Finn (The Murphy Boys Book 2)

by Holly C. Webb

  “Don’t worry about it,” Landen said to Dylan, but he kept his eyes fixed on Finn. “I’m going because I need to try to figure out how to save his stupid ass.”

  Landen turned and walked to the door but stopped before he walked out.

  “You know, for a genius,” he said without turning back to Finn. “You are pretty fucking stupid right now.”

  Without saying another word, or waiting for Finn to reply, Landen stormed out of the room, leaving Amelia and Dylan alone with Finn, wondering what the hell had just happened.

  “I should go after him,” Amelia said as she stood up, hurrying to the door. She stopped as turned back to look at Finn.

  “I don’t know what is going on here,” Amelia said as she looked at Finn with concern. “And I know that you’re upset over Emmy, but pushing people away is never the answer, Finn. I know that better than anyone. Whether Landen is right or wrong, he loves you. Don’t let, whatever this is, come between you.”

  She stared at Finn for a moment, but he didn’t reply. Instead, he just watched Emmy.

  “Bye, Dylan,” Amelia said as she looked at her other brother-in-law, giving him a sad smile before she turned and headed out the door, to go look for Landen.

  “You want to tell me what that was all about?” Dylan asked once he and Finn were alone.

  “Not really,” Finn whispered, as tears danced in his eyes. “I just feel like I have messed everything up, but I don’t know how to fix it. This is all my fault. If I just stuck to the rules none of this would be happening right now. She wouldn’t have been in the house, on Friday, so she wouldn’t have been in the car. And now this other crap…”

  He dropped down into the seat next to Emmy’s bed, burying his face in his hands.

  “I’ve just screwed up so bad,” Finn said as he looked up at Dylan. “And I don’t know how to fix it.”

  “Finn this is not your fault,” Dylan said as he sat down on the chair next to his brother. “Yes, things are pretty shitty right now, but none of this is your doing.”

  “Then why does it feel like it is,” Finn asked. “Why is the only thing that I want to do right now, is run and never come back?”

  “You will get through this, Finn,” Dylan replied. “I know right now it doesn’t feel that way, but you will.”

  “Dylan, I’m scared I’m going to lose it all,” Finn said as he stared at Emmy. “I’m terrified I am going to lose her.”

  “You just have to believe that you won’t, Finn,” Dylan assured him. “You can’t give up on her, and you can’t give up on you.”

  It was a little before midnight, Finn felt tired.

  He went over his argument with Landen in his mind again and again, he regretted how cold and abrupt he was to his brother. He knew that Landen was just trying to help him, but all he had done was push him away. He just seemed to be pushing everyone away.

  He looked up at Emmy, wishing he could talk to her. He didn’t know why, but everything thing just seemed to make more sense with her, and now he couldn’t talk to her, he felt like he was falling apart.

  “Emmy,” he whispered as he leaned in closer to her. “Please. I need you. I need you to tell me what to do because I don’t know if I can do this without you. I don’t know that I want to.”

  Suddenly there was a soft tap on the door of the cubicle. Finn instantly looked up and was surprised to see Landen standing there. It was almost midnight, so Finn really hadn’t been expecting anyone to turn up.

  Finn nodded at him, telling him it was okay for him to come in. Landen opened the door and quietly came inside.

  He sat down next to Finn without saying a word, as they both stared at Emmy.

  “You know, when Reynolds took Amelia,” Landen said finally without looking at his brother. “I could barely see straight. I felt like I was suffocating, like everything was moving in slow motion.”

  Landen stopped for a moment, but Finn didn’t make any effort to talk.

  “Liam was right not letting me run into that building the way I wanted to that day,” Landen continued. “Even though at the time I couldn’t see that he was right. He was just a giant size pain in my ass, I was so mad at him for getting in my way. I sat there in the dirt, not knowing if the girl I loved was dead or alive, and I just wanted to give up too. If she was dead, then I wanted to be dead too. But you stayed with me, while the other’s ran into that building, and you stopped me from self-destructing.”

