by Emily Minton
“Why would you do that? You know as well as I do that I would’ve never slept with you that day at the shop if you hadn’t threatened to tell Julie?”
“I thought if she left you, you would turn to me,” she says as tears fall down her face.
“How could you do this? You were her friend. Shit, you were my friend.” I ask, trying to resist the urge to strangle her.
“I can’t explain. I don’t even understand it myself. You have to believe me. I’m so sorry. I’ve lived with this for so many years. It was killing me. I had to finally tell you.” She pauses and looks at me. “When your mom died, you fell apart. I was already broken. I thought you were someone I could talk to. As we got to know each other better, my feelings for you started to grow. I was so messed up that I thought those feelings were love.”
“Damn it, Becca,” I mumble, not sure what to say.
She takes a deep breath and continues. “I was going through such a bad time. I told you all about it when we hung out, but you were so drunk most of the time that I doubt you even remember. I was too nervous to tell you when you were sober.”
“Do you really think I give a fuck what you were going through? Look at what I’ve been through the last nine years. Fuck you! Fuck you, Becca!” I shout as I jump from the bed.
I walk to the wall and send my fist flying through the sheetrock. “It’s a good thing I’m not the kind of guy that hits women. If I were, your ass would be dead.”
I start to walk toward the door, but her words stop me. “I am sorry, Jase. You have no idea how much.”
I turn back and see her looking at me with pain-filled eyes. That’s when I notice the change in her. She looks different, less made up. She isn’t dressed like a slut. She looks like the Becca I knew from high school, only sadder. She reminds me a lot of myself, before Julie came back into my life.
“Fine, tell me. Tell me why you fucked up my whole life,” I finally say.
“There was a guy,” she says with a nervous laugh. “Isn’t that how all these stories start?”
I’m unimpressed so far. I raise an eyebrow at her. Does she seriously think I give two fucks about some asshole? “Get to the point.”
She shakes her head a little then continues. “This guy told me he loved me, but he said we had to keep it secret. I was best friends with his sister, and he was afraid she’d be mad if she found out.”
Oh fuck, this can’t be happening. It has to be Brandon or Will, and neither of them are asshole enough to do shit like that. “Don’t try to tell me that Brandon or Will used you. I won’t believe it.”
She narrows her eyes. “I don’t care what you believe.”
Her words are so sure, so strong, that I start to doubt myself. A teenage boy will do a lot of shit to get into a girl’s pants, so it could be true. If it is true, my guess would be Brandon. Will has been with the same girl forever. She even left with him when he joined the military. She’s a selfish bitch as far as I’m concerned, but Will loves her.
“This guy and me, we were together for years. He even left town, but he would come back and see me. It went on for a long time. Then all of a sudden, he quit coming back.” She looks away, but I can see that she is crying.
Shit, that could only mean one thing. Brandon hardly ever came home; he was always gone overseas. Will, on the other hand, came home a lot in the beginning. He stopped a few months before my mom died.
“That’s when I found out I was pregnant.”
Pregnant? When the hell was Becca pregnant? “I don’t remember you being pregnant.”
She looks at me and gives me a sad smile. “You wouldn’t. My parents made sure of that. When Mom and Dad found out I was pregnant, they sent me away for a few months. I came back after I had the baby and all the evidence was gone.”
“Fuck!” I mumble out, more to myself than her.
“He was a beautiful baby. I loved him from the moment I laid eyes on him. My parents wouldn’t let me keep him though,” she finishes in a whisper and breaks into sobs.
What the hell do I do? Yeah, I hate what she did to Julie and me, but shit. I can’t just stand here and watch her cry. I make my way to her and wrap my arms around her. “Shhh.”
Julie
I quietly walk upstairs, the voices getting louder with each step I take. When I finally reach his room, what I see has my heart feeling like it’s coming out of my chest. Jase has Becca in his arms, while she leans into his chest.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” I scream, the pain of his betrayal ripping me in two.
