A Vow of Forever by Lylah James

CHAPTER SIX

Julianna

One week later

The world tilted suddenly. It happened so fast and then I heard her fearful scream. My heart stopped for a second and then it was all agony, before I sunk into a very dark place.

I couldn’t hear anything. Couldn’t see; couldn’t feel.

I tried to make a sound, but it felt like my lips were stitched together. I couldn’t breathe…

Couldn’t breathe… help me. Please. Help.

“Julianna.

I heard my name but I couldn’t make out who was calling out to me. It was too dark for me to see.

“Julianna.”

Yes, I tried to respond. But I was voiceless.

“It hurts,” the voice echoed.

The taste of coppery blood filled my mouth and I gagged.

“Julianna. Julianna. Julianna.”

My name was called out, again and again. Until my ears bled from the ominous voice.

“I’m scared.”

I was too.

And I finally remembered…

Her screams.

The sound of my bones breaking.

My cries.

The sound of crushing glass.

Her stuttering breath.

And I remembered the silence.

I blinked and the darkness disappeared, replaced by a bloody Gracelynn. Her dead eyes cold and wide. Her mangled face.

I heard her voice, even though her body was too still. She wasn’t breathing.

“Julianna.”

“Gracelynn,” I cried.

The pungent scent of death filled my nose and I gagged again, fighting back the urge to retch.

“Why did you leave me?” the quiet voice accused.

“I didn’t!”

“Why didn’t you save me?”

Agony flicked through my veins. The pressure on my chest was unbearable. “I couldn’t.”

“My baby…”

Choking back on my cries, I tried to reach for her. “I’m s-s-sorry… Please, I’m sorry. Please. PLEASE!”

She faded away.

My body seized and everything went black.

My body startled awake and I stared at the ceiling, sucking in desperate breaths. My chest hurt and my face was wet with tears. My lips trembled with the effort to hold back my cries but I couldn’t, so I started choking on my heavy sobs.

The absolute terror of my nightmare paralyzed me and all I could do was stare at the ceiling. I thought I was moving on, finally putting Gracelynn’s death behind me. But the memories still haunted me.

I knew I shouldn’t have read those comments online. They were my trigger and now I was trapped in a never-ending cycle of nightmares once again. How unfair was life…

That I thought I had finally found my happily ever after.

Only for my past to come back to haunt me; surrounding me like evil cloak.

“I didn’t kill her,” I whispered, as if to remind myself. “It wasn’t my fault. The accident wasn’t my fault.”

My face and neck felt like they had been scratched raw. My scars itched badly and I had to fight the urge to dig my fingers into my face; to claw at my burned flesh.

No matter what those comments said online, no matter how much they tried to paint me as the villain – I wasn’t evil. I didn’t kill my sister.

I brushed away my tears, taking in shuddering breaths as I tried to calm my racing heart. Once I wasn’t shaking anymore, I forced myself out of bed. It was only supposed to be a nap…

How did my nap turn into such a horrid nightmare?

My phone rang, snapping me out of my thoughts. A quick peek at the caller ID told me that it was Mirai and I answered the call. “Hey.”

“Tell me how much you miss me,” she said in her usual cheery voice. Mirai was almost twenty years old now, but she was still the same old Mirai I met six years ago. I didn’t know if she had a sixth sense, but she almost always called when I needed some cheering up.

“Tell me how much you miss me.”

“A whole lot. I can’t wait to see Cameron again. I miss his sweet, chubby face. I should be back before the triplets are here!”

I hoped she would. I was going to need all the moral support with three newborns. “How’s Europe?” I asked eagerly.

“It’s so beautiful!” she practically squealed in my ears. “And everything I dreamed of. While I was in France, I was honestly contemplating finding myself a nice Parisian man and settling there. But after two months traveling around Europe, I realized that I miss home. Oh, how did that fundraiser event go yesterday? Better than the last one I hope?”

“It was fine,” I simply responded. I wasn’t fine.

Actually, it was an absolutely disaster. I was given dirty looks all night look. Some people were very much supportive of me and the cause – our mission was to raise awareness about victims and survivors of sex trafficking.

While others showed clear distaste for me on their faces.

I heard the horrible whispers…

“Her father was the biggest human trafficker of the country. What is she hoping to achieve with this event? Another sob story of hers?”

“She’s trying too hard that she seems fake.”

“I get shady vibes from her.”

“Her poor sister, though.”

“Was it really an accident?”

The whispers were not any different from the offensive comments I saw online this morning. Vile and sickening. Evil and revolting.

“It’s disgusting how she married her dead sister’s fiancé.”

“She should probably go back to wearing that veil. Her scars literally gave my toddler a nightmare.”