  Again he stopped, but still, Finn didn’t speak.

  “Did you know that Dad blamed himself for what happened,” Landen finally continued. “In some way, I think he still does, which I know is dumb, but he thought he had let me down. That he had let Amelia down because he had promised to keep her safe for me. That’s how I kind of feel about this thing with you. I was always the one who looked out for you; I was the one who was supposed to protect you no matter what. And I feel like I’m failing you.”

  Finn looked up at Landen finally, but still, he didn’t speak.

  “I told Amelia about what happened in the Dean’s office,” Landen continued, as Finn turned back towards Emmy. “I told her that you didn’t want to tell the Dean that you were with Emmy that night because you wanted to protect her.”

  Landen chuckled, and this surprised Finn.

  “She pointed out that I would have done the exact same thing,” Landen admitted, and Finn looked at him once more. “And she was right. I would have walked through fire for her, and now that she is pregnant; multiply that by a billion.”

  “What are you saying?” Finn finally spoke.

  “I get it,” Landen replied, once more surprising Finn. “You want to protect her. She has been through so much in her life, now she is here, and you just want to protect her.”

  “I can’t tell them I was with her that night, Landen,” Finn spoke in a calm, reasonable voice. “I know nothing happened that night, but if I tell them she was with me, then they will start asking more questions. You heard him; he was already suspicious enough about her being in the car with me the night of the accident. If I tell him I was with her that night too, they are going to know that there is more to it than meets the eyes.”

  “I know,” Landen said, as he gave him a sad smile.

  “If I tell them the truth,” Finn continued. “I will be reprimanded, maybe suspended for a couple of weeks. But she will lose everything. She will be kicked out of school, no questions asked. I just can’t do that to her.”

  “Then we will sort this out without bringing Emmy into it,” Landen assured him. “It’s this Shelby’s word against yours, and, let’s face it, your record is pristine, but this girl has just been kicked out of college for harassing a fellow student. I know who my money is on.”

  “As long as Emmy is okay,” Finn said as he reached for her hand, holding it tightly. “Then I will take whatever comes my way.”

  “But why is she even doing this?” Landen asked the question Finn had asked himself over and over again. “What has she got to gain from doing this to you? I mean, she has been expelled, so why do this?”

  “I have no idea,” Finn sighed with a shrug. “And for some reason, she took an unhealthy dislike of Emmy too.”

  “Do you think she knows about you two?” Landen asked the obvious question.

  “I don’t see how” Finn replied. “She started on Emmy the first day of school before I had even met her. No, I think whatever this is, is something we are not seeing, not yet.”

  “Maybe it might be worth doing a little digging into Ms. Cooper Smith, and maybe her parents too,” Landen suggested, as Finn nodded in agreement. “At least then we would know exactly what we are dealing with.”

  “Okay,” Finn said, feeling grateful to his brother for his help. “And Landen about today…”

  “Forget about it,” Landen said, cutting him off. “We’ve got this.”

  “Okay,” Finn nodded, giving Landen a grateful smile.

  “Right,” Landen said, standing up. “I h
ave a pregnant wife waiting for me at home, so I am going to say goodnight.”

  “Okay,” Finn said as he stood up, hugging his brother. “Thank you, Landen.”

  “Anytime, Wonder Boy,” Landen replied with a chuckle before he turned and headed for the door.

  Finn stood there, watching Landen disappear through the door, before he took his seat back down next to Emmy’s bed.

  “Alone again,” Finn yawned as he slipped his hand around hers. “This isn’t exactly my idea of a cozy night in, but I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else than right here, right now.”

  He lay his head down on his arms and watched Emmy until his eyes grew heavy, he couldn’t hold them open any longer.

  Finn moved slowly, wincing a little as he tried his best to sit up slowly; his back felt like it was ready to snap. As he sat up, he yawned, slowly stretched out his arms, wiping the sleep from his eyes.

  “You’re awake,” Emmy’s croaky voice said suddenly, almost stopping Finn’s heart.

  He opened his eyes, but he couldn’t believe it when he saw Emmy’s crystal blue eyes staring back at him.

