Seduced By My Brother’s Best Friend

He will kill me

Vivian

~Five hours ago~

Stepping out of that damn mysterious house, I decided to walk.

I didn’t know how long or how far I would or can go. I just walked fast, not looking back until the numbness in my legs matched the numbness in my heart.

“Disappear before I wake up.”

The words replayed in my head like a broken record.

He was not being rude. I wouldn’t blame him. He was rich, handsome and capable. I was a broken thing, and men like him didn’t keep broken things. They used them and discarded them.

I wrapped my arms around myself to feel a little less colder. "Stupid.” I muttered to myself. "You are so stupid, Vivian."

I had let a stranger use me. No, I had begged a stranger to use me. And for what? To forget what my husband did to me? To feel something other than fear?

I reached the end of the driveway and stepped onto the main road.

To my left, the road seemed unfamiliar, scary even, lined by tall trees. To my right, it led back toward the city… toward the life I had just escaped.

I turned left.

I had no money. My purse was back at the bar where I had left it before getting in his car. My phone was dying. I needed my charger. My clothes. And.. Some money to survive.

And I had nowhere to go. My brother wasn't answering.

So, like a dog returning to its master after a kicking, I went back to the only roof I had.

I went back to Julian.

When the arrived, the driveway was empty, which gave me hope. Maybe he was at work. Maybe I could sneak in, grab my bank cards, pack a bag properly this time, and disappear before he came home.

I grabbed the spare key hidden under the doormat. My hands were trembling terribly so it took three tries to fit it into the lock.

When the door clicked open, silence greeted me.

I stepped inside with heart in my hand and closed the door softly behind me.

"Julian?" I called weakly.

No answer came.

I let out a breath in relief. He was gone. I had time.

I rushed toward the stairs to find my purse. But as I reached the landing, a sound stopped me dead in my tracks.

A moan.

Then another came.

My stomach dropped to my feet. It was coming from our bedroom.

I should have turned around. I should have run back out the door and never looked back.

But my feet moved on their own. They dragged me toward the slightly ajar door.

Another sound. A giggle. A woman.

I pushed the door open.

The sight before me froze the blood in my veins.

Julian was on our bed. With a woman.

She was straddling him with her back facing me. Her blonde hair bounced as she rode him.

Cathy.

Last time, I met her he introduced me to her as a colleague. He said she was working as the model for a campaign for his company.

"Oh, yes, Julian!" She screeched.

A strangled gasp escaped my throat before I could even stop it.

Julian’s head snapped up. His eyes locked with mine. For a second, there was shock. Then, it was replaced by a fury.

Cathy turned around, eyes wide.

Seeing me standing there, she immediately got off from his body and grabbed the sheet to cover her naked body.

"God!" She gasped and looked at him. “You told me she wasn’t coming back."

"Get out." I whispered. I didn't realize I was shaking. "I said get out!" I screamed. My voice tore through the room.

Cathy didn't need to be told twice.

She gathered her clothes from the floor in a messy pile and walked out immediately.

I heard her footsteps fading followed by the slam of the front door.

Then Julian stood up from the bed lazily. He seemed completely unbothered by his nakedness.

He didn't look ashamed. He didn't even try to apologize.

"You have some nerve, Vivian.” He kept his voice dangerously calm. "Disappearing for a day. Ignoring my calls. And then you burst in here and interrupt me?"

"You are sleeping with Cathy? Is that why you gave me all the open marriage nonsense?" I asked. Tears were blurring my vision. "After everything... after you beat me..."

“I beat you because you don't listen.” He roared, closing the distance between us. "And now look at you. You look like trash. Who were you with? Who f****d you, Vivian?”

He leaned close to my neck and sniffed. Then his face twisted in disgust. "You smell like cheap cologne and sex."

"I left because you nearly killed me!" I yelled back and stepped away.

"And you came back." He mocked. "Because you have nowhere else to go. Because you are nothing without me."

He grabbed a handful of my hair and yanked my head back.

"No, Julian, please…"

But the first blow came so fast I didn't see it.

His fist connected with my stomach. It knocked the wind out of me. I crumbled to the floor and gasped for air.

"You want to act like a w***e? I will treat you like one.” He spat and kicked me in the ribs, the same ribs that were already bruised.

I curled into a ball, trying to protect my head but he was relentless.

"Please!" I sobbed through the blood filling my mouth. "Stop!"

He didn’t stop.

He grabbed me by the throat and lifted me slightly off the ground before slamming my head back against the floorboards.

Pain flared in my brain. Darkness filled my vision.

"You belong to me!" He screamed angrily. "You don't leave until I say you leave! You don't f**k other men unless I tell you to!"

He punched me in the jaw and I felt my bone crack.

Finally, after what felt like an eternity, he stopped and kicked me for the last time.

Then without another word, he turned and stepped into the bathroom. The shower turned on a moment later.

I stayed there on the carpet, unable to move. The blood was drying on the carpet.

My body was on fire. My face felt swollen. My lip was split again.

I am going to die here, I thought. He is going to kill me when he comes out.

I turned my head to the side. Nothing. Then I searched my pocket. It was empty. Where was phone?

I looked around and under the the bed, I saw my phone. I didn't realize it had slipped from my pocket.

A whimper left my lips as I tried to reach out. I failed at first.

Then I slipped a little closer and dragged it toward me. The screen was cracked, but it lit up when I tapped the lock button.

I immediately opened the keypad. I didn't call 911. Julian knew lawyers… he knew the cops. He always talked his way out.

My thumb hovered over the contacts. I only had one hope left. Kael. Again.

I pressed the call button even though I knew he wouldn't pick up.

I brought the phone to my ear. The line rang, each second stretching unbearably long.

Please pick up. Please. even if you hate me. I still hoped.

The darkness was closing in. I could hear the shower turn off. Julian would be coming out soon.