Part 51

Part 51
Juniper’s heart started beating erratically the moment they drove into Seward, and for as long as she lived, it never quite stopped its erratic behavior. Adrian had booked a cabin high up in the woods with two bedrooms.

Just before entering Seward, Adrian had stopped and given her a look that said he wouldn’t hesitate to kill her. They bought food and other necessities, and Juniper complied like the weakling she really was.

Adrian left her in the cabin to unpack their groceries while he stepped outside to have a chat with his friend. Juniper knew his name was JJ, she had excellent hearing, but she feigned ignorance every time Adrian thought he was making a private call.

“It’s me.” Adrian’s voice was low, just above a whisper.

“Three went to Ireland and four came back. Marriage registered in Castlewellan, Ireland.” JJ almost sounded bored and half asleep and it irritated Adrian to the depths of his soul.

“Who got married?”

“Kiran and Adara Sinclair, seems like a shotgun wedding.”

“Thanks.”

Adrian ended the call and walked back inside the cabin, just as Juniper exited the bathroom. Adrian looked at the small kitchenette and saw that she had packed everything away. He grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and sat down on the sofa.

“It seems you have an excuse to phone Adara for that meeting after all.”

Her eyes were empty, like she’d already given up and Adrian liked it. “What excuse is that?”

“Kiran and Adara got married in Ireland just a few days ago.” He smiled at the shock that registered on Juniper’s face.

“She’s married?” Adrian nodded his head, in answer.

“Now you can phone her and say you want to meet to congratulate her and give her a present.” Adrian could barely finish the word “present”; he was laughing too much. Juniper was now utterly convinced that he was a madman.

“I’ll phone her tomorrow,” Juniper said, emotionlessly.

She was a bit surprised that Adara had gotten married so quickly. If the stories were true, and they did fully imprint, she understood that desire. She had been married for a week before her mate had died. A truck had skipped the stop sign and hit him on his motorcycle as he drove through the intersection.

She buried him and had never been the same again. Her life had changed for the worst that day. She had become depressed, started drinking, and had no idea how to look after herself. Elizabeth had always taken care of her, and she had been jealous of her sister’s life.

“Juniper!” Adrian said, for a second time. She snapped out of her daydream.

Juniper snapped back to reality at the harsh tone in Adrian’s voice. “Sorry, what did you say?”

“I said invite her to lunch on Friday. Don’t give her a choice. Once you’re there, have a nice lunch with her, smile, and don’t be yourself.”

“What are you going to do?”

Adrian took out a small plastic bag from his jacket pocket. “Slip this into whatever she’s drinking. I’ll grab her when you two come out of the restaurant.”

Juniper could only nod at him. She took a shower and got into her bed while Adrian sat on the chair in the darkness and watched her. She shivered as she felt his eyes on her.

She didn’t know how she would be able to do that. Adara hated her, she felt very guilty every time she thought of Adara. No, she hadn’t loved Adara as a child; she had wanted the money. She truly believed, if she had access to that money, she would have kept Adara, and just hired a nanny to raise her.

That didn’t mean, though, that she wanted Adara to be raped. How could Ramos have done that and also convinced her that Adara was the guilty one? She was so stupid. She waited until she heard Adrian’s breathing slow.

The crushed sleeping pill she slipped into his coffee was finally having the desired effect. Very soon, he would be sleeping soundly. She needed to get away from him. He scared her almost as much as Dave had scared her, perhaps even more.

She stood in front of him and saw that he was fast asleep. His breathing was even and deep. She took her bag and opened the door of the cabin. She had taken the cash from his wallet and looked back one last time, he hadn’t moved. She walked outside and closed the door behind her as quietly as she could.

She walked to the curb and as she put the keys into the car door’s lock, she saw Adrian’s reflection in the window. He grabbed her by the neck, hit her head hard against the car, and whispered in her ear,

“I will hurt you in so many ways, that you’ll beg me to kill you.” He let go of his hand around her neck and she picked up her bag and walked back into the cabin with him behind her. He tied her hands and legs together as she lay on top of the bed.

“Sleep, we have a busy day tomorrow,” he said, and switched off the light. He went to the couch and soon she heard him snore. She cried silently until she fell asleep. Her heart had been pounding at what he would do to her, but for now, it seemed that he still needed her. He wanted Adara more.

The following morning, as soon as Juniper opened her eyes, Adrian placed a takeaway coffee cup next to the bed and put the phone down next to it. Juniper rubbed her eyes and sipped the coffee. It was terrible and lukewarm. She took the phone and punched in the number Adrian had written on a piece of paper.

“Hello,” Adara said, as she answered her phone. The number showed ‘private’ on her phone.

“Hi, Adara. It’s Juniper,” she said, anxiously.

“How did you get this number? What do you want?” Adara asked, angrily.

“I know you said you didn’t want to see me. But I really just want to take you to lunch and talk,” Juniper said to her.

“Talk about what?” Adara asked her.

“I have something I’d like to give to you. It belonged to your mother. I’ll be at that little place near Resurrection Bay, with the great fish, on Friday, at noon,” Juniper said, and hung up the phone. Adrian smiled at her.