Chapter 33
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
JULIETTE
F our hours have come and gone, but I’m still waiting to hear from Dean. Fear and worry grow inside me with every minute that passes, and my phone doesn’t light up with his name.
“You okay?” my mom asks from across the kitchen island.
“Worried about Dean,” I reply.
“What time was he supposed to be in court?”
“Eight-thirty.”
Her lips twist. “I can see why you’re worried. Have you tried calling him?”
“Only a hundred times. His phone is off.”
“They probably don’t allow cell phones in the court.”
“But why would he still be in court? What court takes four hours? Do you think he’s in jail?”
My mom gives me a calm smile. “Relax, baby, I’m sure Dean is fine.”
I hope she’s right. Dean definitely didn’t seem worried this morning before I left Dublin. But that doesn’t mean much. He’s not a fortune teller. Just because he’s convinced he’ll get off pretty easy doesn’t mean he will. And that’s all I keep thinking about.
It’s eating away at me. Am I going to lose him so soon? What else is going to go wrong in our lives? Is this a sign from the Universe that we’re just not supposed to be together? The waiting game is slowly killing me. There’s too much time for my thoughts to run wild.
“So you going to tell me about the ring?”
“It’s new.”
“Obviously. You’re engaged?”
“Kind of?”
She rolls her eyes. “You either are or aren’t engaged, there’s no kind of.”
“Yes, we’re engaged,” I admit. “But it literally just happened the other day.”
“The other day? Meaning you could’ve called me and told me yesterday, but you didn’t?”
“Mom.”
“I’m just saying. It would’ve been nice to know.”
There’s a loud knock at the door, and I’ve never been so grateful to be interrupted. How do I explain to my mom that I didn’t tell her because I still can’t believe I’m engaged? I can’t believe it’s reality and I need time to adjust.
I hear my big sister’s voice coming from the foyer. My mom and I glance at each other. Vivienne should be in Russia right now. She didn’t tell anyone she was coming. I follow my mom to the foyer and see Vivienne.
“Vivi?”
Her pale eyes land on mine, and she smiles. The next moment we’re wrapping each other in a hug. My heart sighs in relief. I don’t think I realized just how much I missed my sister until now.
“What are you doing here?” I ask, still hugging her.
“Mom told me you have a therapy appointment, but Dean couldn’t be there.”
“So?”
“So I came here to take you to the appointment.”
“You came all the way here just to protect me?”
Pulling back, I look her in the eye.
“Of course. You think I’m going to let a degenerate cop take you out? Please. The only person allowed to kill you is me.”
I chuckle at her joke. She releases me to hug our mom.
“Aunt Viv,” PJ comes running from the foyer, his feet sounding like a horde of wild elephants instead of a five-year-old boy.
He practically plows through my mom, pushing her aside to get to Vivienne. She scoops him up, groaning.
“You’re getting so big. Soon, I won’t be able to pick you up. You got to stop growing.”
“Not a chance, Aunt Viv, not a chance. I need to grow big and strong like Daddy.”
Vivienne’s eyebrows hit her hairline. “Daddy?”
PJ nods his head, as if he didn’t just drop a bomb on everyone. He’s never referred to Dean as Dad before. I didn’t even know it was something he was thinking about.
“I’m hungry, Aunt Viv. Can you make me a sandwich?”
“You’re the only boy who can say that to me and still keep his tongue,” she replies.
“Vivi,” I hiss. “He’s five.”
“Sorry, I forget to censor myself. I’m not great at it.”
All she can do is shrug as she starts toward the rest of the penthouse before my mom stops her.
“I’ll make PJ lunch. You two need to get to the appointment. You only have twenty minutes.”
Looking down at my watch, I realize my mom is right. It’s twenty to one. I should be on my way already. Eva hates it when I’m late. And I don’t blame her. Me being late can throw off her whole schedule. I’m glad the hotel isn’t far from her office. Only ten minutes.
PJ pouts as Vivienne and I leave. He’s all too happy to stay with my mom, but he wanted Aunt Viv to stay behind too. I swear when she comes to town, I become chopped liver with that kid. Makes me wish I could be the cool aunt. But I don’t know any of my nieces. I’ve never met Simone’s two adopted daughters. Vivienne’s stepdaughter I’ve met several times over the years when they come to visit, but she was practically grown by then.
“How’s Lilianna?” I ask Vivienne as we climb into my SUV.
“She’s doing okay. Her doctors prescribed her different medications, so we’re hoping these work.”
“It takes time,” I reply. “I think I tried like ten medications until I found the ‘perfect’ one.”
“That’s what everyone keeps saying. But Lilianna struggles a lot,” Vivienne admits.
She sighs from the passenger side. I pull the car out onto the road, turning my windshield wipers on to combat the rain.
“So tell me about you and Dean.”
“What about me and Dean?”
“I see that ring on your finger,” Vivienne points to my hand on the steering wheel. “You got engaged and didn’t tell me.”
“I’m sorry,” I reply. “It wasn’t on purpose. I just haven’t been in the best mindset with Dean’s court date and all this Arnie bullshit.”
