Blind Love (Sulfur Heights Series) (27 page)

“
Ummm, I’m studying for chemistry, but to be honest with you, I’m too engrossed in Robin Thicke right now to concentrate.” I pick up the remote to turn down the music.

“Are you alone?” Oh
, man, Jake’s probably wasted. He always comes onto me when he’s drunk out of his mind.

“Wouldn’t you like to know,
Jakey?” Ha, take that Mr. Flirty Pants.

“No, I’m serious. Are you alone right now?” The temperature in the room instantly plummets as
I hear the indescribable tone coming through the other end. Now he’s starting to scare me. His voice doesn’t sound intoxicated and it’s filled with anxiety; this is actually something worse. It’s so bad I can’t begin to process it.

“Yes, I’m alone. Why
? What’s going on, Jake? You’re really worrying me right now.” I can hear the deep sigh he releases, and when he clears his throat, it almost sounds like he’s trying not to cry.

My stomach plunges to the floor and an achingly bad sensation begin
s to eliminate my breathing. It’s sickening and I know something has happened. It’s impossible to ignore. In the back of my mind, I know what he’s trying to tell me, but I pray it’s not what he’s going to say.

“Just…
just tell me, please,” I whisper and plead for the truth that will be my undoing.

“Oh
, sweetheart… I didn’t want to tell you this. God knows I never wanted to tell you this.” Jake clears his throat again and shatters my world. “Presley’s dead.”

The emotions bubble up, but I refuse to release them
because what he’s said isn’t the truth No! I won’t accept it. She can’t be dead. She’s been doing so well with her sobriety.

“NO!” I shout into the phone. Large tears are pouring down my cheeks
; I can’t keep them in anymore and I’m pissed off because this has to be a sick joke Jake is trying to play on me. “You’re lying. STOP LYING!” I scream.

“I’m not lying, Delilah. You know I would never do that to you.”
He said my name. He only ever says that when he’s serious. I’m not prepared for this. “I wish to God it was anything else I had to tell you. I’m… I’m so sorry… she’s dead.” Jake’s voice is very quiet and sad. I can hear the sorrow laced through it and I know he’s not lying to me—Jake’s not that cruel.

I fall back on my bed and sob hysterically, wildly,
uncontrollably. I leave the phone plastered to my ear and I just say
why
over and over and over. Why? Why her? Why did she have to die? God, why? Jake is trying to comfort me through the phone, but it does nothing. I want to be in his arms. He is my best friend and the one person who can take my pain away with a simple look of his intense eyes.

“Listen, sweetheart. What can I do? Do you want me to book your flight to Detroit? Please just tell me what I can do and I will do it.”

I cry into the phone for a few more minutes before I’m able to speak again to him. My throat is raw and burns from the bile rising into my esophagus. “No… thank you. I will reserve the ticket.”

“Do you want to know what happened?” Jake hesitantly asks.

I think deeper about this and realize I can’t hear what’s happened to her yet. I don’t want to think about it until I’m with him. I don’t want to know anything until I can hold his hand and fall apart in his arms. “No. I can’
t—
can’t hear it. Not without you by my side.” I choke back another onslaught of tears. “I will text you with my travel details and let you know when you can expect me in Sulfur Heights.”

“I can come pick you up. That’s a two hour drive by yourself and I don’t want you driving when you’re upset
,” Jake pleads with me, but I refuse.

“No, the drive will do me good. I will be fine.” I need to get off the phone,
however I don’t want to stop hearing his voice. It’s the only comforting sound right now.

“Okay. Call me if you need anything and I will see you when you get here.”

I hang up the phone and immediately go to my computer, attempting to reserve the first ticket from Memphis to Detroit. There’s nothing! Nothing that goes to Detroit for another nine hours. That’s too long. I can’t wait that long. My friends need me and I need them right now. Screw it, I’ll drive.