They jump away from each other and look at me. “Baby, this is not what it looks like,” Jase says pleadingly.
“Oh, just save it. I should have known you wouldn’t change. Once a cheater, always a cheater. Isn’t that what they say?” I shout.
I can’t stop the sneer from escaping as I look between the two of them. I can’t fucking believe it. How could he do this to me again? Better question, how could I have been so stupid?
“It’s really not what you think, Julie,” Becca says quietly.
“Screw you, Becca. You ruined my life once. What? Figured you’d have another go at it? Maybe mess it up even more this time?”
I start to walk out of the room, but I’m pulled back by Jase’s hand. “Julie, stay. We all need to talk,” he pleads.
His hand makes me flinch. “Get your hand off me,” I scream as I yank my arm out of his hand.
“Just listen, baby!” he begs.
“No. It’s over. We’re over. No more chances. This was it. I’ll let you know when the baby is born, and we can work through lawyers about custody. I never want to see you or talk to you again.” I jerk his mother’s ring from my finger and toss it across the room.
He watches it fly past him, and I turn away. As I run down the stairs, I can only think one thing; I need to get out of here. I need to get away. My heart is shattering with every step I take. I need to hold it together until I’m away from them.
I’m nearly to the door when I see his keys sitting on the kitchen table. Knowing he’ll chase me, I grab them and rush to the door. I step outside just as he reaches the living room. Running outside, I get in the car right before he steps into the driveway. I lock the door before starting the car. A second later, he starts to pound on the window. “Don’t do this. You have to listen to me.”
Pretending to ignore him, I back out of the complex and drive to a hotel just outside of town. I need some time alone, to try and figure out where I go from here. Should I leave? I know I can’t until after the baby is born. Can I take Jenny and the new baby away from Jase, away from all of our family?
I finally feel able to talk, to breathe. It’s almost midnight. I call Matty and Bethany and let them know what happened and where I’m staying for the night. Matty is mad as hell. I figure he’ll be having a word with Jase soon. Bethany’s just hurt. It sounds like Jase broke her heart as much as he has mine.
I’m exhausted. I lie down and know that I’m broken, just like before. I should have known this would happen. Everything was perfect. Too perfect. I can’t help the tears I feel rolling down my face.
Chapter 28
Julie
I wake up, gasping for breath. Suffocating, I instinctively reach for what’s covering my mouth. It’s a hand. Instantly, I know what’s going on. It’s Dean. He’s here to finish what he started the day he married me. He’s here to kill me.
I start to scream, but nothing will come out. His hand has my mouth completely covered. “Don’t make a sound.”
I slowly nod, knowing the only thing I can do is agree. Anything else would make him mad, and that is the last thing I want right now.
“Do you know why I’m here?”
I do my best to shake my head, but his hand is holding me too firmly, so I mouth the word no against his palm.
“I’ve come to take back what is mine.”
I slowly close my eyes, trying to block him out. I need a minute, just a single minute, to get my h
ead straight. I have to figure out what to do. How can I make it through this night alive? More importantly, how can I make sure my baby stays safe?
He runs a hand over my stomach and sneers. “I should have known you were a slut. We haven’t even been apart a year, and you’re pregnant with another one of his bastards.”
My hands go to my belly, hoping to place a barrier between Dean and my unborn child.
“Now, you listen to me very carefully. We are going to get up and go to your house. I’ll get my little bitch of a sister and Jenny, and then we will go home. If we see someone, I don’t want you saying a word. If you do, I’ll cut that baby out of you. Do you understand?” His grip tightens on my mouth, and he raises the hand that was just touching my stomach to show me the knife he is holding.
I nod my head and try to keep from crying, fear for my child making me agree. I don’t want to cry now. I can’t. Dean has always loved it when I cried. It excited him, and it led to things I don’t even want to think about right now.
Slowly, he removes his hand, watching me to see if I will comply with his order. He stands up and pulls me alongside him. “Get dressed.”
