Chapter 34
Chapter Thirty-Four
Julian
“Where the hell is Laurel?” I asked Melinda.
“Have you tried calling her?” she asked.
“Yes, and she rejected my call.”
Melinda snickered.
“It isn’t funny! I need to speak with her about a case.”
“Relax your boxer briefs, Julian,” Morgan said, walking toward me. “Let’s go into your office.”
“What is going on?” I asked her.
“Laurel and I went to lunch. Shortly after, she became ill, so I took her home so she could rest.”
“She’s sick? What’s wrong with her?”
“Headache, stomachache, dizzy. It’s probably the flu or something.”
“Thanks for letting me know, Morgan.”
“You’re welcome.” She left my office.
I grabbed my suit coat and told Melinda I was leaving for the day. “I don’t want to be disturbed. Whatever comes up can wait until tomorrow morning,” I said.
I climbed into my car and headed to Laurel’s since it was Sam’s day off. Hearing that she was ill worried me. I stepped onto the porch and knocked on the door. Placing my hands in my pants pockets, I waited.
“Laurel, I know you’re in there. Morgan told me she drove you home.” I pounded on the door.
“Jesus Christ, Julian.” She opened the door. “Knock it off.”
I looked at her, noticing her chaotic state. Her eyes were puffy and bloodshot, and her hair lacked its usual flawless appearance.
“What are you doing here?” she asked.
“Have you been crying?” I pushed past her and stepped inside.
“No. What are you doing here, Julian?” Her tone was adamant.
“Morgan told me you were sick. I wanted to check on you.”
“Why?”
“I don’t know.” I shrugged.
“Just get out.” She shook her head and walked up the stairs.
“No. I’m not leaving.” I followed her into the bedroom. “I get the feeling something happened.”
“What did Morgan tell you?” she asked.
“She said you went to lunch and suddenly became ill.”
“Yeah. That’s what happened. Why is that so hard to believe?” she climbed into bed and pulled the sheet over her.
I rubbed my chin as I stared at her. “You’ve been crying. What happened?” My phone pinged. Pulling it from my pocket, I saw a weather alert. “We’re under a severe storm watch,” I said.
“Great.” She rolled her eyes .
I sat on the edge of the bed and placed my hand on her leg.
“Stop it.” She jerked her leg away.
“Do you need me to pick up the girls from school?” I asked.
“No. Morgan is, and then she’s taking them to her house for a while so I can rest. Now, I need you to do the same. Bye, Julian.”
“Fine. I’ll leave.” I stood up from the bed. As I began to walk out of the room, I stopped. “No. I don’t care what you say. I’m not going anywhere. Especially with a bad storm possibly hitting. I’m not leaving you alone.”
“Maybe that’s what I want!” she shouted.
“There’s no need to shout. Just relax,” I said.
She jumped up from the bed, went into the bathroom, slammed, and locked the door. Sighing, I walked over and gently knocked.
“Laurel, come on. Please.”
I could hear her sobbing, and it frightened me. I went into one of the girls' bedrooms and found a paperclip. I used it to unlock the bathroom door. When I opened it, I found Laurel crouched in the corner of the shower floor.
“My God, Laurel. What is going on?” I stepped inside the shower and sat next to her.
“I have to protect my daughters,” she said as she hugged her knees to her chest and rocked back and forth.
“Protect them from what? From who?”
Her eyes stared into mine, and it broke my heart to see her this way.
“It was him. The phone calls, the flowers, the man at the school, the figure I’d see watching me on the streets—it was him.”
“Who, Laurel?” I spoke authoritatively. “Who is doing all those things? ”
She stared at me and softly whispered, “Jason.”
Instantly, confusion settled inside me. Was she being serious, or did she finally snap?
“Jason died, Laurel.”
“No.” She shook her head, sniffling. “He’s alive. Morgan and I saw him.”
“What?” My brows furrowed. “Come on.” I grabbed hold of her arm. “Let’s get you into bed.”
She nodded and stood up with my help. I walked her over to the bed and climbed on the other side.
“I’m having a hard time here understanding what you just told me,” I said.
She explained everything to me, and I sat there in shock, listening to each word that escaped her lips.
“I can’t believe that asshole faked his own death.” I cautiously wrapped my arm around her. She accepted it and laid her head on my chest. God, it felt good to hold her again. “Tell me where he’s staying.”
“No, Julian. Morgan is getting him a new identity, and he’s leaving the country tomorrow. He will never come back here again, and the girls will never know.”
“How can you be so sure he won’t return?”
“Because he knows if he does, he’s going to prison. And that’s the last thing he wants.”
“I’m sorry, Laurel.” My grip around her tightened. “I can’t even imagine what you’re feeling right now.”
“He felt trapped and like he couldn’t breathe. Can you believe that?” She lifted her head and looked at me. “Wait. Yeah, you can believe it.”
“Laurel, come on.” I sighed.
My phone pinged. Grabbing it from the nightstand, I saw another alert—this time, a warning of a severe storm approaching.
Laurel’s phone rang. “It’s Morgan. Hello. ”
“Hey, I have the girls, and they are safe at my house. A bad storm is coming, so Roman and I will bring them home once it passes.”
“Thank you, Morgan.”
“No problem. Just a heads up. Julian asked where you were. I told him you were sick, so you went home.”
“I’m here, Morgan,” I said.
“Oh. Shit. Hey, Julian. Gotta go. We’ll see you later.”
Suddenly, it grew eerily dark. The wind outside picked up, howling and ripping through the palm trees as sheets of rain slammed against the windows. Laurel reached over and turned on the lamp on the nightstand. Thunder rolled. I climbed off the bed and walked over to the window, staring right into the eye of the storm. The ocean turned into a dark mass of fury, waves crashing over the shores, taking the sand back to its home. The power flickered once—then twice. Then it went out completely.
“Shit,” she sighed. “I don’t like this.”
“I know.” I glanced at her.
Suddenly, I flinched when a loud crash came from downstairs. It sounded like a window shattering. Laurel jumped up from the bed, and I gripped her arm.
“Don’t go down there. Not yet. We have to wait for the storm to pass. In fact, let’s go into the girl’s bathroom where there aren’t any windows.”
We entered the bathroom and sat on the floor with our backs against the tub.
“I’m worried about the girls, Julian.”
“They’re with Morgan. They’re fine.”
All of a sudden, she started laughing.
“What is so funny?” I asked, smiling because it was good to see her laugh.
“Morgan pulled her gun on Jason. I really thought she was going to shoot him. ”
“She probably would have.” I chuckled. “I still can’t believe he faked his own death. What kind of man were you married to?”
“I seem to have a habit of picking men with a whole lot of issues.”
“Fair enough,” I said.
Suddenly, all was quiet. The wind had slowed, and the rain could no longer be heard.
“I think it’s over,” I said, standing up.
We exited the bathroom and made our way down the stairs slowly. I gasped when I saw a palm tree sprawled across the living room, having smashed through the window with branches strewn across the hardwood floor.
“Oh, my God.” Laurel placed her hand over her mouth.
“Don’t panic. I’ll take care of this.”
“How, Julian? This fucking day. I swear to God.”
“It’s okay.” I hooked my arm around her and pulled her into me. “I want you to go pack bags for you and the girls. You’re staying at my house until further notice.”
“No, we’re not.”
“For fuck’s sake, Laurel. It’s not up for discussion. Just go upstairs and pack the damn bags. I’ll start cleaning up the glass.”