Chapter 26
JULIA
A rhythmic beeping filled her ears as the black haze lifted from Julia’s brain. The beeping ramped up as her heart thudded against her ribs. Where was she? Trapped?
Yes, she was trapped. She was still trapped in the cave. With her eyes still squeezed closed, she fought the urge to panic again.
Warm hands caressed her forehead and stroked her hair. “Juju?” her sister’s voice warbled, sounding far away.
She must be imagining it, wishing for the comfort of friends and family.
“Julia? Honey, open your eyes. Can you open your eyes?”
She didn’t want to do that. She didn’t want to realize she was alone, stuck in a cave. Trapped. She closed her fingers into fists as another moment of panic filled her. She’d lost the flashlight. Where had it gone? She must have fallen asleep and dropped it.
Her heart pounded faster. She had to find it. She needed it. It was a physical reminder that people were trying to rescue her.
“Can we get a little help in here?” Alicia’s voice, now further away called.
A hand slid around hers. “It’s okay, Julia. We’re all here with you.”
Luke’s voice brought her heart rate down a little from its fast pace.
“Her heart rate is really high,” Alicia said, “I think something’s wrong.”
“Julia?” an unfamiliar voice said. “Julia? Can you open your eyes?”
“I tried that,” Alicia said.
Julia processed the conversation. Was she delusional from the experience?
She swallowed hard and finally forced her eyes open. Bright light streamed into the room, blinding her. She squeezed her eyes closed again before she forced them open. The world turned bleary as tears stung her eyes.
She blinked them away, trying to focus on her environment.
Concerned, but familiar faces surrounded her along with sterile white walls.
Her heart raced with a cocktail of fear and relief.
She was no longer trapped. The soft hum of the hospital, a world away from the cold, dark cave, surrounded her, along with friends and family. But one key person was missing.
“Hey,” Alicia said, flicking a tear from her cheek as she reached to caress Julia’s cheek. “There’s those baby blues.”
“Ally?” She swallowed hard, her throat parched and her voice hoarse.
“I’m here, baby sis, I’m right here.” She pushed past a man in a white coat, leaning forward to press her forehead against Julia’s.
Tears rolled down Julia’s cheeks as she clutched her sister’s hand. “Am I safe?”
“Yes, Juju, you’re safe. You’re safe,” Alicia sobbed out.
She pulled her head away, her hand still on her sister’s cheek. Ethan wrapped his arms around Alicia as she finally let go of Julia’s cheek to flick away a few of her fallen tears.
“How?”
“You don’t remember?” Alicia asked.
Julia furrowed her brow, trying to bring back the memories. “It’s fuzzy.”
“You…got yourself out. You walked into the police station,” Alicia said.
“Then you collapsed,” Luke added. “You were dehydrated and exhausted. The doctors gave you a sedative to let you rest. You’ve been out for about twelve hours.”
“Wow, really?” She shifted in her bed, trying to sit up. The sterile atmosphere and beeping heart monitor conjured up bad memories. Not again, she thought with an inward sigh. She’d had too many close calls lately.
Alicia eased her back into the bed as she sank onto the edge of the mattress. “Easy, Juju, take it easy. You’ve just been through way too much.”
Julia eased back into the rubber mattress, her features pinching as she tried to call back the memories of her escape.
“Do you need anything? Are you in any pain?” Alicia asked.
She shook her head. “No.”
“Okay,” Alicia said as she stroked Julia’s hair again. “If you need something, you just let me know, okay? Anything, baby sis. Anything.”
Julia lay there for a few minutes before she flicked her gaze back to her sister’s face. “Could I get a burger, fries, and a shake from Ruby’s?”
Alicia burst into a watery laugh. “Julia, are you serious?”
“I’m hungry. And I went like twenty-four hours without eating. I think I’m entitled. Besides, you said anything.”
“I did,” Alicia said with a grin.
“I’ll get it,” Luke said, squeezing Julia’s hand again.
Julia shifted in the bed again before she tried to sit up.
“Easy, Julia,” Alicia said.
“I want to sit up. I’m uncomfortable.”
Alicia leapt from her perch and helped Julia sit up, adjusting her pillow and blankets. “Better?”
“Much, though getting out of here would be a lot better.” Julia let her head fall back against the thin pillow. “I’ve been in hospitals way too much lately.”
Guilt crept up inside her, and she flicked her gaze to Alicia. “Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to bring all of that up.”
“Don’t worry about it, Juju. It’s over now, okay? It’s in the past. I’m just so happy to have you back. When those rocks came down, I just…I thought I lost you.”
Julia grabbed her sister’s hand with a slight smile. “I’m too hard to get rid of.”
