if he drifted miles away from me in just seconds.

"Nothing," I say dismissively before I look at Mason, who's staring down at me with worry and apology in his brown eyes.

I've had it for one night. I want to go home and curl into a ball and sleep until the miserable feeling goes away.

"Mason, I-"

"I know you don't want to hear this right now, but I'm ready to beat his ass if he hurt you," Mason growls, folding his arms over his chest as he glares into the distance, but I refuse to turn around and have my heart break into pieces once again.

Gabby glares at Mason, and Ethan mutters something under his breath about Mason, "never shutting the hell up."

I shook my head at Mason before he had the chance to think of a hundred different ways to kill Josh with his bare hands. "Mason, please. Not now."

He shifts his daze and glances back down at me with a soft expression. "I know, fuck. I'm sorry for everything I said to you. It was shitty, and I wasn't in my right mind-"

Mason pauses and curses under his breath, trying to gather his thoughts. "I'll admit, when I saw you near him outside the waiting room, that's when I lost it. I thought you'd fall for his trap, and he'd start controlling your life."

I remember Mason saying something like that about Josh controlling Penny's life, which was why she was scared of him all the time.

"Why do you always think so bad of him, Mason?" I ask, genuinely wanting to know.

Mason's eyes darken. I knew his mind was taking him down to memory lane. "You don't know what an asshole he is, Emma."

Ethan shakes his head at Mason. "Josh was overprotective of his sister, man."

Gabby nods, agreeing with Ethan. "You both wanted the best for her."

Mason glowers his eyes at Gabby and Ethan, growing angry by the second. For fuck's sake, not again.

"Stop taking his side for once and stay out of this!" He shouts, the vein on his head about to pop.

Anger as hot as magma boiled deep inside me, churning and wanting to erupt from my mouth. "You should stay out of whatever is happening between Josh and me!" I point an accusing finger at him, and he scowls at me, looking at me with disbelief.

"What the hell, Emma?"

I was fuming now. "Don't 'what the hell' me! This is exactly why I couldn't tell you about what I was hiding about Malvada, because you overreact for everything!"

Steam was coming out of Mason's ears, and I ignored Gabby telling me to cut it out. "I overreact? You're the one who likes to hide everything!"

"I couldn't tell you!"

"You chose not to because you still think it all revolves around you-"

"Well, maybe if you see me lying in the pool of my own blood, I'll meet your standards of a fucked up life," I say bitterly, my shoulders set back with determination.

Mason's eyes widen at my words, and he opens his mouth to say something but gets interrupted at the sound of a car pulling up in front of us.

Gabby grabs my arm, giving Mason a long, hard look before we turn around, and she leads me to her mom's car. We hop inside the back and buckle up, and Gabby's mom drives away. I resist the urge to look back at Mason and Ethan, balling my fists in my lap, trying to contain my anger and frustration.