I squat down to grab my pants, and Dean backhands me. I land on my ass hard.
I look up, wondering what I had done. As soon as I see his face, I realize that I hadn’t done a thing. Just like always, Dean wanted to hit me, so he did. He didn’t need a reason.
“Why are you on the floor?” he asks with a sadistic smile.
I know better than to respond. The thought of him seeing me in my panties makes me sick. I slowly pull myself up then put my pants on as quickly as I can. I have to be careful, do everything he wants. I also know not to piss him off any more.
“Where are your shoes?”
I nod my head toward the door, refusing to speak to him.
He grabs my hand and pulls me to the door. He’s moving too fast, and I stumble to keep up. He kicks my shoes to me and mumbles under his breath as I slide them on. Wrapping his hand tightly around my arm, he leads us out of the room.
Dean looks around the deserted hallway, and then bends down to my ear. “Don’t forget what I told you. If you make a sound, I will have this knife in your stomach before anyone can get near us.” He emphasizes his point by poking the knife into my ribs. He doesn’t cut deep, just enough to make me realize that he’s serious. As if I would question him? I know exactly what he’s capable of.
I keep my eyes on the ground as we walk to the car. Once we’re there, he makes me climb through the driver’s side door. As soon as I get in my seat, he climbs in and locks the door. “Just sit back and shut up.”
As we pull out of the hotel parking lot, I look out the window, trying to think of some way to get away. I have no idea what to do. How am I going to survive this? The last thing I want to do is go home to Jenny and Bethany. I hope like hell they’re not at home. Dawn is barely breaking. It’s still too early, and there’s no school. I know my wish is made in vain. They will be there, and without Jase to protect them.
“It was pure luck that you stayed at that hotel last night. If not, I may never have had a chance to get you alone. I’ve been watching you for days, and I was beginning to think that man was never going to leave your side,” Dean says with a chuckle.
His words make me think about Jase. They also make my skin crawl, knowing he has been spying on me. Bethany and I had been shopping, Jenny and I had been to the park, and Jase had taken us all out to eat just two nights ago. Dean had seen it all, and that somehow made all those memories seem tainted.
My mind goes to Jase as we drive down the road. I think about what I saw last night and remember the way Becca looked, the tears in her eyes. I remember the way Jase sounded, him begging me to listen. Maybe there was some excuse? Maybe it wasn’t what it looked like? God, I wish I had listened to what he had to say earlier. If I had, I may not be in this position now.
Twenty minutes later, Dean pulls into my driveway and tugs me out of the car. My legs are heavy. I don’t want to go inside, but I know better than to resist. When we get to the door, he pulls out a key and opens my door. What the hell? How in the hell did he get a key to my house? I look up at him, I’m sure with disbelief written all over my face.
“Not everyone wants you back in this town,” he says with a smile, then pulls me into the house and locks the door.
Jase
For the first time in months, I’m drunk off my ass. As soon as Julie left, I ran Becca’s ass off. Then, I ran to the kitchen to get my keys. After nearly an hour of tearing the room apart, I realized they were gone. Julie took them; she didn’t want me coming after her.
I spent the next hour calling her, and then calling Bethany. Julie didn’t answer, and Bethany refused to listen to me when she did. I tried calling Pop, Matty, and Shane, but as soon as Becca’s name came out of my mouth, they hung up.
I finally decide to walk the three miles to her house, but barely make it to the driveway before Matty pulls in. He jumps from the truck before the wheels quit rolling. “What the fuck did you do?”
Not wanting to fight, needing to get to Julie right away, I tell him everything. By the time I’m done, he’s shaking his head. “Fuck, man.”
“I know. I’ve got to get to her now. I need to explain.”
He walks toward me, shaking his head. “She’s not home.”
“What? Where the hell is she?”
He walks past me and motions for me to follow. Walking through the door, he walks straight to the kitchen and grabs the bottle of Jack above the fridge. “She said she needed some time alone. I’m not sure where she is, but she said she’d be back in the morning.”
