Masquerade (Masquerade #1) Read online

  Dr. Green hands me some tissues. I wipe my eyes and continue. “That is when I started losing control of the car. I over-corrected myself, and the car flipped.”

  “Is that all you remember?”

  “No. My mom was also pissed at me because I had told her I was pregnant.”

  “Did your parents or the doctors tell you what may have happened to the baby?”

  I felt the blood leave my face. I was feeling sick to my stomach. I stood up and pulled my shirt up to look at the scar on my stomach.

  “Fuck. Lucy is mine.” I sit back down only to fall over onto the couch. I must have blackened out because I hear someone calling my name.

  “Julia. Julia, can you hear me?”

  “Huh?”

  “I called Chris to come and pick you up. You passed out for an hour. I am also giving you a prescription for some pills to help you sleep. I want you back here tomorrow, so we can continue to sort all of this out.”

  I can’t talk. I just shake my head. She walks me out to the waiting area where I see Chris standing at the receptionist’s desk. He looks mad but concerned.

  “Dr. Green, thank you for calling me.”

  She shakes his hand and hands him the prescription. “Just make sure she takes these to help her sleep tonight. She is going to need them.”

  “I will make sure of it.”

  He grabs me, helping me walk to the car. He stops by the drug store to get my medicine filled for me. We grab some food and go home.

  Walking into the house, I ask, “Where is Lucy?”

  “Your aunt is going to keep her for the night, so you can rest. Can you answer a question for me?”

  “I don’t know if I want to, but go ahead and ask.”

  “How long have you been seeing a therapist, and why haven’t you told me.”

  “This was my second time, and I was scared to.”

  “Why were you scared to?”

  I feel exasperated. “I don’t know. I just wanted to try and figure out some things that happened.” Turning my head, I mumble, “I think I have bit more off than I can chew.”

  “What was that?”

  “Nothing.”

  “Do you want to talk about what happened in there today?”

  “Not really.”

  “So you can talk to a stranger, but you can’t talk to me. What the hell, Julia? I thought you loved me.”

  “I—I—I— do, but I just can’t.”

  “Can’t or won’t?”

  He is furious. I can’t do this now. My brain is on overload. I get up to walk off, and that is when he grabs my wrist.

  “You aren’t going anywhere. I deserve to have answers.”

  The look in his face is familiar. It is the same look that the asshole in my dreams has. All I can do is stare at him.

  “You better fucking talk to me, Julia.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  With adrenaline coursing through my body, I get the strength to pull my wrist free from his tight grasp. I start backing away from him in a state of shock of how my life is falling to pieces right in front of my eyes.

  Chris starts walking towards me screaming, “Why the fuck won’t you talk to me? What the hell is going on with you? Is it something I did?” He falls to his knees, grabbing me by the waist with his arms around me pleading. “Please, tell me.”

  A few tears fall down my face. “I had to go. I needed answers.”

  “What kind of answers?”

  “Answers about my dreams. Answers to what really happened in that wreck. I just need answers dammit.”

  “Why is this so important to you? Why do want to relive all of that?”

  Getting out of his grasp, I walk over to the couch and sit on the edge. “I feel like I am living a life that isn’t truly mine, like I am hiding from something that I need to know.”

  “Julia,” he says, getting up and walking over to the couch to sit down beside me. “I can’t believe that this therapist wants to do all of this. Isn’t there something else that can be done?”

  I turn in the seat to look him in the eyes. “Chris, there isn’t anything else that can be done. Why the hell are you so against this? You’re supposed to support me remember?”

  He sighs. “Jules, I don’t want you to get hurt. You have a great life with great people in it. With your parents gone, you should be thinking about what would be best for Lucy, not worrying over something you may never remember completely.”

  I stand up pissed. “You don’t know a damn thing about what I remember or don’t remember. You never want to fucking discuss it, and I need someone to talk to.”

  “I’m sorry. You’re right. Sit down, and let’s discuss it then.”

  “Fine you want to discuss this. Then let’s discuss. First of all, my dreams are so real I feel like I am already reliving the worst part of my life as it is. Second of all, I have a fucking right to try and remember what happened, and third, Lucy is mine,” I say, still standing.

  “Okay. You haven’t been mentioning having dreams besides when I wake you up from nightmares. You’re correct. You do have a right to know. I know Lucy is yours. She is your sister.”

  I walk towards the door, grabbing my purse and keys. “You don’t get it, do you? She is my child. I gave birth to her.”

  I walk out of the apartment and slam the door behind me. I need to get away from him for a little bit to calm down. I jump in my car and just start to drive.

  I end up at a park. I get out, find a bench, and sit down beside a huge oak tree. I look up at the sky, and it is filled with light purple rays as the sun begins to set. I stare at it in awe of its beauty.

  Sitting there, my mind goes back to the fact that Lucy is my daughter and not my sister. How the hell did this happen? I mean, I know how it happened, but why did my parents lie about it? Where is Lucy’s dad? I know who her dad is, but I don’t really know who he is. I can only still remember bits and pieces of our relationship.

  I put my head in my hands and break down. My body tremors while I let it all out. I say out loud, “All I wanted was some answers, and I’m still left with more questions.”