I shove my credit card back into my wallet and storm over to my closet then start ripping clothes off the hangers, shoving them in a suitcase. Grabbing my last minute things from
the bathroom, I look to my dresser and there in the middle is a picture of Presley and me at Mia’s birthday party. It’s the last time I’ve seen her in person. The last time I’ve seen her smile, heard her laugh and hugged her in my arms. I begin to cry all over again. I can’t believe she’s dead and the only question that goes through my mind is why.

Why would this happen to someone as wonderful as her? And Mia? The very thought of that baby growing up not knowing her mother is the final straw. I fall to the floor and cry deeply again. Breaking down, I press our picture into my heart and feel devastation take over. Presley has been in my life from the age of six
, and now what? How will I go on without her? We had so many plans for the future. And Drake? He’s got to be a mess right now. I’ve never seen a man love a woman as much as Drake loves her. He would move Heaven and earth just to keep a smile on Presley’s face and now she’s gone. His heaven is gone.

I pick my broken heap
up off the floor, wiping my tears away with the back of my hand. My body is weary and my heart is aching, but I need to leave. The fourteen hour drive will be hard enough to get through, however my destination will keep me motivated to keep the pedal to the floor and just drive.

I pull out my phone and text Emerson my change of plans. We were supposed to have a late lunch with his grandparents at their estate outside of Memphis. This will really tick Emerson off, but there’s no solution. There’s only one place I have to be.

Me:
I can’t meet you tomorrow. I’ve got an emergency, sorry.

I
don’t want to tell him where I am going. Emerson is getting less and less tolerant of my travels to Sulfur Heights, and when I came back from Las Vegas, he’s had no problem letting me know just how much he despises my new friends, especially Jake.

Emerson:
What happened?

Me:
Nothing for you to worry about it. Talk to you later.

I toss the phone back into my purse and make my way down the stairs. I can feel the vibration of Emerson’s response and then
a longer vibration—he’s calling no doubt—but I’m not going to answer. I have to go; there are people who need me and his petty jealously is the last thing I want to deal with.

When I round the corner and walk into the kitchen, my mother
is pouring her daily glass of bourbon, which has quickly become her nightly routine. She already looks like she’s had a few too many when I walk to the fridge and grab a bag of carrots and sodas for the road.

My mother takes notice of my suitcase and asks
, “Where are you heading off to?”

The tears instantly come back to my eyes and I’m finding it impossible to utter a single word. The only thing I see is the nightmare of Presley when she overdosed in her bathroom. The
sight was horrifying and I fear that’s why she’s no longer alive. I shake my head to my mother and start walking to the front the door, pulling my suitcase behind me. She quickly pursues, angrily plodding behind me, but I ignore her until Emerson pushes open the front door.

“What are you doing here?” I ask
, unable to hide the anger in my voice.

“I was on my way over to your house when you text
ed me saying there’s an emergency and refused to reply or pick up your phone. Where else do you think I’d be, Delilah?” And there it is, the scolding daddy tone he’s been using on me more and more. I can’t stand when he treats me like a child. At first I thought it was endearing, but now it’s annoying.

“Emergency? What emergency?”
my mother invades. I now can’t go anywhere without telling them what’s happened.

The tears well up in my eyes
as I stand in the foyer,staring at my shoes. “It’s Presle
y—
”

Before I can even get the words out of my mouth, Emerson cuts me off. “I knew it! Delilah, you can’t keep rescuing her. She’s obviously got issues
, and if therapy can’t help her, you certainly can’t.”

My eyes snap up to his
at the same time that the tears evaporate and turn to liquid lava as I glare at him with fury. How. Dare. He.

“Emerson’s right
, darling.” I snap my head to my mother, killing her with my glare, too. “Spending time with a drug addict, even a recovered one, is in poor taste.” She’s barely hanging onto her bourbon and some of the contents slops over the side and onto the hardwood floor.