“Just answer one question.”
“Okay?”
“Are you happy? Honestly, truly, happy?”
Her question makes me pause. Not because I can’t answer, but because for the first time in years, I can say yes, I’m happy. I can say I don’t dread waking up each day and living.
“Yes,” I choke out, trying to keep back the sob.
I hate having epiphanies with other people around. It always makes me feel like I can’t fully allow myself to feel it. But at least I’ll have something good to say in therapy now.
“Then, I’m happy for you. But I still owe Dean a kick in the nuts for the last time he hurt you.”
“Vivienne.”
“I’m just telling you.”
“Leave Dean alone. He and I worked it out. You don’t need to get involved.”
She breaks out into laughter, as if it’s the most ridiculous thing she’s ever heard. I narrow my eyes at her.
“How come the guys aren’t with you?” I ask, talking about her three husbands.
“I snuck out in the middle of the night.”
Shaking my head at her, I laugh. “Why do you do that to them?”
“Keeps us young,” she replies. “Should take them a while to find me this time. I left the necklace with a tracker in it at home. Underneath Kaz’s bed, to be exact.”
“You might be having fun now, but I’ll bet you won’t be when they do find you.”
Vivienne looks at me. “The punishment is most of the fun.”
I roll my eyes at her, turning into the parking lot for Eva’s office building. There are only a handful of cars spread out throughout the entire lot.
“Are you going to sit in the car or do you want to come up to the waiting room?”
“I’m not letting you out of my sight.”
I push the door open and hop out. “You can’t go into the room with me. So you’re going to have to.”
“Waiting room it is,” she says as we enter the lobby.
As usual, it’s empty. Vivienne’s heels clack against the tile. The echo vibrates off the walls, giving me a headache.
Pressing the button for the elevator, I rub at my temples. Vivienne watches me.
“What?”
“I’m just worried about you. You’ve been through a lot lately.”
“Hence why we’re at the psychiatrist’s office.”
The elevator opens with a ding.
“I just want you to take care of yourself,” she replies as the car takes off.
My belly swoops at the motion. I wonder if Dean’s okay. I hope he is. I know I should be focusing on myself right now, but that’s hard to do.
“I am taking care of myself, promise.”
I’m not. But she won’t know. Perks of living in different countries. About the only perk, but still.
When the elevator doors open, the two of us step off. Outside Eva’s door sits a small bench in her hallway. There’s no one else on the floor, so I guess she didn’t think she needed a proper waiting room.
“You can sit there,” I tell Vivienne.
“Okay,” she smooths her tight dress down before sitting. “I’ll be right out here. Scream if you need me.”
“It’s just therapy.”
Vivienne shrugs and waves me off. Eva’s door is tucked in an alcove, so whoever is in the makeshift waiting room doesn’t accidentally overhear something they shouldn’t. I knock on Eva’s door and wait. My anxiety grows as the seconds stretch on until she finally opens the door.
“Hey Juliette, so sorry about the wait, I just finished lunch.”
“No worries,” I reply.
Lavender and vanilla pervade the air as I walk in. My body instantly relaxes. The familiarity of her office is a welcome comfort. Shuffling across the beige carpet, I take a seat on the plush couch.
“How have things been?” Eva asks, taking the colorful chair in front of me.
A chuckle breaks out of my throat before I can stop it. “How have things been?”
“Oh, my,” Eva replies. “That bad?”
“Someone burned my house down with my son in it.”
Her face goes slack. “W-what?”
Tears flow down my face, but I can’t stop laughing. “My life is on fire, literally.”
“Is PJ okay?”
“Yes. He’s fine,” I reply, willing myself to calm down.
The air fills with her sigh of relief. “Thank God.”
I nod. I’ll forever be grateful to my brother for saving PJ. I like to think that my father was looking down on them that night.
“So where are you staying now?”
“In Dublin.”
“Dublin? With who?”
Hesitation bubbles up inside me. Eva has made it known she’s no fan of Dean’s. I don’t want to tell her and get a lecture about how I could be fucking my life up. But I don’t want to lie either.
“Dean and his grandparents.”
“Oh,” she replies. “How is that going?”
“It’s been fine. PJ loves staying with his great-grandparents. Jamie is like his hero. Though, now I think he may be second to Dean.”
“So PJ and Dean get along?”
“Not at first, but after the fire, I think PJ really took to him.”
I leave out the part about PJ wanting him to be around twenty-four seven for safety. He had a fit when we left Dublin without Dean earlier. She definitely wouldn’t think that’s healthy.
“That’s good,” Eva says. “So tell me, how is PJ handling everything that happened with Arnie? I know they were quite close.”
Nausea hits me as I think about how close we came to becoming one of his victims. It’s sobering.
“He’s okay,” I answer.
“How much of the truth does he know?”
“Considering he was there the night it happened, he knows all of it.”
“Interesting.”
“Why is that interesting?” I ask, waiting for some wise insight.
“Because I don’t think you can have the truth without hearing it from both sides.”