  I feel someone sit down beside me. I turn my head to see Chris sliding closer to me. He wraps his arms around me. “Just let it all out, baby.”

  I cry until I can’t produce anymore tears. My head is laying on his chest when I finally open my eyes to see it is pitch black outside. I sit up and wipe my eyes. I barely let a smile touch my lips as I look at him.

  “We will get through this. You know that, right?”

  I nod my head yes.

  “I’m sorry I yelled at you. I felt like I was left out or that you couldn’t trust me enough to talk to me about what was truly going on. I was being selfish.”

  “I’m sorry too. I didn’t take your feelings into consideration, and I should have.”

  “No, baby. Don’t be sorry. I understand now why you want answers, especially finding out that Lucy is your daughter. Do you know exactly when that happened?”

  I shake my head. “I don’t have a clue. It had to have been when I was in a coma, I would think, but I’m not sure.”

  He stands and pulls me up with him, bringing me close to his body. “Let’s do this together. I want to be there for you.”

  “Thank you.” I say, snuggling closer to him. “What are we to tell Lucy?”

  “I’m not sure yet. Let’s just take this one day at a time. We will find more out before we tell her anything. There is no reason to upset her without knowing everything.”

  “You’re right.”

  He pulls back from me. “I love you so much.”

  “I love you too.”

  “How about we go pick Lucy up, grab some food, then go back home to relax.”

  I stand on my tip toes and kiss him sweetly. “Sounds like a plan.”

  I leave my car at the park and drive back to the apartment in Chris’. On the ride over to Aunt Karen’s to get Lucy, it is quiet. Chris holds my hand, rubbing my thum
b with his.

  We walk in the house to hear Lucy and Aunt Karen playing. When walk into the living room, they both look up at us with smiles, although Aunt Karen’s smile slowly disappears.

  “Lucy, why don’t you run upstairs and play for a little bit. I need to talk to Julia.”

  Lucy walks over to me and gives me a hug then Chris and takes off upstairs.

  “Alright, honey. Talk to me. I know something is wrong.”

  Sighing, I pull a piece of paper out of my purse. “Well, for starters, look at this birth certificate I found.”

  She starts reading it when she says, “You found your sister’s birth certificate.”

  “Yeah, but keep reading.”

  She reads down to the end when she gets to the parent’s names. “Sweetie, this says you’re her mother.” I shake my head. “I don’t understand?”

  “You remember how after my accident, I never remembered anything?” She nods her head yes. “Well, I have gained some memories back.”

  Her face lights up with concern. “Tell me then, what do you remember? She leaps out of her chair, engulfing me in a hug. “Oh, baby. I am so sorry. I never knew of any of this. I only knew what they have always told me.”

  “Aunt Karen, it’s not your fault by any means. I just have so many more questions now. I think I have more now than I did before. How am I supposed to tell her all of this?”

  “We will figure something out. Me, you, and Chris will find a way to make this right again.”

  She grabs me, engulfs me in a hug, pets my hair, and tells me it will all be okay. I nod my head, knowing she means well, but I am still pissed and confused.

  She lets me go, and I give her a weak smile. “I guess we need to be going.”

  “Okay, honey. If you need anything, all you have to do is call me.”

  “Yes, ma’am.” I walk towards the stairs and yell for Lucy to come on.

  She comes bouncing downstairs, says goodbye to Aunt Karen, and we make our way out to the car.

  After getting home, I bathe Lucy, looking at her in a different light than I used to. She really does look like me. She looks up at me, and her smile makes my heart melt.

  I get her out and tucked in for bed. Chris and I both read her a bedtime story. She falls fast asleep before we get done with the story like usual.

  I decide to take a hot shower to see if it will help me relax before going to bed. It does little to take anything off my mind. I take my medicine Dr. Green gave me in hopes of going to sleep.

  I climb into bed with waiting arms from Chris. He turns me so that I am on my side and molded against his body. He feels warm and safe. I smile a genuine smile for the first time tonight.

  “I love you.”

  I rub his arms. “I love you too.”

  “Jules, I meant to ask you earlier, but where did you get that necklace?”

  I pull it up, looking at it. “I found it today.”

  “Oh, okay.” He rubs my arms. “Get some sleep, baby.”

  I cuddle closer to him, and my eyes start getting heavy. I close them to fall into a deep sleep until the dreams come. I wake up, still wrapped in Chris, sweating. I wiggle my way out to get to the bathroom to clean up some. I look in the mirror at my reflection. The dream replays in my mind.

  I hear a baby crying then a woman talking to the baby, trying to soothe it. It sounds like my mom.

  “It’s okay, sweet baby. Your mom may not know who you are, but one day she will. Right now, we just need her to get better before letting her know the whole story of how you got here.”

  The baby yawns.

  “You look just like your mother. Although, you have your dad’s eyes. I know you don’t understand anything going on right now, but just always know that you are loved.”

  That is when I wake up. I don’t remember ever seeing faces, but I know it had to have been my mother talking Lucy. I shake my head then decide I need to get more sleep.

