Chapter Ninety-Three: I Had Him

After Julia’s name had left my lips, Jared, who was still sat at the table facing me froze in place. I don’t think he at all was expecting me to say her name, the one person who had been at his side through all of this! But after a second, I saw his face change once again as he seemed to be working me out, in case I start to smile and he’d see that this was all a joke, but my face didn’t change. Within a second, he was now letting out a laugh looking over at me.

“Now I know you’re talking out of your ass; Julia has stood by me throughout all of this and her and Remi were the best of friends! She was devastated when I came home and told her what happened, which is why she’s helping me!” He shouts as though I had offended him in some way, but when I simply shake my head telling him that wasn’t the case, he sits back worried what I was to say next.

“Julia never liked Remi, in fact, she despised her! Every moment that she was forced to spend with your mate, she hated. Do you want to know the reason why she hated Remi so much?” I ask with a little sweet smile, Jared, who I could see was very angry and wasn’t fully believed what I was saying. “Because she has this obnoxious obsession with you! All Julia can ever think about is you! Which is why she needed to get Remi as far away as she could from you, she was the one thing standing in her way of having the man that she always wanted! But she had one problem, she saw how much you deeply loved Remi so knew you wouldn’t listen if she simply told you to leave. So, the only way she saw around this issue, was to get rid of Remi all together!” I exclaim getting annoyed myself that he wasn’t listening to me, yes, this was a lot to take in and I understood that to him, Julia had been nothing but a supportive friend through all that he went through, but he needed to see her for who she really was!

“Why do you think Julia would invite you and your mate around for dinner almost every night? I mean, friends do that I guess but each day and her putting all of that effort in?” I ask with a tilt of my head hoping he was going to see how odd that was on its own! “You must remember how she would act in that kitchen, I mean not a single person was allowed to step foot in that room whilst she was cooking, not even her young son who only wanted the comfort of his mother after experiencing such a frightening dream, but instead, she slapped him up the face and demanded he leave her alone! Wasn’t it you who comforted that child telling him it was okay and asked if he wanted Uncle Jared to read him a book?” I say sitting back resisting the story that Griffin had told me not that long ago, after he too had remembered his mothers' close friends who he had forgotten over the years.

As I spoke, I saw the look on Jared’s face change in some odd ways, he was actually listening and was slowly piecing all that I was telling him together. A hint of a smile graced my like as I watched, I had him right where I wanted him.

“I have to ask if you were able to see the real hidden pain behind Julia’s eyes when you and Remi told her you were expecting a baby? I mean she smiled and said the normal things people say, but she was hurt beyond belief. She always felt it was her who should be carrying your children, not some woman who she didn’t even like who had the audacity to take the man she wanted away, from the Queen! So, in that moment, she knew she had to do something and fast before that baby could be born.” I explain all what Wade had told me that day, where I could see Jared listen to me, but his eyes were glazed in some sense, he was thinking back to the moment I was describing.

“I’m sure you were able to see how much worse Remi became after you told your family and friends the wonderful news. She was terribly sick; it couldn’t have been just from the pregnancy could it Jared?” I ask with sorrow on my expression, yes, I was telling a story and really wanted to pull at his heart strings to make him believe but deep down, even the thought of what Remi had to go through and herself and her baby never getting a chance in life cuts me up.

“If you still need more proof in order to listen and believe what I’m telling you, take what is happening to Julia’s mate Thomas into account. He is so very sick, isn’t he? He can barely get out of bed. I know you’ve been looking over at him and seeing the same symptoms that he’s showing, are the same ones that Remi had leading up to her death. Now Julia told you that was because she was pregnant, now unless Thomas is lying about something, that can’t be what’s wrong with him, can it?” I ask titling my head to the side as I spoke, which was when I saw Jared make eye contact with me and realisation soon take over his expression, he knew what I was saying was correct.

“Come on Jared, I always had you down as a smart man, not gullible. Can’t you see what’s right in front of your face?” I ask sitting forward whilst the chains rubbed against the wood flooring once again.

It was in that moment, when his eyes truly locked on mine, I knew I had him and I wasn’t about to let go.