Demons From the Past novel Chapter 19

"God gives us the ugliness so we don't take the beautiful things in life for granted." -Colleen Hoover, Ugly Love

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Nate drove me straight to Skylar's. I jumped out of the car even before it came to a stop. It was already dark and I could just make out the outline of Skylar's and Aiden's bodies standing in the driveway.

"Are you alright?" I asked, my voice breathless with worry.

"I am." Skylar gulped, I could see the tear stains on her face.

"I want to see it."

"Are you sure Ver?" Aiden asked, his voice sounded skeptical.

I gave him a firm nod before heading straight for the door.

An involuntary gasp left my lips as soon as I walked inside Skylar's house. The usually spotless place was a complete wreck, with furniture strewn awkwardly and glass littering the floor. I hesitantly made my way towards the bedroom I'd been staying in and my legs almost gave out when I took in the sight in front of me.

The condition of the room wasn't like the rest of the place. It was exactly how I'd left it. Not a thing seemed out of place except the blood red letters sprawled across the wall;

"You can't run Verena. You are mine."

Something lying on the bed caught my eye and I bent down to pick it up.

A sound somewhere between a gasp and a scream escaped my lips when I saw what it was.

It was a picture. A picture of me.

But that wasn't what frightened me.

It was a picture of me from two years ago. I remembered the day it had been taken and I remembered the person who'd taken it.

He was the only person who had it. He loved it so much, he'd kept it with him in his wallet ever since.

The reason why seeing this picture terrified me was because no one besides Trevor had it.

My brother was the only person who'd had the only copy of this picture.

But brother was dead.

All of this made absolutely no sense.

I sunk to the floor as my legs finally gave out. I felt like everything was spinning. I couldn't breathe.

I flinched as I felt a hand on my shoulder.

"Hey, it's just me." Nate's soothing voice reassured causing me to relax a little.

His eyes hardened as he read the words sprawled across the wall.

"I going to kill this bastard as soon as I find him." He muttered under his breath before returning his attention back to me.

"Are you alright?" He asked, his voice sounded concerned.

His eyes bore into mine as if he was trying to draw the truth out from them. He cleared his throat awkwardly, clearly uncomfortable with the silence.

"There's something I didn't tell you Verena." His voice was soft, almost guilty.

I looked up at him, my eyes urging him to continue.

"That day when I asked you to come with me to visit my mother, remember when Marcus had suddenly barged in? Well that was because someone had broken into our apartment, they left a note. I didn't tell you because I didn't want to worry you. But now this is getting out of hand. Whoever this is isn't messing around. Your life is in danger Verena and I'll be damned if I let anything happen to you."

My head was spinning from all this information. I was suffocating, I needed space to breathe.

I scrambled to my feet and ran towards the bathroom, locking the door behind me. I needed to be alone right now. This was all too much. I sunk to the floor, by back against the door.

I could hear Nate's fist banging against the door.

"Verena, are you alright?" His voice sounded panicked.

I didn't respond. It seemed like I'd lost my voice.

I could feel him lean his head against the door.

"Please let me in baby. You don't have to feel like you're alone. You're not alone, I'm right here with you. Nothing is going to happen to you."

I leaned my head against the door and closed my eyes, trying to fight back the memories I'd been trying so hard to forget.

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I'm sitting on the biggest branch of the huge old oak tree in our backyard. It's my favorite place in the entire world, up here everything seems brighter somehow. The wind seems gentler as it breezes through my hair, the birds sound happier, even the weather seems less cold. Maybe that's the reason I come here whenever I feel sad, this place makes me feel better. Maybe that's the reason I'm up here right now.

I watch the setting sun as it bathes everything in a beautiful orange hue. No matter how many times I watch it, I'm always left breathless by the beauty of it.

The clicking sound of a camera pulls me out of my thoughts. My head snaps in the direction of the sound, only to find my brother looking at me sheepishly.

When did he even get here and how did I not hear him?

Then again, Trevor is the one who told me about this place to begin with. He probably knows it better than me.

He pulls the Polaroid picture out from the camera and looks at it before holding it up for me to see.

"I'm going to keep this with me forever. This is how I want to remember you every time I think about you while I'm gone. You look so peaceful, like you're content with where you are." He tells me quietly, a small smile on his lips.

I can feel my lips turn downwards into a frown when he mentions his leaving but I don't say anything. For some reason I feel a tight pain in my chest.

I don't want him to go.

I continue to stare ahead at the sunset hoping it would make me feel better but there's no calming the uneasy feeling in the pit of my stomach.

"Are you mad at me Vinnie?" I hear his voice break in.