Page 5 of Riding Hard

Reaching for the handle, I start to turn it, and while every single part of my body screams at me not to open the door, I just know that he’s not going to stop. It’s been months, and I thought that maybe this time, he was over me. Maybe he’d found someone else to torture, but now he’s here, and he’s ready to take whatever he’s feeling out on me.

So, whoever she was, she must have gotten away, and he’s back to torture me again. A voice inside me stops me from opening the door. I don’t know who it is or why it speaks, but I’m thankful for it. Because it saves me for another day.

Victor turns around, stomping hard against the porch, then stomping down the steps and walking away. I know he won’t be gone for long, but it gives me a moment or two to breathe. And another moment to pack my shit and get the hell out of town.

I thought I could get lost in Vegas.

That he wouldn’t find me. But now I’m going to go somewhere else because clearly, he did.

Maybe I’m thinking too big.

Throwing as much of my shit into my bags as I can, I wait for the clock to pass the time, and when it hits two in the morning, I begin loading everything up. I don’t know how far my car is going to take me.

It was on its last leg the last time I ran, which was six months ago. I’ve tried to keep from using it too much, knowing that everything seemed ready to blow. I just hope it makes it out of the desert and to a town.

Sinking down into the driver’s seat, I grip my steering wheel, close my eyes tightly, inhale through my nose, then exhale through my mouth before I open my eyes again. I’ll have to contact the landlord and let him know that I’ve moved out.

It was a month-to-month lease anyway, so he won’t be upset that I’m gone. Plus, the furniture I added to the already semi-furnished house, he can keep.

Shifting the car into Reverse, I back out of the driveway and head out of town. I head south and hope for the best, whatever that looks like, hopefully to a life without any sign of Victor. I honestly never want to lay eyes on him again. Not now, not ever.

The moment I pass the “Drive carefully, come back soon” sign, tears begin to fall down my cheeks. Another town, another world over, and another beginning. But not necessarily one that I wanted to start again.

Maybe this will be the one, or maybe this will just be another stop on the way to wherever the future leads me. All I know is that my future will not be Victor. I refuse. I am better than that. I am stronger than that. I am Juliette, and I will not be used, abused, or tortured by him ever again.

CHAPTER

THREE

LOOT

Standing in the middle of my ex’s apartment—or whatever the fuck she is—makes me want to throw shit and burn the house to the fucking ground. I might just do that after today. I haven’t decided yet.

“And when did she leave?” I demand, trying not to sound too pissed off so that I don’t scare my son.

Cade clears his throat. It surprises me. It’s such a man-type sound that comes from his throat. Tipping my chin down slightly, I look down into his eyes and snap my brows together as I look at him, waiting for him to answer me.

There is a moment of silence.

Then he clears his throat again, wasting time or trying to buy some time as he thinks of how to answer me. I watch as he shifts from foot to foot, and I say nothing. My gaze stays focused on him, waiting for the answer.

“Two weeks ago.”

His words rock me to my fucking core.

He knows better than to be alone for that long without calling me. Hell, a day is too fucking long. I start to tell him that, but he continues, so I snap my lips shut and listen to him. I don’t just listen. I absorb every fucking word he has to say because I cannot believe what he’s actually telling me.

“And you didn’t call me?” I ask.

He shrugs a shoulder. His gaze flicks from mine to the floor. He becomes very interested in his shoes. It should upset me, and it does, but not in the way most people would think.

It pisses me off because I never want him to think he can’t look me in the eyes when he talks to me. He’s embarrassed, but not for himself. He’s embarrassed by his mother. And that pisses me off for a completely different reason. That bitch should never fucking embarrass our son.

She’s worthless, and I fucking hate her all over again. As if I didn’t hate her enough, she had to go ahead and give me even more reason to. If nothing else, Destinee loves to give me even more reasons to think she’s a bigger piece of shit.

I didn’t think it was possible. I was pretty much resigned to believe that Destinee was the biggest piece of shit to walk the earth, but she’s outdone herself this time. Sliding my tongue along my bottom lip, I think about what to do next.

I don’t know.