Unreal 2 Cold Illusion - Winter's Chill: (Adult Suspense Thriller)

by Riley Moreno

  “She is my mom. And… and I want her to remember that. I need her to. Can you understand?”

  He could try.

  “Call me when you’re done. I hope she says what you want to hear.”

  Julie entered the city café. After everything that had happened, she couldn’t help but imagine that every set of eyes knew what had happened to her. In that second, she wished that she had taken Ethan up on his offer and had him near. Ethan actually knew, and he never made her feel bad or dirty about it. In his eyes it was not her fault. She loved that about him. But now she was alone and had to rely on her own strength to make this work.

  “Julie! Over here!”

  She turned her eyes to see her mother sitting in a corner. She leaned over her chair as she waved. Julie could already see that her designated space was the chair with its back to the wall. Julie liked the idea that she could see whatever and whoever would enter the room, but she also knew that sitting would trap her under her mother’s eyes.

  She moved forward and decided to take the chance.

  “My Julie.”

  Sharon’s arms folded around her body in a tight embrace. Julie fought the urge to shift away. Maybe she really was back to being her mother. Julie could just sit and smile as water poured into her waiting glass.

  Julie’s mouth was dry, and as she drank quickly, she reveled in the cold stream moving down her throat.

  She wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.

  “So how are you?” Sharon asked.

  Julie could not help but feel that the inquiry was too casual given the truth they both knew.

  Great, Mom! Awesome! I don’t even think about what happened anymore. What’s new with you?

  The thing was she was almost able to let it go when she was with Ethan. He held her while she slept and steadied her in the throes of every nightmare. He would shush her until her tears stopped and press her close. Julie was able to relax when his lips dotted her hair, and he swore that no one would ever hurt her again. With him, she clung to the hope that the words were true and found the way back to sleep.

  Now she was wide awake. And Ethan’s arms were nowhere to be found.

  “How do you think, Mom?”

  Sharon played with the napkin in her lap, and her eyes darted everywhere but Julie’s face.

  “I’m sure it’s been hard. I know, Julie.”

  How could she say that? She did not know. She had not been held against her will and forced into depravity. And her friend was not dead.

  Julie slammed her palm against the table and leaned forward.

  “Where’s Greg?”

  Sharon lifted her napkin from her lap and nervously dabbed her face.

  “He’s… he’s not here. You said you didn’t want---”

  “Damn right I didn’t. But where is he?”

  Sharon tried to take Julie’s hands, but Julie sank deeper into her chair and kept her stare cold.

  “Well?”

  Sharon tucked her hands into her lap and forced a smile.

  “I don’t want you thinking about Greg.”

  Sharon tittered and moved to touch her daughter again with the same hands that touched Greg Heller. Kim’s blood was on those hands, and she would not let her mother wipe it way with this pretense of concern. Julie flashed back to the day before everything changed, the moment when her mother seemed to worry about nothing but her well-being. But it was never about Julie. Sharon Heller…

  Not Edwards, never really Edwards. Dad would never have let this happen.

  Sharon Heller wanted status quo, and she probably imagined that it was back once Julie was home. So what if she could not look at Julie after her enslavement? In her mind, it had to be forgotten so that Greg would be the second husband she needed without an indictment hanging over his shoulder.

  And the indictment could be washed away if Julie simply said the word.

  “How can I not? We both know the answer to that. How’s his defense lining up?”

  “Julie, just listen to me.”

  Sharon’s hands found their way to hers. Julie tried to pull away, but Sharon held her in a place from which she could not escape.

  “Like husband like wife,” Julie spat.

  Sharon forced Julie’s face closer to hers. Julie heard forks dropping to plates all around the restaurant, but she could see nothing but her mother’s eyes.

  “Yes. He is my husband. And you are my daughter.”

  The word still carried some meaning as Sharon’s fingers surrounded her neck.

  “Mom---?”

  “Mom. That’s right. I am. And you better fall in line. Because if you hurt him---”

  Julie pushed her mother away and rose from the table.

  “If I… if I hurt him?”

  Now there was no question. All eyes were on them. Her.

  “Sit down, Julie.”

  “No.”

  “You’re making a scene.”

  Now that was everything she did not want. Julie’s most fervent wish was to be anonymous and to have no memory of terror. If she closed her eyes and just thought of Ethan, it was almost possible. Her lids lifted to Sharon still staring. Not only was the nightmare real, but it threatened to continue.

  “I… I…”

  Her hands spun through her long brown hair, and she looked for a way out. Her legs wobbled as she neared the door, but Sharon was right at her heels. As Julie turned, she felt Sharon’s words penetrating her skin.

  “Julie. Julie, please.”

  A part of her still longed for her mother’s embrace, and Julie shifted her eyes in the hope of an apology.

  “Julie, please just let this go. Greg says he won’t let anything else happen to you.”

  She wanted to vomit.

  “Greg says… Greg says...”

  Julie could not stand the idea of him promising anything. His promises held nothing but misery. She charged out of the restaurant, but Sharon caught her by the wrist as soon as she was on the street.