  “Hey!” Finn exclaimed as he looked down into her eyes. “You’re awake.”

  “That was my line,” she said with a weak smile.

  “I should get Dylan,” Finn said as he reached for the call button behind her bed.

  “There’s no need,” Emmy whispered. “He’s already been in.”

  “What?” Finn asked as he sat up more, glancing out at his brother who was standing on the far side of the glass door, watching them both with the biggest smile Finn had ever seen. “Why didn’t he wake me up?”

  “I wouldn’t let him,” Emmy replied with a weak smile. “I thought you looked so tired, yet so peaceful, but it is lovely to see your smiling face.”

  “You have no idea how much I have missed you,” Finn told her as he lifted her hand, kissing it softly. “I have never been more scared in my entire life. Promise me you will never leave me like that again.”

  “I promise,” Emmy replied as once more she gave him a weak smile, as she reached up, softly rubbing his face. “You look tired.”

  “You look beautiful,” Finn replied, as he leaned forward, softly kissing her on the lips. “Do you remember what happened?”

  “Not really,” Emmy replied as her smile faded a little. “I just remember being in the car, then I woke up here, you were asleep, and Dylan was standing there, looking at my chart.”

  “Did he tell you about the accident?” Finn asked, giving her a questioning look.

  “He said some guy ran a red light, and hit us,” Emmy continued. “He said I’ve been asleep for five days now.”

  “The longest five days of my life,” Finn whispered, kissing her hand once more.

  “Is he okay? The other driver, I mean,” Emmy asked, and Finn wasn’t surprised that even now, she was worried about someone else.

  “No,” Finn shook his head, as Emmy’s face fell a little. “But you are, and so am I.”

  “Yes, we are,” she replied, smiling once more as she reached up, touching his face once again.

  A couple of moments later, Dylan knocked on the door before he came back into the room.

  “I’m sorry,” he said as he looked from Finn to Emmy. “But I need to check on Emmy’s head. It shouldn’t take long.”

  “I’ll wait outside,” Finn said as he went to stand up, but Emmy quickly grabbed his hand.

  “No,” she replied as she looked up at Finn. “Please stay.”

  “Sure,” Finn said with a grin as he sat back down. “Whatever you want, is fine by me.”

  As Finn sat down, he watched as Dylan removed the dressing from Emmy’s head, then checked her wound. Dylan smiled to himself, and Finn knew he was happy with Emmy’s recovery.

  “That’s healing nicely,” Dylan said as he redressed the wound with new dressings, before he shone a light into Emmy’s eyes, then smiled once more. “Do you know what year it is?”

  “2017,” Emmy replied.

  “And the day?” He continued.

  “Wednesday I think,” Emmy replied a little less confidently. “I mean, it’s been five days since the accident, so that would make today Wednesday, right?”

  “It would,” Dylan replied. “And I think you’re going to be just fine.”

  “Wait, it’s Wednesday!” Emmy exclaimed as she turned to Finn, while Dylan filled in her chart. “What happened with the hearing?”

  The minute she said the words, the joy Finn had felt moments earlier seemed to vanish a little. He remembered what had happened the day before, and what Shelby had accused him of. He had no idea how he was going to tell Emmy the truth, but he knew that lying was also not an option.

  “Finn,” Emmy pushed, giving him a worried look. “What is it? What’s happened?”

  Finn took a deep breath, he knew that telling her was always going to be hard, but now that he had to actually do it, he realised how fucked up this whole situation was.

  Chapter 23

  Emmy

  “I need to get out of here,” Emmy cried as she sat up in bed, trying to push back the covers, but both Finn and Dylan stopped her before she could get very far.

  “And do what?” Finn asked, almost with a nervous laugh. “Landen is taking care of it.”

  “How?” Emmy said as her head ached beyond words. She pinched the bridge of her nose to try and relieve the pressure in her head. “You can’t tell them the truth, so how are you going to prove what she said was a lie?”

