Page 1 of Petals of Blue, Part One (Wilted Duet #1)

ERICA

There are moments that break you. Bits of time that shatter your perception of the future. Some that change you fundamentally and steal your hope.

For me, those punches came one right after another over the course of eight months. The hits of betrayal hurt so much I had no choice but to fortify my walls and harden my heart.

The pain wasn't the beginning, but that's what made it worse.

Friendship and loyalty were the start of our story.

The five of us were inseparable during high school.

Until I had to move. What once was camaraderie and young love turned into silent heartbreak.

The boys who brightened my days cut me out of their lives and cast a shadow over my future.

Without them, in a scary home of uncertainty and hostility, Erica became Blue.

Here shows the slow death of Erica Bennett.