Page 21 of Haunted

“I called them the night of the accident, but they didn’t answer. I left a message on their voicemail. They never called back or tried visiting. She has a much younger sister. I think she was five or six back then. God knows what they’ve told her about Jules.”

My teeth clench at the notion that they’ve soiled Jules’s name to her little sister. What in the fuck is wrong with people?

“You need to tell Mom and Dad about her.”

He looks down at his lap, then brings his eyes back to me, resolution set in his gaze. “I will.”

I notice the time on the cable box and get to my feet. “I’ve got to get going. Jazz stayed late for me, so I need to get to the shop.”

Theo stands as well, setting his bottle on the end table. He follows me to the door, and I turn back to him.

“I’m sorry about what happened to Jules.” I grip his shoulder when his jaw begins to twitch. “Was the person that attacked her found?”

“No,” he grunts darkly.

“Fuck, man. I’m sorry.”

His nod is stiff. “Thanks.”

I leave him at the door, my anger still present, but not white-hot as it was when I first arrived.

As I walk to my truck, my mind drifts back to the nagging questions; why have I been dreaming about Jules and why does she keep begging me for help?

7

LUCA

I’M IN ANOTHER DREAM again, but this one is much different than all the others. There’s laughter in this one. There’s love, there’s happiness, and good things are happening. And it seems so real. Not some weird shit my mind conjured up. Even so, as with all my dreams featuring Jules, there’s excruciating pain in my chest. It nearly brings me to my knees with the intense force of it.

I’m in a field of some kind. Looking around, I notice a wisteria tree. The same one in the picture I’ve been drawing for months. Except there’s no girl sitting beneath its low-hanging branches.

The wind blows, and with it comes the now familiar wildflower scent. Seconds later, I hear laughter again. The sound is sweet, and it soothes the ache in my chest.

I spot the source of the magical sound about thirty feet away. Jules, wearing a soft yellow dress with the skirt billowing behind her in the wind, stands with wildflowers surrounding her. Her head is tipped back and she’s laughing at the sky. Hergorgeous brown hair, loose and falling down her back, sparkles in the sunlight. Her cheeks are a rosy red, and the smile on her face is mesmerizing

She’s the most beautiful sight I’ve ever seen. For the first time, she’s in solid form, so solid I have no doubt I could touch her. My lips tip up into a smile, and I’m just about to call her name when another person appears.

The pain is back in full force when Theo walks toward her. Her head drops, and her smile widens when she spots him. Jealous anger, fierce and blinding, hits me in the gut as he comes to her and wraps her in his arms. Their lips meet, and I want to smash his fucking face in and break all his fingers. He’s my brother and Jules is his, but fuck if that thought doesn’t make my blood boiling hot.

I stand there, stiff as a damn board, and watch as Jules laughs at something Theo says. I can feel the euphoria oozing off the couple, and it turns my stomach. It’s a contradiction, how her laugh makes me feel. On one hand, the sound is so enthralling I want to listen to it for days, but on the other, it makes my ears want to bleed, because the reason behind the sound is another man.

Jules’s eyes lift from Theo, and my breath stutters when they lock on mine. Her brows form a V as she frowns. The sudden sadness that radiates from her is so thick it’s almost tangible.

Eerie dark clouds move overhead, much faster than natural, taking away the cheery sunlight. Thunder rumbles off in the distance, ominous, like something evil is coming, and it sends shivers up my spine.

When Jules’s amber eyes turn frightful, I take a step forward. I lift my hand and reach out to her. “Jules,” I call, not caring if Theo hears. He doesn’t, he just keeps looking down at her with love shining in his eyes, as if I’m not even there.

Pain and terror widens her eyes when another round of thunder hits, the sound so close it shakes the ground. My stomach cramps viciously when lightning strikes the ground only inches away from her and Theo. Theo doesn’t seem to see the storm raging around them. He just continues to stare down at her like she’s the only thing that matters.

“NO!”

The guttural roar leaves my lips when Jules’s form begins to fade. I try to run to her, but my legs won’t move. My thigh muscles shake as I try in vain to get them to work.

Helpless. So fucking helpless.

“Goddammit!” I bellow as I’m forced to watch Jules and Theo become more and more transparent by the second.

By the time their forms are gone, I feel a gaping hole in my chest where my heart used to reside.

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