  “How is she going to prove that it’s true?” Finn asked giving her a smile, but she could see it in his eyes that he was scared. “She is lying, so she can’t prove anything.”

  “Emmy,” Dylan spoke in a calm, even voice. “I know that you’re upset, but I really need you to calm down a little.”

  “How can I calm down?” Emmy asked looking up into Dylan’s face. “She is going after Finn because she hates me.”

  “You don’t know that this has anything to do with you,” Dylan asked, trying to reason with Emmy. “She doesn’t even know about you and Finn, no one does.”

  Emmy stared at him as a sickening feeling formed in the pit of her stomach. She didn’t know why but had never told Finn about the comments Shelby had made about her and him. At first, it seemed ridiculous, there was nothing to them really. She and Finn weren’t even that close when she said the things she said.

  But then the night of the Halloween party, when she told Adam that Finn was her boyfriend, Emmy knew in her heart that Shelby really believed that something was going on between them, but when she was in Finn’s house later that night, she didn’t tell him that part of the story. In part because she knew what Shelby had said was a lie, so she didn’t think it was that important, but also because she was too embarrassed to tell him that part. Now she knew she had made a mistake.

  “Emmy,” Finn asked as he gave her a worried look. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

  “Shelby used to tease me about you,” Emmy said, wishing that she could close her eyes and make this whole mess just go away. “Remember the night I bumped into you at the coffee shop? She asked me that day if we had a lovers tiff. Then the night of the Halloween party, she kept referring to you as my boyfriend. I didn’t really take what she said seriously, I mean, you were just my professor…”

  “Why didn’t you say something?” Finn asked in a tone of voice that told Emmy he was angry, though he was trying his hardest not to show it. Instantly her stomach clenched with panic just like it used to when her father started shouting at her when he was drunk.

  “I didn’t think it was that important,” Emmy replied as suddenly hot tears burned her eyes, as her heart pounded like thunder inside her. “I mean, we weren’t even really friends at that point…I…I didn’t think it mattered.”

  “Of course it did, Emmy,” Finn sighed as he stared at her before he stood up and started to pace up and down. “God, how could you not tell me?”

 
“Maybe you should talk about this later,” Dylan offered as he watched Emmy closely, and she knew that he was worried about her.

  “I’m sorry,” Emmy whispered as tears spilled down her cheeks. Suddenly her chest felt tight, as her heart raced faster. The heart monitor that was still attached to her began to beep, and Emmy began to gasp for air. “I… I can’t breathe.”

  Dylan hurried to her side, before removing the cannula from Emmy’s nose, then quickly grabbed the mask from behind her bed, slipping it over her face.

  “Emmy, I need you to take slow, steady breaths,” Dylan said as he looked down into Emmy’s eyes. “And I need you to try and calm down. Focus on your breathing.”

  “What is it, what’s happening?” Finn asked hurried back to Emmy’s bedside.

  “She is having a panic attack,” Dylan said as he glanced up Finn before he returned his attention to Emmy. He reached for her wrist and felt her pulse. “Her heart is racing. I need to get her to calm down, or she could restart the bleed in her brain.”

  “Emmy,” Finn said as he took hold of her hand, holding it tightly. “I am so sorry, please, please just breathe! Please, just try to breathe.”

  As she stared up into his eyes, the anger that was there a few moments before, was gone; fear and love was the only thing staring back at her. He brought her hand to his lips, kissing it softly.

  “Please, don’t leave me,” he whispered as he gave her a worried look. “I’m sorry.”

  After what felt like forever, Emmy could feel her heart slow down, as her breathing became less and less laboured. Still, she kept her eyes focused on Finn until her breathing returned to normal.

  “Are you feeling better?” Dylan asked as he reached out and took hold of her wrist to check her pulse once more.

  “A little,” Emmy replied with a nod as she reached for the mask, but Dylan stopped her.

  “Leave it on for a little while longer,” Dylan said with a smile, as he sat on the edge of her bed. “Just to be sure that you’re okay. Keep taking slow, steady breaths.”

  She nodded her response, as she continued to take deeps, slow breaths.