Page 100 of Juliet's Echo

“Hurry.”

The voice returned, no longer a suggestion, but a command.

“Fuck!” I groaned.

Leaning forward, I gripped the wheel.

The moment my hands made contact, the pain vanished. Every bit of it. Warmth flooded back into my body so fast it felt unnatural. My chest loosened. My breathing steadied. Hell, it almost felt like I had supernatural strength.

Whatever this was riding in this truck with me, it needed me home.

More importantly, Lucky needed me home.

“I’m coming, baby.”

My foot slammed back onto the gas.

I didn’t even wait for the gates to finish opening.

The truck bounced across my mother’s grass and slid to a stop in front of the house. Everything seemed... normal. The scenery was just as still and quiet as when I left it.

Maybe Lucky was home after all.

Before getting out, I took a deep breath and made my way toward the front door. The plan was simple: go inside, charge my phone, and call Juliet ten million times until she answered.

How dare she have me so scared that my body conjured up pain.

Laughing to myself, I rubbed my hands down my face and almost felt like myself again.

“Please!”

The plea was so loud and so full of terror that my heart stopped.

Juliet.

I sprinted the rest of the way to the front door, punched in the code, and shoved it open. Running down the long hallway toward the main part of the house, I came to a dead stop at the sight waiting for me inside.

Juliet was tied to a chair, her lip split and blood staining the front of her shirt. Alonse paced in front of her like a man possessed, screaming obscenities while a gun dangled from his hand. Whatever world he was trapped inside, it had him so locked in that he hadn't realized I'd entered the house.

Juliet did though.

Her eyes found mine instantly. I gave a slight shake of my head, silently begging her not to react. Not yet. Not until I figured out how to get her away from him and get that gun out of his hand.

I'm here now, baby. I got you.

“You should have stayed dead, Simone,” Alonse shouted through a manic rant.

Juliet cried harder.

“I keep telling you, I don't know who Simone is.”

“Liar!”

He lunged forward, screaming inches from her face.

“Alonse!” I called out.

His head snapped toward me and the gun immediately followed.