“Fuck!” I say in a near shout. “I need to talk to her.”
He grabs two glasses and walks to the table. After pouring the Jack, he hands a glass to me. “Give her some time. Go to her in the morning, but let her have tonight to think.”
“I don’t think I can wait.”
He shrugs before taking a drink. “I don’t think you have a choice.”
I finally slump down in one of the chairs and toss back the drink. “I don’t guess I do.”
We end up spending half the night talking. I tell him everything Becca told me, including why she said she lied. Before I could get her to leave today, she told me she’s been in contact with a social worker. Apparently, the adoptive parents listed Becca as the person to get custody of the kid if something happened to them. She told me she received a phone call a few weeks ago saying the adoptive parents had passed away, which is the reason why Becca finally decided to come to me and tell me the truth.
We talked about everything she said, but Matty didn’t buy her story. Yeah, he figured Will did a number on her, but she should have talked to Julie or Kristen about it. They were best friends; they would have helped her through anything. I agree with him, but I also saw the way Becca looked as she told the story. She wasn’t lying; she was in pain.
Will fucked her world up, and in return, she fucked up mine and Julie’s lives. I don’t get what the hell she thought she would gain from hurting Julie or me. My only guess is she thought she could hurt Will by hurting someone he loved. Since Kristen was away at college, Julie was the next best thing.
As far as I’m concerned, the whole situation is fucked up, and it’s gonna get a lot worse when the truth comes out. But right now, I don’t care. The only thing I care about is getting Julie back and making her believe me.
Julie
We walk through the door, and Dean starts yelling, “Bethany, you fucking bitch. Get down here and bring Jenny with you.”
I’m scared for Bethany, but I’m terrified for Jenny. “Dean, please don’t hurt Jenny,” I beg.
Dean looks at me like I have three heads. “I would never hurt Jenny. I love her. What she is going to do though is sit quietly on the couch and watch what I do with you and Bethany. She needs to see both of you being punished. She needs to know just how undisciplined you two are.” He shake
s his head. “I do not want my daughter to grow up acting like either of you two sluts.”
I cringe when he calls Jenny his daughter. Even the thought of her sharing his blood is enough to make me sick. I look toward the stairs and notice a shadow pass across the hallway. I need to find a way to delay him from bringing Jenny down. I know asking questions will only make him angrier, but it’s the only thing I can think of.
“Who gave you the key, Dean?”
He smiles and moves closer to me. “A skank named Brittany gave it to me. You know she works for the same real-estate company you bought this house from, don’t you?”
I shake my head. I had no idea, or I would have had the locks changed as soon as I moved in.
“She does. As soon as she found out who was buying it, she made herself a copy of the keys.” He waves them in front of my face.
“Why?” I ask in a whispered voice.
“Brittany hates you. I’m not sure what you did to her, but whatever it is, she despises you for it. She tracked me down and filled me in on everything that was going on with you and that bastard’s father,” he says, motioning toward my stomach. “She’s also the person that kept getting me your number. At first, her friend would give it to her, but she quit doing that months ago. That didn’t stop her though. Brittany is quite a determined woman. All Brittany had to do was visit her friend at work and wait for her to go to the bathroom. Then, she would get on her computer and find your new number.”
All I can do is shake my head. I should have known it was Brittany. At least it wasn’t Becca.
“She’s actually a brilliant woman. She could have made a wonderful doctor’s wife. Too bad she’s such a skank, but she does give amazing blowjobs. Unlike you, she doesn’t have a problem getting on her knees,” Dean adds with a laugh. “I’ll have to come back for a visit, just to have a taste of that mouth.”
My mouth drops open in shock. Have I entered the twilight zone? Dean never talks about sex. He rarely even cusses. He would call Bethany and me a bitch when he was hitting us, but that’s it. It’s like he’s turned into a completely different person. Shit. I have no idea what to expect any more.