(Emily I'm Sorry)
ACT ONE--CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

2021

"I'm sleepwalking again," Taissa quietly admitted, and Emily frowned, glancing at her friend. 

It had been so long since Taissa's sleepwalking was a problem, all of their past getting dragged to the surface seemed to be taking a toll on all of them.

"I think between the campaign and the problems with Simone-" Taissa trailed off, pausing for a moment, "And the whole blackmailing thing."

"Yeah," Emily murmured, "That makes sense, I'm sorry Tai...about you and Simone."

Taissa stopped walking for a second, "I don't know if we're gonna make it, Em."

The blonde gently wrapped an arm around her friend's shoulder, "You guys are really good together, Tai. You'll work it out."

'Yeah, you're right." Taissa nodded, leaning into Emily's embrace, "I am a terrible best friend, talking all about my problems. What about you? How are things with Ash? And the shit with Natalie?"

"Uh," Emily sighed, "It's really nice having my sister back...but that's causing problems with Aiden and Daisy and...it's a lot."

Taissa nodded, "Aidan just wants to get under your skin, and Ash made the perfect opportunity. He's not going to take Daisy from you, Em."

Emily knew that she was right, but a part of her was still worried. Aidan could still get custody, and Daisy's only sixteen so it wasn't like she could choose.

"I think I've forgiven Natalie." Emily whispered, "For everything that happened when we were out there."

"That's...." Taissa shrugged, "That's good, I think?"

"Yeah, I think it is." 

Emily insisted that Taissa stay the night, and somehow, Taissa, Ash, and Emily ended up gossiping and giggling like teenagers on the floor of her living room.

"I've got one," Taissa spoke, sipping wine from her glass, "Shauna is having an affair."

Emily's jaw dropped open, "She's cheating on Mr. Perfect Jeff?" 

Ash rolled her eyes, "You two can't tell me that neither of you saw that coming. Shauna was sleeping with him when he and Jackie were together."

"Don't try and suck the fun out of gossip hour," Emily gasped, and Taissa nodded in agreement.

"Oh!" Ash snapped her fingers, "Do either of you remember Elena Reyes?"

"Yeah, yeah," Taissa pipped up and Emily nodded in agreement, "She was on the cheerleading squad right?"

Ash hummed, "Rumor has it she had an affair with Kevin Tayn's wife and that's why they got divorced."

"Damn, really?"

 Ash nodded, "No I was just fucking with you guys."

Emily elbowed her sister, "Rude."

"I thought it was funny," Ash shrugged.

---

Emily was the last one in the door, following Shauna, Natalie, and Taissa. Her best friend gasped, and that's when Emily saw him.

"Oh my god! Shauna, you killed him," Taissa gasped, and Natalie spun around to face Shauna, "Who's he?"

"Uh...I met him a few months ago. I got into a car accident and then we started..sleeping with each other."

Taissa pointed to the body on the floor, "Oh my god this is your boyfriend!"

"Shauna, what the actual fuck? I can not be an accomplice to murder." Emily whisper shouted, pointing to the very obviously dead body. 

"Wait, you were seeing someone around the time that all of us were getting blackmailed and you didn't think to mention it?" Natalie questioned and Shauna dropped her hands by her side.

"I'm telling you now."

Natalie much like the rest of them, was entirely exasperated, she silently motioned around his body, "When he's dead! When he can't fucking mumble a word to us. What the fuck, Shauna?"

"Jesus Christ are you even sure he did it?" Taissa asked, and Emily looked at Shauna awaiting the answer, hoping that the situation they were currently in wouldn't get any worse.

"Well um," Shauna's voice shook a bit, "He went out to get his coffee this morning and when he was gone I found this in his closet," she held up the duffle bag.

Natalie took it from her, examining the bag, Emily leaned over her shoulder, also looking at the bag.

"He came back and he saw me with it, and you know, he realized that I must know what he did so he attacked me." Shauna explained.

"Okay so self-defense, that's slightly, very fucking slightly better."

Natalie shook the empty bag, "Where's my money?"

"Where's your money? Natalie I'm not sure, maybe he booked a cruise with it. It's not here. But the burner phone with the text from you guys..."

"How did he know anything about the symbol?" Taissa inquired. 

"Well um--" she pulled a notebook from the bag, "He also had these."

"What the fuck is that?" 

Shauna sighed, her eyebrows pulling together guiltily, "They're my journals from...the wilderness. I couldn't get rid of them. I've been really careful they were in a safe in my closet, but he must've broken into it sometime, pretty soon after we started seeing each other."

"Holy shit Shauna! You let this guy in your house?" Taissa shook her head. Natalie crouched down beside the body, and Emily joined her, the blonde's eyes flinching away from him, but rather to Natalie.

"What are you thinking?" Emily whispered and Natalie shook her head, "That this is really fucked up."

"Can you try to be a little less judgmental?" Shauna asked Taissa, "I already feel stupid enough as it is."

"You really think this is the guy who killed Travis?" Natalie asked, and Shauna paused giving a silent shrug, "I don't know." 

"Oh my god don't touch a dead body!" Taissa exclaimed, and Emily tugged her jacket a bit, "Are you trying to get this pinned on you? DNA, Nat!"

"Natalie don't do that!" Shauna exclaimed, "Ew," Taissa's face scrunched up.

"I can't believe you killed him Shauna! Now we're not gonna know anything."

"Well you were gonna shoot him at the warehouse!" Shauna pointed out, "I wouldn't have fucking killed him! I would've just hit his knees!"

"He was lying to me," tears built up in Shauna's eyes, "He was going to hurt me. I thought--I thought that he--loved me. I trusted him."

"So, what the fuck is the plan then?" Emily asked, crossing her arms, and turning away from the body. 

"Well, we can't leave him here." Taissa stated, and Emily nodded, "It's not like we can walk him right out the door either."

"And your," Taissa turned to Shauna, "DNA is all over this fucking place! Your fucking texts are in his cloud! The police aren't going to have to dig deep to find you!"

"Yeah, no shit. You're a lawyer, what do we do?"

"I practice land use." Taissa stated, "Not murder clean up...hey you're all silent over there that's unusual. You got any ideas?"

Natalie sighed, shaking her head, "Yeah, one."

"Oh God please don't tell me, I'm thinking what you're thinking." Emily muttered.