  “No! Let me go!”

  Sharon tugged Julie’s body closer to hers, and whatever warmth might have once lived in her eyes was gone. She was not a mother. She was a moll trying to save her man from the fate he definitely deserved. For a second, Julie could see herself doing the same for Ethan.

  But he would never do anything to bring her or anyone to this point.

  “I said no!”

  As she pushed back and watched her mother fall, she broke into a run. It was liberating to speak the word and find it obeyed. For days, months, no was a cry that had no meaning. Julie sprinted past eyes that viewed her as a madwoman until she reached Ethan’s building.

  “Hey!”

  “Hey, Julie.”

  Nick and Danielle faded into the abyss, and she locked the door and hit the shower. As the water hit her face, she longed to feel it over every inch of her scarred body. But as she started to undo her blouse, she thought of the hands that had touched her, and she pressed her damp clothing closer and sank into the tub.

  She heard a key turn in a lock. And then she heard her name, her true name, and she managed to shift the faucet off so that the water stopped beating down on her.

  But she could not move.

  “Juliet!”

  The door to the bathroom swung open, and a hand pushed the shower curtain aside. Julie was damp and trembling. She tried to speak but could only cry when she saw Ethan.

  “Juliet? What happened?”

  “I… I’m scared.”

  Her mother was lost to her. Greg was still somewhere else, free. And she could think of nothing else to say.

  “Ethan?”

  “Shhh.”

  He lifted her out of the shower and carried her soaking form to his bed.

  “What happened?” he asked again as he grabbed a towel from the hamper and used it to dry her trembling body.

  “I don’t know.”

  Ethan eased the towel against her ankles, and then he leaned up and held her face in his hands.<
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  “This is why I didn’t want you to go.”

  Julie nodded and wept as Ethan collected her in his arms, and she sobbed against his chest.

  “Juliet.”

  His gentle hand stroked her damp head. It felt good to have him close again, but the almost lunch with her mother brought her back to her captors.

  And their clients.

  Carter McCord was always the roughest, and she remembered him pressing into her and striking her face. When he finished… he never finished. He always wanted more. He forced his ass to her face while ordering her to lick and pleasure him. Julie could still taste the shit on her tongue, and despite the vile efforts of her captors, they were the worst villains because of how they hurt her.

  And Greg, he had engineered the entire thing.

  It was as if every man was a monster.

  “Juliet?”

  Except Ethan.

  “Juliet?”

  She nodded without words, and opened a window. With a flick of his wrist, open air spilled over her body, and Ethan removed her wet clothing. She could not help but feel vulnerable, exposed to her eyes and hands.

  “It’s alright,” he whispered as he pressed a blanket about her body. Julie fell into his arms, but she was too spent to sob as he held her tighter.

  “Just sleep, Juliet. I’ll be right here.”

  She obeyed and moved into a strange dream. In its happier parts, she felt Ethan’s hand in hers with no memories of the horror, and she could pick out Kim’s laughter in the distance. But then the dream darkened as Pete and the suddenly alive Matt poked their cruel faces into view and drew her back to a place where no one had ever saved her.

  “No! Just no more!”

  Ethan was wide awake to meet her, and she caught her breath as he stroked her face.

  “Easy, Juliet.”

  It’s okay.

  Julie felt the fresh air filling the room and saw that the day had turned to night. She had no idea how late it was, but Ethan’s voice was too clear to have just been roused from his own dream.

  And it worried her to think that his eyes were still open because of her.

  “You need to sleep,” she whispered.

  “So do you.”

  Julie turned to her side and felt his arms surround her body. She turned her face from his chest and sighed into the pillow as he held her closer.

  “I’m fine, Juliet. We both are. Nothing else bad is gonna happen.”

  Nothing else, bad.

  Julie focused on those words and nothing else as she made her way home with bags draped across her arms. She raced up the steps and vowed to not look back as she unlocked the door. As the bags fell and her head bounced against the closed door, she felt safe, and she kept repeating that she could give him a night that he would never forget.

  As she unpacked the groceries and brought the water to a boil, there was a knock at the door. Julie dropped the knife that wanted only to chop carrots. She moved towards the sound, as she stretched her body towards the peephole, and saw another familiar figure that simultaneously offered comfort and trepidation.

  It was Morales.

  Before she could knock again, Julie undid the chain and the deadbolt. She opened the door on the detective who looked, always looked at her like she was broken but not destroyed. And that was true.

  “Hi, Julie. Can I come in?”

  Julie was not about to deny Morales an entry when she had saved her life and Ethan’s. The cop had promised her that the case was solid and that Julie would never have to see those who had violated her ever again.

  “Sure. Yes, of course.”

  Julie led Morales inside and brought the pot to a quiet boil as she sat at her side.

  “So how are you, Julie?”

  The question did not sting as much when Morales spoke the words.

  She would be fine. She would forget all that had happened to her. Be a normal girl that lived with and just loved a man. In the past, she would have wanted more, but if she was being honest, there was no longer a desire to conquer a cold world where smiling boys and pretend fathers betrayed her. It was better to just stay with Ethan and try to be happy. Tonight would be perfect.