“Why can’t she just do plastic surgery?”

“Probably using her scars for sympathy.”

“No offense to anyone, but it’s kinda ew.”

“I bet they fuck in the dark so he doesn’t have to look at the she-version of Freddy Krueger.”

“How does he kiss her when she looks like THAT?”

Mirai sighed. “It doesn’t sound fine. I saw some of the posts on Facebook. Twitter is an absolute nightmare. These people are just cruel.”

My throat closed and when I swallowed, I almost choked on my saliva. “Um, yeah. Look I have to–”

My phone vibrated with another incoming call and I pulled it away from my ear. Killian was calling. “Hey, Mirai. I’ll call you back later. Killian is calling.”

“Okay, see you!” I hang up her call and answered Killian’s.

“Hey, did you have a good nap?” he greeted me tiredly. His warm, rich voice send a shiver down my body. A good shiver. The kind that made me feel fuzzy.

“Not really,” I answered truthfully, because I had vowed not to lie anymore. No more secrets. “What are you doing?”

“Preparing for next week’s debate. Working on some notes.” There was some rustling in the background before he continued. “Which is why I’m calling. I forgot one of my files at home. Samuel is coming to pick it up, I just wanted to let you know in advance.”

I sat forward, a better idea playing in my head. “It’s okay, I’ll bring you the files.”

“You don’t have to. Shouldn’t you be resting?”

“I want to see you.” He left this morning when I was still sleeping and I expected that he’d be home late tonight, way after Cameron and I had fallen asleep.

“Is everything okay, Princess?” Killian asked, his voice deepening with concern.

“Yes, I just… miss you.” I needed his arms around me, where I felt the safest.

Away from the whispers and rumors.

“Okay, see you then. I love you.”

That made me smile. “I love you too.”

We hang up and after I got dressed, I grabbed the file from his office and went to find my son. I found Cameron sitting on the couch, watching The Boss Baby for the umpteenth time while chewing on carrots.

“Little man didn’t want to nap today,” Selene said from beside him. He obviously had her wrapped around his little finger.

“I don’t know where he gets all that energy.” My gaze flickered between him and the TV. “Do you mind watching him for a little longer? I just have to drop this file at Killian’s office.”

Selene shooed me away. “Go on. Little man and I will be fine.”

The moment I stepped out of the house, I was surrounded by my small team of bodyguards. Four of them. I thought it was a bit too much, but there was no arguing with Killian when it came to my protection.

“Good afternoon, Mrs. Spencer. Your husband called and let us know that you’re leaving for his office. Will you be making any stops in between?” Jackson asked. He was the one in charge and he also happened to be Samuel’s oldest brother.

Killian had trouble trusting people around me, so my bodyguards were all men he had personally known for years and trusted to keep me safe.

“Nope. Just straight to Killian’s office, please.”

The ride to his office was twenty minutes and I used the time to speak with Mirai. She told me all about her time in Europe, gushing about the places she visited and how much she wanted to hook up with one of the handsome locals. Mirai was spontaneous and I wouldn’t be surprised if she had already hooked up with said locals.

When the car slowed to a stop in front of a familiar building, I hang up. “We’re here, Mrs. Spencer.”

Jackson opened the door for me and I stepped out of the car, holding the file under my arm and my purse in my other hand.

It happened too quickly for me to realize what was actually happening before it was too late. The moment I stepped out of the car, I was suddenly surrounded by people. Crowding into me, trying to push past my bodyguards. My heart stammered and I looked around, panicked.

What was happening?

Where did these people come from? The sidewalk was empty a second ago.

The ground swayed under my feet as anxiety filled my cold veins. Panic turned into horror as I noticed the microphones and cameras blazing at me. They were in my face, behind me, all talking at the same time.

Horror turned into dread when I realized what was happening.

I was basically being attacked by the press.

They were too close; their voices too loud; their bodies pressing into me. Almost aggressively. My bodyguards surrounded me, trying to hold them back as my lungs grew tight and my heart stuttered.

My vision blurred as I stumbled away, trying to get inside the Spencer Building. I brought the file up, hiding my face behind it as I tried to shield my eyes against all the bright flashes.

There was nowhere to go.

I was trapped.

Someone bumped into me. I didn’t know who it was – the person trying to protect me or the ones who are on the verge of assaulting me. An unknown pair of sweaty hands tried to grab me and I stumbled away.

My breathing stuttered as I tried to find my footing, but my feet slipped from under me. The world swayed as my body tilted toward the road, onto the incoming traffic.

Thud.

Thud.

Thud.

I collapsed under my weight and I hit the asphalt, hard.

And then all I saw was darkness.