At some point, soon after her whole debacle with the police academy. Emily had trained herself to stop screaming during her nightmares. A skill that would have done wonders for her had she still been at the academy. But even without that, it still served a great purpose.
With her nightmares now a silent affair, Emily had been able to do an act of kindness for her mother. She had looked her mom straight in the eye and lied.
"The nightmares are gone, I am sleeping through the night now," And the relief on her mother's face, after years of worry had made the lie worth it. Which was why, at two in the morning, Emily was wide awake and trying to be as quiet as possible so that she did not wake her mom in the next room.
Like most mornings, the remnants of her age old nightmare still clinging to her, Emily got out of bed and headed straight for her crafts drawer.
A needle and thread in one hand, cloth held in another, she carried on with her latest project. Glasses slipping down her nose as she embroidered under the warm light of the bedside lamp. By the time five o'clock rolled around. She was done with the little flower. The red petals vibrant against the white cloth.
Putting the project away. She went about faking like she was just waking up. Even going as far as rubbing her eyes in the hallway when she ran into her mom. The older woman buying the act completely.
From then on it was smooth sailing, getting clean, getting presentable, and then sharing breakfast with her mom before heading out just before six-thirty, which ensured that Emily was a full thirty minutes early for work.
There were a few early risers already in, but for the most part, it was quiet. Something Emily appreciated as she made her way through the building. Being the big boss's PA, her office was all the way up on the top floor, right next to Derek's. But every other day, she enjoyed a stroll through the lower departments, taking the stairs instead of the elevator. It helped wake her up some, so she walked all the way up to the top floor when she felt like it.
She was doing just that when she heard the door close in the set of stairs she had just cleared. Normally, Emily would have just kept on walking, but in this case, she stopped, and for one simple reason… a laugh.
And not just any laugh, but a laugh like a donkey being kicked in the nuts. The laugh of Lucas Hart, PA of one Sebastian Haven, uncle to Derek Haven and constant thorn on the boss's side. Glad that she was one of the sensible few who wore flat shoes to work, Emily slowly stepped down a bit lower.
"…yes, sir. Everything has been set. All the other board members will be here within the hour. By the time your nephew realizes what is going on, it will be too late for him to stop it…" Lucas' nasally voice carried on for a few more seconds, but Emily was no longer listening. Hand over her mouth to keep from making any sound, she stayed frozen in place until she heard the door open and close.
Just to be on the safe side, she waited a few more minutes and then made her way back down stairs.
Security gave her an odd looked when she walked past them again, but Emily did not care. Dragging her phone out of her pocket, she called her boss.
"Emily, this had better be important, I specifically told you not to disturb me, that I would be late this morning," Came the usual clipped tone, her boss was many things, but cheerful was not one of them.
"Derek, we have a situation, it's your uncle," There was a curse from the other side and Emily knew she had his full attention.