Hello readers! This chapter is dedicated to @9ice_for_what. Thank you for your support!
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"What did you just say?"
One would expect these words to come out of Eric, but Anthony beat him to it. He held Mark's cool gaze with a steady, level gaze of his own. Nobody insulted his best friend like that. Nobody.
"You don't need to speak for me," Eric said, torn between letting go and lashing out. "As for you," said Eric, focusing his steely Blue eyes on Mark, "I'm not answerable to you, a total stranger with a permanent scowl on his face."
Mark seemed totally unaffected by it, however, that was not the case. He leaned towards Eric, leaving very little space between them, and said in a very low voice,
"If I were you, I'd refrain from saying such things," Mark spoke, his voice low and threatening.
"Yeah, or what?" Eric looked straight into his eyes, challenging him silently.
Mark just smiled menacingly, pushed back his chair and swiftly left the room. His wife followed after him hastily, but not before apologizing for her husband's behavior. Levi and Charlotte left the dining hall too, leaving the friends to themselves.
"Eric, what the hell is wrong with you man? You've been acting so strange ever since we left New York!"
"Back off Carter, just give him a break, alright," Anthony said to him while stealing quick glances at Eric.
Eric was staring at the breakfast sandwich, his leg tapping with short and quick motions on the ground. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, trying to block out everything around him.
"Why should I give him a break, why does he even need one?!" Carter was losing his control and came dangerously close to snapping at Eric. He tried to keep his voice normal, but it only came out angrier.
Eric's behavior coupled with the fact that he was the reason he couldn't get to Emma, made it all the more hard for him to not lash out. He didn't even want to control himself, he realized.
"You've been acting like a complete idiot, for what reason I have no idea," Carter said to Eric, standing to his full height.
"You don't know what you're saying," Eric said in a low voice. "Don't test my patience."
"No."
"No?" Eric replied, his eyebrows pulled together. He was already confused and this conversation didn't make any sense to him anymore.
Eric's eyes fell on Emma and all he wanted to do was talk to her, tell her about everything. He came around the table, paying no heed to Anthony and Scarlett and went straight to Emma. Once he reached her, he grabbed her hand and said,
"Can we talk now, please?"
Emma looked at Eric, now almost unrecognizable with the way he was looking and behaving. His eyes held panic in them and were desperate. How could she say no?
But before she could utter a single word, Carter pushed her out of the way and came face to face with Eric.
"I wasn't done with you."
"I don't care, I'm done with whatever this is." Eric wasn't even looking at Carter. "I don't want to fight, alright?"
Eric grabbed Emma's hand again and turned to leave the room. Carter saw this and he felt his blood pressure started to rise, his nostrils flared and at that moment, all he saw was Red. He took one step towards Eric, grabbed his shoulder and pulled him towards himself.
"I said I wasn't done with you," Carter seethed.
Eric turned around and in one second, had Carter pinned against the wall, his hand wrapped around his friend's neck, squeezing with just enough pressure that it wasn't too much to handle. Eric leaned into carter and came within an inch of his ear, then whispered,
"And I said, don't test my patience," His voice dark and dangerous.
Carter opened his mouth to say something, but Eric squeezed his throat harder, effectively shutting him up. His strong grip had cut off Carter's air supply and it got harder for him to breathe as he started to gasp, clawing at Eric's hand.
Eric had murder written on his face, his eyes were wild and red, an endless pit of anger. His teeth were bared and he showed no signs of letting go of his vice grip on Carter's neck.
Anthony watched the whole exchange in shock. It had paralyzed him, not allowing him to move his muscles. It was only when Carter's face started to take a purple hue did his senses come back to him and he rushed towards Eric, reaching him in two long steps.
Anthony shoved Eric away from Carter and was taken aback when he saw the expressions on Eric's face. Anthony completely broke down on the inside but didn't let it show. He didn't think Eric would be capable of taking such a big step because of the absence of his... medicine.
As soon as Eric loosened his grip on Carter, he slid down the wall, gasping for air in between coughing wildly, desperately trying to inhale large amounts of oxygen. He took deep breaths and rested his head on the wall, trying to regain his balance and facing the fact that Eric had tried to strangle him.
He has completely lost his mind.
As soon as Anthony had pushed Eric away, he broke the Red haze around him. Eric's aura went from dangerous to shock as he came to his senses. He looked at Emma and Scarlett, their eyes sparkling with unshed tears, wide open and staring at him in horror.
The room was completely silent for a few moments. Eric could hear his heart thumping wildly against his chest, his breathing erratic as he gulped.
What had he done?
If Anthony hadn't pushed him away, would he have killed Carter? Was he capable of killing a person? But hadn't he... No. He shook away his dark thoughts and closed his eyes. He couldn't bear to look at his friends in the eyes, couldn't even bear to look at their faces.
He turned to face Carter and could feel how hot his face was getting because of embarrassment, and dread.
"I..." Eric hesitated, he couldn't get the words out.
How do you apologize to someone for strangling them? Eric felt a mental breakdown on the horizon, he couldn't think straight. He was confused and off-balance already.
So, he turned back towards the door and walked out, feeling angry, disoriented and chaotic. So many emotions, pulling him apart in every direction.
Carter followed suit, not uttering a single word as he made his way upstairs towards his room.
"What... What just happened?" Scarlett looked ready to burst into tears at any moment and sat down. Her shaking legs couldn't support her weight anymore.
"Anthony, you know what's wrong with Eric," Emma said to him.
"No, I don't-"
"It wasn't a question," said Emma as she looked directly into Anthony's eyes. "Tell me, please," She pleaded.
Anthony sighed, "It isn't my place to tell,"
"Alright then," Emma said, her tone final as she made a move to leave the dining hall.
Just as she passed by Anthony, he caught Emma's shoulder, halting her in her steps.
"Give him time. He'll come around," Anthony said. "Let's go skiing," he continued with a smile.
Emma and Scarlett looked at him as if he had just grown two heads. They both blinked, trying to comprehend the abrupt change.
"What?"
"Did you say skiing? Did I hear him correctly?" Scarlett said to Emma.
Both women had incredulous expressions on their faces for a few moments before realizing Anthony was serious.
"No..." Scarlett said as she shook her head slowly. "I need to lie down," She said as she got up from her place.
"That wasn't a suggestion," Anthony said. "Come on, ladies! Afraid I'll crush you in skiing? Because I will," he commented, a confident smirk on his face. But his eyes gave him away.
Anthony knew something was needed to be done before both girls lost their minds and ended up doing something stupid. They were very emotional, and Anthony was well aware of the fact. He figured if they got away from the hotel, they would get some breathing space and also get distracted enough to return to normal by the time they got back.
Talking to Eric and Carter while their own emotions were off the charts was a very, very bad idea.
"Let's go," Anthony said as he put his arm around Emma and Scarlett and lead them away from the possible crime scene.
Up close, Scarlett could see how shaken Anthony was by the whole incident, despite the facade he put up. He's doing it for us, she realized.
Maybe getting out of here isn't such a bad idea.
She averted her eyes from Anthony and looked at Emma. She almost looked numb. She was walking straight but her mind was miles away.
Emma couldn't wrap her head around what had happened. The scene kept on replaying in her mind like a broken reel. Carter's horror-stricken face, Eric's strong hand pinning him against the wall by his neck... It was all too much to take in.
Tonight, she will get to the bottom of this mystery. She couldn't take it anymore, the suspense was killing her. But first, she needed to blow off some steam to be able to think straight.
She would deal with Eric later.
***
Things are getting intense! What did you guys think of it? I love reading your comments so please don't be shy! :)