Chapter 131: One Last Call

*Shit!* I quickly hauled myself back onto the roof, but gave a silent yelp when my bandaged leg scraped the shingles. I remained dead silent as I listened to the footsteps beneath me. My instincts were so focused on the faintest sounds inside that not even the coldness of the drizzle could make me shiver. *C’mon, just go the fuck away already!*

After I second, I heard the footsteps fade and the click of a door. I breathed a relieved sigh. *Thank fuck.* My limbs were rapidly growing weak, but I didn’t have a choice. My nails dug into the shingles on my second attempt, lowering myself from the roof to the window. Sure, it was an old lock, but was it worth making noise that might attract their attention?

*I just need to call Mom, or Amy, or Liam, or anybody! If I can reach at least one person, it’ll be worth it and I’ll be fine.* The thin trails of blood that were steadily beginning to slide down my leg told me otherwise. *I might just be provoking the fuckers and screwing myself over right now. It’s a risk I gotta take.*

At first, my pushes against the window with my feet were quiet but lacked power. With each kick, I made my attempt stronger until the door’s lock snapped and swung open. Despite my efforts to make it quiet, it still made a quiet tap when it hit the wall. *Shit, I really hope nobody heard that…*

I bit my tongue with each pained hop I took towards the desk, wasting no time on the phone. My fingers shook as they moved at the speed of light on the buttons. *Damn it–stop shaking!!*

The bounce of my leg increased speed with impatience with each ring. *C’mon! C’mon!!* My heart skipped a beat when I heard the other line click.

“Hello?” my mom’s voice felt like a ray of sunshine in this shitty, stormy weather.

“Mom! You need to come back *now!*” I urgently whispered.

“What?” I could hear the noise of static on her side. “Honey, is that you? What’s going on?”

“I said you need to come back!” my voice was slightly louder that time but the other end went dead silent. “Hello?? Mom?!” I didn’t know if it was still working. Things like these were like dinosaurs to me, and I was uneducated as hell. Part of me already knew something was wrong. *FUCK!!*

There was a slam of the door hitting the bookshelf when it swung open. I jumped at the sudden loud noise and looked up at Julian, wide-eyed. *Holy shit… did he already know I was going to do this or is he surprised I went this far? I can’t read his face again.*

“Beautiful,” he walked toward me and I immediately backed up. I expected him to get angry with me, but instead, his expression reflected concern. “You’ve cut your leg again. Dad won’t be happy about the mess.” He gestured to the window behind me and I saw a few flecks of my blood that must’ve dripped when the shingles cut me. “Don’t worry, I’ll clean it up.”

I scoffed with a dry smirk. So there was no point in anything I just did. He purposely waited for me, for this very moment, making me feel like a fucking idiot for leaving some drops of blood behind on the window. “You’re a piece of shit…”

“What?”

“I didn’t stutter.” I lifted my chin defiantly. “The hell were you trying to gain out of this? I called Mom.”

*I probably should’ve kept that a secret. What if he does something to me now?*

“I’m aware.” He took a step closer, making me move backward again. “And I look forward to telling her about our babies to be.”

“Bab*ies?*” I made the S sound louder. “The fuck do you mean by that? I’m not getting pregnant again!”

“Who said you needed to?”

My hostility turned to the cold void when it dawned on me what he meant. A far-off memory hit me like a punch to the nose. That’s right, didn’t he say twins can be hereditary?

*If I have two fucking demons, I’m gonna lose my mind!*

When he reached for me, I smacked his hand away. “Back off! Get the fuck away from me!” instead of obeying, he snatched me by my dog collar and I yelped when he dragged me forward. “LET ME GO!”

The look of worry was practically warping his face to me, not an ounce of fury. He picked up my swollen hand and looked at my disfigured thumb. “...You poor thing.”

Not this again! I wanted to rip my hand away, but my thumb was still throbbing with sensitivity. I had been ignoring it this whole time until now. When he kissed my knuckle, I couldn't help but flinch. A tender smile stretched his lips that no longer looked charming. Now it just sent creepy chills down my spine.

“I’ll take care of you. Come here, Beautiful.” his other hand reached up to caress my cheek, but I quickly jerked my head away the best I could before our skin could make contact. The collar around my neck was rubbing my skin red.

“Fuck off!” I angrily shouted. “I don’t need your help! YOU’RE the reason I’m like this!!”

His smile faded, and the grip around my collar tightened, making me cough. Before I could sass anything else, we heard Grace’s voice outside the door.

“What was that? Julian?” she sounded urgent and wary. “She’s not in there with you, is she?”

Julian placed a finger against my lips with a serious look on his face and the quietest ‘*Shh*’ I have ever heard. I wasn’t sure if him hiding me from his sister was a good thing or a bad thing. Part of me just wanted to call Grace in here so that the twins could squabble and I could make a quick getaway in the frenzy, but when I looked down at my bandaged thigh, all hope went down the drain.

*It’ll take me half a fucking hour just to get down the fucking staircase!*

“No, Grace.” Julian’s tone held a hint of annoyance. “I was just looking for something. Can you get off of my back already?”

“Don’t get sassy with me!” she retorted outside the door. “You have no right! Just wait till Dad finds out, both of you are finished!”

I heard her footsteps storm off and my jaw clutched. She was going to tell Gabriel and Mom. I knew it had to come out eventually but like this?! Before I could decide whether to make my presence known loud and clear, Julian removed his finger with a warning look.

“Grace isn’t happy with you. Now be a good girl…” he slowly trailed his finger under my chin. “And everything will be fine. Understand?”

The tightness around my neck made it hard to breathe, let alone talk. I glanced back at the dead phone one last time before he yanked me out of the study, my weak and painful legs stumbling with each step. Did my mom even hear me? Will she come home right away? Or will she think that I’m just up to no good again…?