Sleeping With The CEO-Chapter 367: Nothing

Before revealing the fact that both he and Emily were still alive, not only to the world, but to his uncle as well. Derek had taken the time to think on how the whole scenario would play out once the fact that they were not dead was exposed.

In his thoughts, he had imagined things going either one of two ways. The first one, his uncle taking one look at them and trying to run, throwing people and things in their path in an effort to block them as he made his escape. The second way Derek had imagined the man reacting, was for him to immediately start fighting, hurling insults and silverware as he was prone to do whenever he was having a tantrum.

Never in a million years could Derek have predicted his uncle’s actual reaction though. Sebastian Haven had done nothing, absolutely nothing, as he had been handcuffed and taken away by the police.

There had been this emptiness, this lack of emotion in him.

Derek was of the belief that when people were cornered, their backs against the wall, and it was either fight or flee, that was when their true character shone through. Some proved themselves to be liars, others came out swinging, going down making sure to take as many people with them as they could.

While others showed that they were cowards trying their best to hide and avoid the situation. But his uncle, when push had come to shove, had shown exactly what he was.

Sebastian Haven was nothing.

At the end of the day he was just an old man.

An old man who had killed his own brother and a man that he barely knew. A man who had attempted to kill his nephew.

A man who relied on crushing others to feel even the smallest bit of joy. And in the moment of his arrest, Derrick had looked into those dead eyes of his uncle and he had seen the void in him as clear as day. And it seemed that for once in his life

Sebastian had acknowledged that he really was nothing, a none entity. And in facing that truth, he had decided to come out with other truths as well. When they had reached the police station, Derek had expected them to be there for hours, his uncle demanding a lawyer, and refusing to talk.

But again, the old man had behaved in a way that was completely unexpected.

He had waived the right to a lawyer and had instead started singing. Confessing to the murders and also to trying to kill Emily and Derek.

Volunteering so much information that the police had actually done a drug test on him to ensure that he was not under the influence of anything.

It had turned out that his uncle was stone cold sober. He was just a man sick and tired of carrying around so many secrets.

All four of them had been allowed to see him briefly, to talk to him, to ask him why. But his uncle had not said anything. He had simply just blinked at them and then he had turned his back to them. Staring at the wall like it was more interesting than them, and their questions.

The dismissal should have had Derek feeling all types of twisted rage. The anger bubbling just beneath the surface. Making him want to demand his uncle’s attention, to order the man to quit ignoring him and face reality. But instead the reaction had felt as though it was the most honesty that Derek had ever gotten out of his uncle.

No sly smiles, no smirks, no forced laughter, and no words laced with ill intent... just absolute silence.

Now he and Emily were back at Derek’s penthouse, their mothers having gone to the apartment.

The two women had been clinging to one another like they had just made it through a hurricane the last time that Derek had seen them. And now he and Emily were in bed clinging to each other and listening to each other’s breaths. Taking comfort in each other’s presence just as their mothers had done with one another.

"I know I should feel some type of way about my uncle, and the way that he behaved tonight, but strangely enough I feel at peace. Is that wrong?" Emily rubbed her cheek against his chest, taking a moment befor answering him.

"It is strange that you should say that, because I feel the same way too. I think if he were to have tried to apologize, or if he would have opened his mouth and shown that he felt no guilt for what he did, that would have made me angry, and I would have been even angrier if he hadn’t offered an apology. His silence feels more authentic,"

Sometimes Derek felt like checking the inside of his head to make sure that he and Emily did not have some sort of tunnel going into and out of each other’s minds so that they could hear one another’s thoughts. She had summed up exactly what he had been thinking.

"Do you think you will ever be able to forgive him?"

"No,"

Her answer came instantly. No hesitation whatsoever on her part. And Derek had to admire her honesty.

"I do not think I’ll be able to forgive him ever. He has taken too much for far too long for me to even consider such a thing. Maybe once we start therapy to work on our issues, we will both feel differently about him. I’ve had a lot of people who have gone say that they managed to forgive people whom they’d thought they would never be able to look at again," Emily’s fingers danced lightly over his chest as she spoke and Derek had to wonder if she was correct in her assessment.

Throughout the time that they had been waiting to finally catch his uncle, he and Emily had been working on healing physically, but they had made a deal with their mothers. Once everything was settled, they would go and get some actual help from trained proffesionals.

After years of hiding and trying to handle everything themselves, it was a big step. But when Derek and Emily had tried to refuse, Jane Molson had come with an argument that they could not find any way around.

"Part of the reason that the two of you got together was because you were able to sleep only when in each other’s presence. Would it not be great to know that your love for each other is genuine? That even when cured, you still love each other enough to want to be together?"

There had been no arguing against that. Derek loved Emily and she loved him too.

But they needed to know for sure that their feelings for each other were genuine. And what better way, than to heal together.

Which was why they would be starting therapy the following week. Derek really hoped that after all was said and done, the two of them came out of it stronger than ever.

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