Mahogany Desires

Chapter 39

           JULIAN CRADDLED A glass of wine in her hands while she watched the heavy rain pour from dark cloud, pelting hard onto the roof of the two story house and wishing that the storm would wash away her sorrows leaving her numb to the everlasting loneliness and misery that had taken over her life.

She missed her husband, her best friend, her life partner. And the permanent emptiness she’d felt since his death was proof of it. She’d try to listen to her sons but what good could really come out of it? A person don’t just get over someone they’d been with since college and anyways, even if she wanted to go back out into the world and meet new people, she wouldn’t know how to.

Looking into the glass of wine, she finished it off with one gulp then sighed as she grabbed her phone. “Guess I should get some sleep,” she muttered to herself. The only reason she was up so late was because she’d been worried sick about Jason and Drake.

A couple of hours ago, Lucille Knight phoned her and filled her in on her son, Brandon’s, death. It was a shock to hear that Jason’s best friend, whom she’d seen only days ago, was dead and Julian’s broken heart cracked a little more as her heart went out to their family and also Jason who was most likely suffering from shock and pushing everyone away like he always does.

She tried calling Jason, Drake and even Victor for two hours straight but every time, her call went straight to voicemail and every time she started to panic a bit more. Where could they possibly be? Lucille mentioned something about them storming out of the emergency room after an FBI agent disclose that Brandon’s death was in fact a murder and in effect Julian died a little bit more on the inside.

She needed to know that her babies were ok and not out on the streets chasing after some thug for vengeance. She needed to hear their voices and see their familiar green eyes for reassurance and then smack some damn sense into them for getting their selves into a situation that could get them killed. What were they thinking?!

Loosening up the belt on her robe, she started to trek up the stairs when suddenly, she heard a knock. It was drowned out by the sound of the storm outside but nonetheless, Julian heard it and a scowl formed on her face. Her gaze rushed over to the grandfather clock that stood beside the staircase and immediately became suspicious. It was eleven o’clock. No one visited her past nine-thirty. It was always a rule in this household and everyone who knew the Mills family knew and followed that rule.

She was going to ignore it until she realized that it could be a police officer coming to tell her that one or both of her sons were dead but she didn’t see any red and blue lights flashing outside and it couldn’t be the boys since they both had a key.

Her heart skipped a beat as the knock was heard again but this time it was louder, more like a pound rather than a knock. “Calm down Julian. If you just ignore it, maybe whoever it is could just go away,” she said to herself right before the knocking transformed into banging.

Someone was trying to get in!

“Shit!” She whispered as she started to panic. Clutching the cell phone tightly, she unlocked it and once again dialed Jason’s number praying that he’d pick up. Meanwhile, the person at her door became restless and impatient. Pounding the front door off its hinges and roughly rattling the doorknob.

She had no luck with finding Jason.

Frustrated she hung up and dialed Drake’s number. Still no answer.

With her heart beating a mile a minute, she rushed over to the living room and headed straight to cabinet on the bottom of the china where Steven kept his guns. Thank God he’d teach her how to use one of those things before he passed or she’d be defenseless against the unknown behind her door.