The detective never looked back. Without a word, he and his men marched straight out of the compound. Their sudden retreat left behind a suffocating silence, a silence that didn't last long.
Emma's father snapped first.
"You useless coward! You think you can walk away from me?! Useless piece of garbage!" he yelled toward the empty gate, his voice echoing across the compound. He turned, his chest heaving, eyes wild with fury. "So this is what it has come to?!" he barked, eyes blazing as they landed on Emma. "You brought thugs to your father's house?! To fight your own blood?!"
Emma stood still, lips pressed together, her fingers trembling slightly at her side.
"You're truly disgusting!" he spat. "A disgrace to this family! You're not even my daughter anymore. I must've been blind to raise someone like you!"
