"Em, did you met Rylan in school?"

Mark's sudden question about Rylan made warning bells start ringing in Emily's brain.

For a moment she wanted to lie but then a new idea popped up in her crafty little mind as she put on a frowning expression while lightly nodding her head in reply.

Her affirmative gesture made Mark stiffen as he hurriedly asked, "When? Did he say anything to you?"

"Umm...it was in the Chemistry period. He just gave me a surprised look but did not say anything else. Other than that, I did not see him for the rest of the day."

The fake sincerity that she pushed into her words and the little frown that was plastered on her face, succeeded in covering her lie from Mark's sharp gaze.

The reason Emily did not hide about Rylan sharing the Chemistry class with her was the number of witnesses that were present in the class.

If her brothers tried to find the truth on their own, she would have ended up in big trouble for lying.

However, the reason she did not tell Mark about the episode of the library was because she had a feeling that even if her brothers tried to investigate on their own, they won't be able to find about that part.

Mark stared at Emily who was looking at his tattoos with a little frown on her face before he lightly hummed in acknowledgment.

Even if he wanted to be suspicious of her, the innocence that was surrounding her made him hesitate.

As Mark kept silent for the next few moments, Emily started feeling a little uncomfortable. She could feel his piercing gaze on her as if he was looking right into her soul.

"Mark"

"Huh?"

Emily took in a deep breath before she turned her eyes towards her brother who was actually looking way softer than his usual grumpy and angry self.

"I heard Domenic saying that Rylan was present in the mall when everything happened and looking at the way he was speaking with Daniel it's like Rylan isn't allowed to enter into the mall. Is he or maybe his family a business rival of Domenic?"

Only God knew how much courage it took on Emily's part to ask that question out loud.

Mark looked at her in silence for a few seconds before he responded.

"I'll answer your question if you will answer mine first."

For some reason, it never occurred to Emily that the question Mark was going to ask her could be very hard for her to answer.

This was the only reason why she immediately nodded her head in acceptance of his demand.

"Then tell me, Em, when I clearly told you to stay with Joy all the time then why did you run away from him and ended up creating such a ruckus?"

The calmness that was present in Mark's eyes suddenly started changing into coldness as he glared at her.

Emily gulped down her saliva as the fear returned. The way Mark was staring down into her eyes made her voice crack as she tried to answer.

"T.....T-t.....That I-I....Y-you...Youarescaringme!"

It was like her racing heart almost burst out of her chest as those sincere words escaped through her lips and made Mark frown.

Before Mark could have replied, the library door burst opened and Emily registered familiar footsteps that belonged to the rest of her brothers.

She did not need to turn back towards the door to know that all the rest five brothers of hers were now present in the library.

Their presence did not bring any comfort to her. Rather, another fear took over her as she realized that any moment Mark could tell Domenic about how he found her eavesdropping downstairs just a few minutes ago.

"And I was wondering what's taking her so long to grab a water bottle from the kitchen. Looks like it's none other than our dear brother who has begged for her company. Tsk tsk, I'm feeling left out now."

Leo's dramatic voice filtered through the silence of the cozy section of the library where Mark and Emily were sitting.

Of course, he received a deadly glare in return from Mark, but when did he ever care about his grumpy brother and his angry tantrums?

He was there for his baby sister even though she was barely a year and a few months younger than him, but for him, she was still his baby sister. The only person on whom he could dote on as much as he wanted.

"We decided to give her time to rest before bringing up this question. But looks like someone is just too impatient." Crist's voice came out harsh as he glared at Mark.

"Moreover, you should pay attention to your tone, Mark. Remember that it's our Princess you are talking to."

This time it was Daniel who clearly reprimanded Mark for the harsh tone that he used with Emily.

"Oh! Come on, all of you. Stop acting like she's some kind of saint or innocent kid. I'm just trying to ask her why did she run away from the bodyguard that was assigned to protect her." Mark was clearly frustrated.

"Maybe you should have questioned that so-called bodyguard of yours exactly why and how did he fail in the one job that he was assigned to do, rather than showing your bratty attitude in front of our sister."

Domenic's sharp and angry words immediately made Mark shut his mouth as he receded to one of the corners of the room.

Even though Emily was grateful for the support that the rest of her brothers showed towards her, but it did not mean that she was not feeling bad for Mark.

There's no doubt that he was her least favorite brother and she could not see his position changing anytime soon.

She watched as the rest of her brothers piled up on the sofas and bean bags that were sitting around the small coffee table.

She almost felt her soul shuddering in fear as Domenic settled down beside her while facing directly towards her.

There were no more escape routes left for her to take. It was finally time for her to give them some answers.