Page 136 of Running from Drac

We’re both so broken that we’re bleeding out, our emotions out of control.

And in that living room, something fractures. It’s like I can feel her heart hardening to ice, while mine solidifies to stone. What’s left of us isn’t family. It isn’t anything. It’s just wreckage.

The only bond we have left is the grief we stuff down, and the mutual hatred for a world where Pippa and Amber are no longer in it.

Epilogue One

Amber

My heart soars as the plane dips lower, taking in the breathtaking view below. Italy sprawls beneath me like an ancient canvas, the history itching to be explored. Even from up here, it feels like this is where I’m meant to be. Like the chaos I left behind has finally given me room to breathe. Making the decision to go even after everything that happened was therapeutic for me, but I can feel dread gnawing at me, knowing I’m going to have to go back, eventually.

I managed to grab all the important stuff when I left, packing up what little stuff I had and placing it into a small storage unit I’ll come back for later. Everything else is shoved into suitcases and my backpack, with only my spirit to guide me.

I couldn’t face Pippa, not after everything she said and did. Hell, I barely could look at Poppy as I shoved my things into boxes, her face haunting me, even though it was her twin who broke my heart.

“I’m going to miss you, Amber.”

“I’ll miss you too, Poppy.”

She stood in the middle of my door, watching me attentively as I placed my last few things into a suitcase. “You know you don’t have to move out.”

I shook my head while slamming a few pieces of clothing into a suitcase before zipping it up tight. “I can’t live with her, Poppy. Not after everything that happened.”

She nodded. “She’s sorry, even if she doesn’t say it.”

“Still doesn’t change the fact that she sabotaged my entire relationship all because she was jealous of me and Eddie.”

Poppy winced. “Yeah, I wish I had known.” It was in her tone. She knew.

“You don’t have to lie to me, Poppy. She’s your sister, of course you’re going to cover for her.”

“Amber, I—”

“Please don’t pretend anymore. The truth is out, Poppy. Just admit it. You knew and chose not to tell me.”

The guilt in her eyes was atrocious. She couldn’t even lie right.

“Where you gonna go?”

My shoulders lifted slightly. “I don’t know. I have this non-refundable ticket to Italy. I think I may go there. You can come too if you want?”

She shook her head. “I wish I could, but I have things to do here.”

“And I don’t,” I mumbled miserably. “All of that is behind me now.”

“What happened with the Australian dude? Are you going to see him again?”

“Don’t even get me started on that womanizing whore—”

“That bad, huh?”

“The bastard couldn’t even make it a night without sticking his dick in someone else. She offered him a lot of money he couldn’t pass up. Did I tell you she was fifty?”

“Fifty!”

“Gross, right? I was appalled. But that’s why I’m back here. I’m going to pack up my stuff, leave it in a storage unit, and figure it all out from there. There’s nothing here for me anymore.”

“What about me?” Poppy questioned, sounding offended.