I’ve barely processed her words when I see her closet door opening. Arnie steps out of it. The smell of peppermints pervades the air like a skunk. My heart starts beating out of my chest.
“Hello, Juliette.”
“What the fuck?” My eyes bounce from Eva to Arnie and back again. “What is going on?”
Eva smiles at me, her hand extending to Arnie. “This is my husband. But I believe you two have met before.”
There must be a glitch in my brain because she did not just say husband.
“Your husband?”
She nods at me. Acid churns in my stomach. “I think I’m going to be sick.”
Arnie and Eva laugh, sounding like true maniacs. I’m still trying to fully understand what is going on when Arnie crosses the room in two big steps. I hate that I flinch as he reaches down, rubbing a finger down my cheek.
“I missed you,” he says. “Did you miss me?”
“You’re fucking delusional,” I spit.
His yellow teeth show as he smiles down at me. With him this close, I can smell the alcohol he must’ve had for breakfast. He scans me from head to toe, his attention zeroing in on my left hand.
“What is this?”
He grabs my hand, sticking his dirty fingerprints all over my ring.
“It’s a ring,” I deadpan.
Probably not the best time to poke the bear, but what can I say? I am my father’s daughter.
“Are you marrying him?” he spits.
“It’s none of your business.”
Arnie growls. “None of my business? Bitch, everything about you is my business. Right up until the moment I slit your throat.”
He yanks me off the couch by my hair; pain blooms all across my scalp. I yelp, kicking my feet in the air.
“You’re a slut,” he says. “A useless, broken whore.”
“Just kill her already,” Eva says.
“Shut the fuck up,” he snaps. “I’ll decide when she dies.”
Arnie pulls out a gun from the waistband of his pants. He presses it to my temple. A scream is ripped from my throat as the barrel touches my skin.
“I wish you hadn’t put me in this position,” Arnie says. “We could’ve had a good life together, you and me.”
“What?” Eva hisses. “That was never the plan. I didn’t set her house on fire just so you could run off with her.”
He turns and looks at her. “Didn’t I tell you to shut up?”
I kick my feet out, trying to get out of his hold. A loud bang goes through the room as Vivienne kicks the door in. Her eyes narrow on where Arnie is holding me.
“Who the fuck are you?” Eva shrieks.
“Let go of my sister, asshole.”
Arnie laughs. “Or what?” He points the gun at her, but Vivienne isn’t scared.
She slides a small blade out from beneath her dress. “Or I’ll kill you. I mean, honestly, you’re dead either way, but I’ll make it quick if you put my sister down.”
“Okay.”
It all happens so fast. Arnie lets go of my hair, dropping me to the ground. A gunshot blasts off as my knees connect with the floor. I look up in time to see Vivienne’s knife sailing through the air. It lands where it was meant to, Arnie’s neck. He staggers back. His frantic fingers claw at the knife until he manages to get it out. The blade falls to the carpet with a soft thud. Arnie’s DNA soaks into the fibers as blood spurts from the wound. Arnie gasps for air, but I imagine it’s hard to breathe with a hole in the side of your neck. His legs give out as his face turns an odd shade of purple. He lands on his back right in front of me.
Call me morbid. Call me crazy. But I’m transfixed, watching the man who caused me so much pain take his last breath.
“He died too quickly,” I mutter.
“Good thing we still have one more,” Vivi replies.
My eyes snap up to Eva. The words she said earlier finally register in my brain. I didn’t set her house on fire just so you could run off with her.
“It was you. You’re Arnie’s partner.”
She swallows but stays quiet, slowly backing away from my sister and me.
“You’re the one helping him kill women all over the world, aren’t you?”
Another question left unanswered. But I know the truth. I know I’m right. Reaching over Arnie’s dead body, my hand wraps around the handle of Vivienne’s blade. It’s wet with my ex-boyfriend’s blood, but I don’t care. I stand up, my sister coming to stand right next to me.
The two of us advance on Eva, backing her into a corner. The fake potted tree in the corner hits her back, stopping her from moving.
“How many women?” I ask.
“You don’t get it, Juliette. We were helping them.”
“Helping them?”
“These women were sick. You are sick,” she explains. “None of you are fit to be mothers with your mental issues. Children deserve the best.”
Vivienne hits Eva in the face. “You’re the only sick bitch here.”
“If children deserve the best, why do you kill them?”
Eva’s eyes grow sad. Tears crawl down her face. “They wouldn’t listen. They wouldn’t behave. I just wanted to love them. They hated me.”
“You killed their mothers and stole them. Of course they hated you,” I quip.
“We were helping,” Eva repeats, her voice cracking. “I loved those kids better than those ‘mothers’ ever did. Just like I will love PJ more than you ever could.”
Rage takes over. I lift my arm and stab Eva in the eye. Her jaw drops just as the squelching sound rings through the air. The tree behind her topples to the ground as her body falls backward. She dies just a few feet from Arnie, the knife still protruding from her eye.
“Holy shit,” Vivienne says, reaching down and pulling her knife free. “That was savage, but awesome.”
As she turns towards me, I see it—a stream of blood running down her arm. “Vivi, you’re bleeding.”