“Thank goodness. That was way too close of a call.”
Julia patted her sister’s hand before she flicked her gaze around the room.
“What do you need?” Alicia asked.
“Uh, my phone.”
Alicia winced as she tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “Oh, uh, it’s dead. We didn’t charge it yet. With everything going on with you, I didn’t even think about it. Why do you need it?”
“I wanted to check on Sierra. Is she okay?”
“Uh, yeah, she’s fine. She was dehydrated and had a slight sprain of her wrist, but outside of that, she was perfectly fine. Pretty sure they sent her home this morning,” Alicia said before she glanced at Ethan.
“Yep, released earlier this morning. Clean bill of health,” Ethan answered.
Julia’s brow furrowed as relief swept through her. “Good, that’s really good.”
“You saved her life, Julia. But now it’s time to concentrate on your own.”
“I’m fine, Ally. Really. This…a little dehydration and some tiredness is hardly concerning.”
Alicia let her gaze fall to the sheet covering her sister’s lap. “I guess considering what your past year has looked like, it’s minor, huh?”
Julia slid her hair behind her ear as she slumped her shoulders, guilt creeping in again. “I’m sorry, Ally. I really am. I just…”
“No, Juju, it’s okay.”
“It’s not, though. I lied to you. I didn’t want to explain it all or…lie about my relationship with Grant. But I should have told you. At least that way you could have known about everything. Especially the car accident. If anything would have happened to me then…”
“We’d never have known. Because I did try to call hospitals when I couldn’t get ahold of you, but I never found you.”
“Oh, I’d have been under Julia Harrington. You wouldn’t have found Julia Stanton.”
“Yep,” she said with a bob of her head. “And then you said nothing after.”
“I didn’t remember.”
Alicia crinkled her brow. “What?”
“I had amnesia after the accident. The first time we talked…I had no idea who you were. Grant had to tell me.”
Alicia slid her eyes closed as she swallowed hard. “It’s all over now, at least. You’re here. You’re safe.”
“You have burgers,” Luke announced as he wandered back into the room with a delicious-smelling bag in hand. “And a shake.”
“Mmm, thank you,” Julia said with a grin as she dove into the bag and grabbed a handful of fries.
The hot, salty food melted in her mouth as she savored the taste, recalling the terrifying moments alone in the cave where she wondered if she’d ever eat again. As she bit into the burger, her mind wandered to Grant. Was he home with Sierra?
He likely didn’t want to leave her side after the frightening experience yesterday.
And with her phone out of commission, he wouldn’t be able to call her.
She was surprised he hadn’t called the hospital, though.
But maybe he’d been so focused on getting Sierra settled in that he hadn’t thought of it.
Her forehead crinkled as she sipped her chocolate shake. But where was Kyle? Unlikely that he was tending to his half-sister who borderline hated him. She was surprised her stepson wasn’t hovering over her.
Maybe Grant had stopped him in an attempt to give her some much-needed time with her family. Though when had Kyle ever listened to Grant?
“Something wrong, baby sis?” Alicia asked as she rubbed Julia’s arm.
“Oh, uh, no, not really.”
“Burger still as good as you remember?” Luke asked.
She nodded as she smiled at him. “Yes, it is. And the chocolate shake is even better.”
As she took another long sip of the thick, frosty beverage, Ethan’s radio crackled to life. “Hey, Chief? We got a twelve-twenty-seven in progress.”
“I’ll be right there,” Ethan answered as Ally shot him a concerned glance over her shoulder. “I got it, Ally.”
“You know, you don’t have to sit here with me if you two need to cover shifts after that storm. I’m fine. And I’m sure Grant will be here. Or Kyle, at least. I’m surprised he’s not already here, hovering over me.” She grabbed a few more fries.
“I’m not going anywhere, Julia. Not after what happened. Everyone else is pitching in. It’s fine. Ethan and I will cover for them whenever they need it later on.”
“What is the deal with that guy anyway?” Luke asked, his forehead crinkled. “He’s Grant’s son, right?”
“Yes,” Julia said with a bob of her head.
“But he’s got a thing for you,” Alicia added.
“Also, yes,” Julia said. “I think it’s just…a product of what happened to him.”
“What happened to him?” Luke questioned.
“Oh, uh, when his mother got pregnant, she tried to tell Grant and his father kept it from him and suggested she get an abortion, which she didn’t do.
He was adopted, and when he found out, he just…
had a tough time dealing with it all. He came looking for Grant wanting some sort of payback for abandoning him. It’s just not been easy.”
“Cry me a river, it was no reason to kidnap you.”
Luke’s eyes went wide. “What? He kidnapped you? And you just…let Grant continue to bring him around you?”