I turn my
rage-filled eyes between the two of them. “Well, you don’t have to worry about that anymore, Mother, because she’s dead.” The anger leaks from my eyes and I want to slap the smug look clean off her face. I’ve never wanted to hit anyone so much in my life as badly as I want to lay into my mother. She is such a hateful person and a complete witch.

I push past Emerson, dragging my suitcase behind me as I stomp toward my car. The beep of the alarm sounds and I push the button
to pop the trunk, and then launch the suitcase inside the car. It’s a heavy bag, but my anger fuels my strength when I launch the suitcase inside with a loud thump. Taking a deep breath, I slam the trunk lid down and storm over to the side.

The driver’s door is partially open when Emerson grabs my arm and pulls me back
, preventing me from entering my car. “Where do you think you’re going?”

“To Sulfur Heights, Emerson. My best friend died and I’m going there to be with my friends.” I glare into his dull eyes, not backing down.

“When’s the funeral? You can go then and I will go with you.” His grip is tight and starting to dig into my skin. I refuse to let him dictate who I’m allowed to grieve for, though. She was my best friend,and aside from me, the Evans family is all she had. There’s no questio
n—
I will be in Sulfur Heights in fourteen hours.

“I don’t know because she just DIED!” I shout in his face and push him off me.

Emerson lets go of my arm, but the anger at my defiance fuels his rage further, and for a split second he looks like he wants to hit me. He wants to take control of the situation, of me. As mad as Jake gets, I’ve never seen that look in his eye; the look of an out of control animal.

Before anything can happen, my mother in her drunken stupor, intercedes
, “Okay. Now kids let’s not fight. Emerson, Delilah is right. She needs to go, but Delilah…” She teeters on her feet as her pumps scrape the driveway, she’s slurring and drunk. “This is it. Now that Presley is dead, there is no need to go there anymore. So let this be a final good bye to everyone. It’s time to grow up and be a woman now. You’re going to be married soon; it’s time to start acting like it.”

I nod my head, only conceding so I can get in the car and leave. They are both crazy if they think I will cut the Evans family out of my life. I’ve never been exposed to more honest and loving people
; I would be insane if I allowed my mother or Emerson to take that away from me.

Finally, I get into my car, refusing to look back at either of them
as I tear out of the driveway. I have a long trip ahead of me, and when I get to Sulfur Heights, I will be forced to face one of the worst days of my life. I have to say good bye to my sister, my ally and my best friend.

Chapter 20

Jake

It’s been five hours since I received
the text message from Delilah with her choice of making the drive from Memphis instead of flying. The anxiety level has jumped from a three to a ten in about two point five seconds. It’s been raining for the last three hours, and as Delilah gets closer to Sulfur Heights, she will surely run into a steady stream of rain. When we visited Presley in rehab, Delilah drove me to her house before she introduced me to her mother and that piece of shit fiancé, and let’s just say that I am lucky to have gotten out of town alive. The woman drives like a sprint car racer who’s hopped up on red bull and cocaine.

Since
Reggie and Darcie took Drake in the house to clean up, he’s been locked in his room. Every once in a while I will hear him cry or the sound of him driving his fist into something—his headboard I assume. We’ve decided as a family to let him alone for the rest of the day.

Right now, it’s the wee hours of the morning
, and everyone else has gone to bed, but I can’t sleep until I know Delilah has gotten here safely. I don’t expect her to arrive before noon, but I still won’t sleep. I need to know she’s here before I will relax enough to close my eyes.

After cleaning up the kitchen and reorganizing the fridge
, I’m no closer to distracting myself. My nerves are skyrocketing and I’m sure it’s because of Delilah’s reckless driving, plus the rain making me anxious inside. It has been months since I’ve seen her and God knows I miss her. I miss her like crazy.

Four more hours have passed and normally the sun would just be peaking over the horizon,
however today, rain and clouds consume the sky. I mindlessly flip through the television stations trying to find anything to distract my mind, but recently, when I’m alone and have time to reflect on anything, my mind always goes back to that kiss in Vegas.