Pulling a bag from the fridge, he didn't bother to tear off the top as he sank his fangs into the bottom of it. The blood filled his mouth, but it did nothing to ease the frustration boiling inside him. He tossed the empty bag aside and stood for a few minutes with his hands fisted and his shoulders heaving as he tried to keep his volatile emotions restrained. He'd messed up, he'd screwed up real bad, and he had no idea how to fix it.
There was always mind control. He could make her forget, and he could make her care for him again, but he would hate himself for eternity if he did, and one day he would have to tell her about himself anyway. There was no way to escape the truth. He'd also put her at risk if he took away her memories. She had to know what Tristan was, learn what Tristan's limitations were, and how she could keep herself safe from him. He should have told her more before he left. He would have to tell her more to keep her safe, but he couldn't do it when she was looking at him as if he had just choked her kitten.
"Fuck!" he bellowed and drove his fist into the fridge with enough force to dent the stainless steel door. Isabelle jumped, and Stefan stepped in front of her. Ethan would never harm his sister, but with the way he felt right now, he thought he could tear this house down with his bare hands.
"Ethan, what happened?" Isabelle asked again.
His shoulders heaved as he tried to steady himself, but it was impossible. "She knows."
Isabelle inhaled sharply. "I'm assuming she didn't take it well."
Ethan shook his head and tugged at his hair as he ran his fingers through it. Taking a steadying breath, he told them everything that transpired over the night. He drank two more bags of blood while he spoke, but he barely tasted them, and they did nothing to ease the growing pressure inside him. Emma was the only thing that would make him feel better, and she wanted nothing to do with him right now.
"Are you okay?" she asked when he finished.
"No."
He'd meant to tell her, yes, but she knew he wasn't okay, that he may never be okay again. She’d gone through something like this with Stefan, maybe not quite this bad, but they were separated, and it had nearly destroyed Isabelle. If the clawing sensation in his chest was any indication, it might destroy him too.
"Does she know what she is to you? Does she know she's your mate?"
"No," he told her flatly. He couldn't tear his gaze away from the massive dent he'd left in the fridge as he strained to retain his composure.
"You have to tell her."
"Isabelle—"
"No!" Isabelle grabbed his arm and pulled him toward her. "No, you have to tell her. She can't be allowed to shut you out Ethan, and if she knows the truth, you can work through this together. She won't shut you out if you tell her the truth."
"What will we be working out? Her ex-boyfriend tried to kill her last night, she's seen the evilest side of us, of me, and I'm going to condemn her to this life? Destroy her?"
"You won't be destroying her, but if you don't tell her she could destroy you! Ethan, she has to know, please tell her."
"Isabelle," Stefan said. He took her arm and tried to pull her away from Ethan, but she refused to release him. "Isabelle, step away."
She finally released his arm, but Stefan only succeeded in moving her a few feet back. "Tell her, Ethan, please," she pleaded.
Ethan turned away from the tears brimming in his sister's eyes. "I haven't had any of her blood, and we've only known each other for a couple of weeks. I'll take care of her ex, I'll make sure she's safe, but I can walk away from this, and I will walk away from her after. She deserves that much."
"But you won't be able to," Isabelle whispered. "No matter how strong you are, and no matter what you think, you won't be able to walk away. We couldn't."
"You were both vampires—"
"Dad couldn't and neither could mom!" she cried and stepped toward him. "She cares for you, Ethan, I've seen that. If you talk to her, I think she'll understand, but you have to give her a chance to make a choice."
"This is my choice," he growled.
"What about her friends?" Stefan inquired. "What are we going to do about them?"
Ethan shook his head and stepped away from the fridge, his teeth clenched as his eyes turned toward the growing day. "I don't know."
Stefan nudged Isabelle behind him as he stepped forward. "We can't leave them with this knowledge and not know what they will do with it. We can strip their memories, change them."
"I don't know if Emma will allow that," Ethan said.
"She may not have a choice on this one. If you insist on taking this path of leaving her behind then you have to realize she cannot be left behind with the knowledge she has."
He knew Stefan was right, but he couldn't bring himself to do something that might upset her more. "They won't say anything, who would they even tell?"
"There are people out there who would believe whatever they say and would prefer to see us dead. You may not have come across any hunters, but they are out there, and they are lethal. This is as dangerous for all of them as it is for us," Stefan said.
"You're not going to touch her," Ethan warned.
"I won't touch her, but you have to think about this reasonably, Ethan, this has to be taken care of,