  I crawl back into bed and try to get comfortable. I toss and turn the rest of the night. When I do sleep, I have the same nightmare as before. The man from my dreams haunts me, telling me that I am no good for his boy, that I am a slut and a whore.

  Will I ever find peace?

  Chapter Seventeen

  I continue seeing Dr. Green in hopes of unlocking more information. She suggests that I go back to my childhood home to just look around, maybe even see who is living next door. I think about it and decide what could it hurt?

  One Saturday afternoon, Lucy and I go over to Aunt Karen’s. She is going to entertain Lucy while I just take in everything. I plan to even go through my room, which hasn’t been changed since I left.

  I rummage through my room first. I find the masquerade ball mask pinned to the wall. I pick it up and run my fingers over it remembering the time spent at the ball. It was elegant and exciting.

  I look at the posters I have on my walls, ranging from the Venice Coast to Britney Spears. Yes, I was a Britney girl, and I am not ashamed to say that I still am.

  Nothing in my room really jogs any memories besides one I already had. I decide maybe going to see who lives next door would help.

  I walk over to the house and stand at the door, wondering if I was making the right decision. I don’t know if this is a good idea. Before I can determine if I want to stay or run, the door swings open.

  “May I help you?” I look up to see a guy in his late twenties standing in front of me.

  “Umm . . . Yes. This is going to sound crazy, but do you happen to know who lived here before you moved in?”

  “It was an older lady. Her last name was Colton. I believe her first name began with a ‘V.’ That is all I really know besides the fact that she was moved to a nursing home where she passed away a couple of months ago.” He cocks his head and raises his eyebrow. “Is there a reason you are asking?”

  “I’m sorry. I should have explained better. I grew up next door,” I say, pointing back towards the house. “And I was in a coma for a year and a half. I have been trying to get some of the memories back that I had lost, and I thought maybe seeing or even knowing the name of the woman who lived here would have helped.”

  “I hate to hear that happened to you. I also hate that I can’t give you any more information.”

  “I’m sorry for disturbing you. Thanks for your help.”

  “You’re welcome. If I happen to find out anything else, I will let you know. Could I get your number maybe?”

  Is he really trying to get my number? “If you do hear of anything, my aunt lives next door, so you can tell her. She can get a hold of me.”

  “Okay . . . I never got your name.”

  “No, you didn’t,” I say, smirking. I walk back across the yard, not believing his audacity. Men are unbelievable.

  Feeling deflated, I get Lucy, so we can go home. On the way home, I decided maybe I could do some research on the internet about Mrs. Colton. Who knows? Maybe I can find something out?

  I pull into my normal parking space and look over to see Chris isn’t here. That’s odd. Getting out of the car, I start texting him to see where he is.

  Julia: Hey sweetie. Where are you?

  I unlock the door and tell Lucy, “Why don’t you go and lie down for a little bit.”

  She huffs. “Fine, but I’m not going to sleep.”

  “I know you’re not but just do it to make me happy,” I say, grinning.

  She walks off with a look of disgust on her face. I shake my head, chuckling because I know she will be out in about five minutes after laying down.

  My phone vibrates.

  Chris: I had to go into work for a little bit. I’m sorry baby. I was hurrying to get here and forgot to call you.

  Julia: It’s okay. I am going to lie down for a bit.

  Chris: Okay baby. I should be home in a little bit. I love you.

  Julia: I love you too.

  I set my phone down on my nightstand with intentions to lie down, but I just can’t get Mrs. Colton’s
name out of my mind. I walk into the office to get my laptop. I go back into the bedroom to sit down and open it to turn it on.

  Once it is powered up, I Google her name. Of course the first thing to pop up would be the Colton v. Colton case that happened in 1888. I scroll down, seeing news about a celebrity, hockey, and more cases.

  I find this is not working out well, so I pull up the white pages. I do a reverse address search. Maybe it will turn something up. Finally, it pulls up a page telling me there are two different people that have that address.

  I scroll down the page and see the name David Sheffield. I am assuming that may be the man I met this afternoon. I scroll further down to see the name Virginia Colton. That has to be her. I go back to Google to see if I can find something now that I have a first name.

  I press the search glass after entering her name. Google pulls up several different sites with her name. I start with the first one at the top of the page.

  I scroll through several pages, not finding anyone that could possibly be her. I’m getting frustrated and tired. I keep eyeing the clock too, not wanting Chris to come home, so I have to explain myself to him. He would think it’s crazy.

  I see a web address for The Spirit Newspaper, and it has V. Colton listed in the description. I click on it to pull it up. When it is fully loaded, I notice it’s an obituary. I see a picture, and for some reason, it looks familiar. I begin to read on.

  Georgetown, Chatham County GA. – Virginia Colton, longtime resident of Georgetown, passed away November 5, 2013 at Summer Breeze Senior Living. She was 82 years old. She was born and raised in Georgetown where she still lived in the same house in which she grew up. Her mother and father, Clayton and Josephine Montgomery, were socialites of their time. Clayton was a mogul in industry and manufacturing, while Josephine was a stay at home mother with their only son, Jason Locke Colton, Sr. They were married for 50 years until the passing of Clayton in 2008.