Love's Dark Rose by Serena Axel (top rated ebook readers txt) 📖

to see my brother racing towards us. I panic and want to run but it’s too late.

Tommy’s eyes are full of anger. He yells and pulls me up by my arm.

“What the hell are you doing? Do you know who this is? He’s a Montague, Julia! How long has this been going on?”

“Stop shouting! Everyone is looking and you’re embarrassing me. Let me go, Tommy.”

“You heard her, leave us alone,” David cries as he comes to my rescue.

Tommy raise his fist. It’s a quick motion, a blur, and he hits David in the face. The two of them trade punches, and David’s face is soon covered in blood. He falls to the floor, and my spirit falls with him. The waitress is trying to get them to stop, to stop, to stop!…but to no avail. Hysterical, I look at Tommy. His eyes are red eruptions of seething hatred.

“Julia let’s go,” he says as he grabs me once more. This time he hurts me, and I pull away.
“You’re hurting me! I’m staying. Leave us alone. I love him.”

Tommy looks at me with disgust and storms out.

Trish offers some ice and a cloth for David’s face. I am crying and with his head in my hands I gently pat and clean the blood from his face.

“Babe, I'm so sorry. Do you need a doctor?”

“No doctor, let’s just go to my place. Will you drive?”

Getting a hold of himself he takes his keys and hands them to me. I smile and say, “Now I know I love you for sure.”


David has a questioning look on his face. “What?"

"Oh,it's just that Tommy never lets me drive. I swear,I’m a good driver."


*******


“Come and sit down, we have to discuss what we can do. Do you want to go home?”

“No I want to be with you. I choose you

David.” I pull up a chair next to him and we try and figure out our future.

“I'll marry you anytime, anyplace, and as soon as you want. I don’t have much money, but what I have is yours."

“You’ll leave everything for me?”

“Darling you are

my everything, I’ll go with you anywhere. I'm ready.”

David says, “I’ll need a few days to get everything together. I have to go to the bank and empty my safety deposit box. You’ll have to get your passport. Is that going to be a problem for you darling? Have you ever been to Europe?"

“What? No, I've never been to Europe. I’ve always dreamed of going...”

“First we have to stop over in Hawaii to get married.”

I am so excited. The thought of going to Hawaii and Europe is a dream. I hug David and we kiss. "I can’t sit here and look at your face," I say. "I need to get some antibiotics for those cuts. Do you have anything in your medicine cabinet?”

“Yes I do, in the master bathroom...and grab a white hand towel, please.”

“Honey, if I use a white towel the blood may never come out.”

“I know, I don’t want it to. I'll use it. I think I have a plan.”

Coming back into the front room I ask, "What is it? Please tell me?”

“Come in and sit down next to me.”

I hurry in, and while he talks to me I carefully clean his cuts.


“I thought we could leave our DNA. I'll stuff the towel down the side of the seat. Your hairbrush will be in your purse with your drivers license. We can run my car into the river on that wicked curve at the edge of town. I’ll leave some empty beer bottles in the back seat and make them think we'd been drinking.”

“I get it! Everyone will think we’re dead.” I take a deep breath, and release a sigh.

“Are you okay with that, honey?”

“I'll have to go by the house, sneak in, and grab a few things.

“I know our families will never leave us alone. If there's enough time, maybe they'll be able to forgive us. Maybe the hate will fade.”

David gives me a hug and the two of us fall asleep in each others' arms on the couch. When my mom and Tommy leave to go to the hospital to see Dad, David and I will gather my things...those few essentials we'll need to start our life again.


Dearest,

You will soon find out I am an early riser. I watch you as you sleep and know you and I are meant to be. You are my all. Time is our enemy; we have so little of it.

I left you some coffee on the stove. I won’t be long. I have a few things to take care of before we leave. After I have finished taking care of them, I will fly with wings on my feet to be at your side again. I want to hold you in my love; to wrap you in my arms and never part from you.

David

Smiling, I pick up my cell phone, feeling real strength from David’s words, and I answer one of Tommy’s numerous messages.

“Hello.

“Yes I’m fine.

“Don’t ask me where I am, I won’t tell you!” I hang up the phone unsure of what Tommy might do next. He has a wicked temper and can lose control where the Montague’s are concerned. He’s like a bull that sees red.

Walking across the carpet to the front window, I look down the street, wondering where and when I will see my precious David again. The waiting is killing me. I have to call and see what’s going on. The phone rings, and then there is a click—it goes dead. Suddenly there is a pounding on the front door and my heart almost leaps out of my chest fearing the worst. I hesitate for a moment, shaking, but finally summon the courage to go see who it is. Leaning my head against the wood frame, I peer through the peep hole, and the pounding vibrates against my face.

“Open the damn door, Julia.”

It’s Tommy. His face is bleeding, and his hair is all a mess. I reluctantly turn the handle and he immediately pushes his way in.

“What happened to you?”

I try to back away from him, but he grabs my arm.

“Get your things, I’m taking you home.”

“Where’s David? Tell me what you've done.” I fight him, let out a blood-curdling scream, and at last break away.

“I told you to stay away from him, didn’t I? This is your fault! He’s no good. How could you sneak around and be with one of them?”

“Oh my God. Tommy, tell me where he is.”

My brother’s eyes are a mixture of confusion and rage. His lips quiver, and my heart begins to sink.

“I think I killed him!"

“You did wha…” I can’t form my words. My legs no longer hold me…the air is heavy…I can’t breathe. Before I know it I’m on the floor sobbing.

“I saw him in town and stopped him to tell him he’s no good for you, and to stay away. That’s all I was going to…but he said the two of you are in love and that you’d made your choice. I looked at him. I snapped, I guess. I don’t know, it all happened so damned fast. I hit him. We struggled, and his head hit the back of my truck and…and… blood was just everywhere, and then he fell to the ground.

“People saw us, damn it! One guy had the whole fight on his cell phone. They tried to stop me from leaving, telling me the police were on the way. You know the Montague’s have a lot of clout in this town, so I got scared and ran. It wasn’t my fault! It was his…and yours!”

Tommy reaches down and grabs me once more, but I no longer fight. Everything is still and strangely silent around me, as if I’ve just tumbled into a nightmare.

With a sense of urgency, Tommy rattles. “We have to go! The police aren’t far behind.” He drags me out the door like a rag doll, and I look and can see police car lights. They flash all around us, and the nightmare deepens. Suddenly one of the officers barks a command. “ Let her go and put you hands over your head!”

I look up. Everything is blurry through my tears, but I beg my brother to do as they say.

“Tommy please, listen to them.” Enveloped with rage he puts his hand in his jacket pocket and