  And yet, the memories remained. The memories of unending rapes and the hours of dark confinement were still there. She did not know where she was going or if she would ever find a way home. When they kept her tied in a place where she could not even curl her own arms around her body and try to will the pain away. Julie still strained against her bonds and imagined an end to the agony. Finally, it did end. And now she was safe with someone who would never hurt anyone.

  “I’m alright, Connie. I’m doing better all the time.”

  “Well that’s good.”

  Morales craned her head towards the simmering pot on the stove.

  “So… what’s all this?”

  Julie smiled softly.

  “Just making dinner.”

  Morales blinked hard before she answered.

  “Oh. Oh that’s nice.”

  “It is,” Julie said. “It will be.”

  She focused on the presence of Morales, and she saw the statement just waiting across her tense lips.

  “What?” Julie asked. “What’s wrong?”

  Morales sighed but did not speak. Julie sat up straighter as she imagined all the horrible things that might lurk behind the detective’s deep brown eyes.

  “Julie, here’s the thing.”

  Morales took her hands, and Julie could feel a slight tremble.

  “We need you to testify.”

  And just like that, Julie fell away from any sense of security and shuddered at the thought of having to see Pete or Carter McCord or any of those who had hurt her. Morales had promised that she’d never have to even think about them again.

  Her thoughts were out of Morales’ control, but she had taken some comfort in the pledge. And now it was gone. Like Kim, it was dead and waiting for a recovery that would never come.

  “No. No you said---”

  Morales’ clutched her hands tighter.

  “I know, Julie. And I’m sorry. But…”

  Julie imagined but you don’t really have to. But it could just help a bit. But don’t worry about it if it’s too much.

  “But… but we need you to tell us what happened.”

  Why? Why when there was the photographic evidence of all that had been done to her?

  “I… I don’t want to… I can’t…”

  Julie struggled away from Morales’ hold, but the cop kept her close and pressed her hands to Julie’s face.

  “I know. I know it’s so hard. But we need you to…”

  Julie watched Morales searching for the words, and when her eyes met Julie’s again, her speech was slow yet sure.

  “We need you tell it like it was, so that they can’t spin it in the wrong direction.”

  The wrong direction! What road did not lead to rape and murder? Julie pushed the cop away and started to pace the room.

  “I’m not doing this again. I already lived through it once. Connie…”

  Julie fell to Morales’ feet and took her hands again. She held them tight as she looked into her eyes.

  “Please, Connie. I can’t… please don’t make me look at them.”

  2

  Morales helped Julie to her feet and eased her trembling body back to the couch. She clearly saw a shiver wash over the girl. She folded her arms to her chest and lowered her head. Julie covered her face with her hair in an effort to hide her tears. But the sounds of her sobs were unmistakable.

  God dammit, Leo! Why can’t there be another way?

  She had asked him over and over again as she lay in his arms and his fingers ran through her hair. Every plea she made for the case without Julie’s participation fell on deaf ears, deaf but not unfeeling.

  “Connie, do you think I want to put her through this? Do you?”

  Morales lifted her head to his. The eyes that entered a courtroom encased in ice we
re moist and melting before hers. Sometimes she wondered if what he did before the judge was an act. Or maybe this was the fantasy for her benefit.

  “If you don’t want to, then don’t. Figure something else out.”

  “Connie---”

  She silenced him with a kiss and felt his arms unfurl around her back. He pressed his fingers into her flesh, and he moaned as their lips parted.

  “What if it was me?” she asked.

  “What do you mean?”

  Sighing, Morales’ head fell to his neck.

  “If someone… if someone took me and… and if they did those things…”

  She dared to look into his eyes again.

  “Would you make me testify?”

  Leo stayed quiet for a few seconds and didn’t move. Then he raised his hand to her face and placed a firm palm against her cheek.

  “Like anyone could ever get the jump on you.”

  He moved to kiss her again, but Morales and her unanswered question pulled back.

  “I want to know. What if it was me?”

  She watched him consider the question carefully. The fact that he did not instantaneously state that he would move heaven and earth to protect her from more humiliation, made her want to leave and never come back to his bed.

  “Nice,” she muttered as she started to rise.

  “No. Wait.”

  He grabbed her wrist. Morales stayed on the edge of the bed and felt his body shift towards hers. Wrapping his arm around her shoulders, Leo buried his face in her hair.

  “If it was you, I’d make a call. I’d see to it that the guards took a powder when he or they or however many had hurt you were alone in the showers.”

  She turned her head to his and stared deeply into his eyes. Now they were like ice as he continued to speak.

  “And they’d be torn apart for everything they ever did to you before their dicks were sliced off and stuffed into their fucking mouths. I’d let them live, Connie. Live like that so that they’d never be able to hurt anyone again. And their sentence would be that empty place between their fucking legs and their asses raped until they wished they were dead.”

  Morales shuddered but she believed every word that he said. It was a barbaric idea, but it spoke to how much he cared. He would betray his ethics in a heartbeat to avenge any imaginary thing that might happen to her.