Farewell | Solo
Set after The Truth Comes Out.
Once everything was said and done, Josephine stormed out of Brennan’s suite. As far as she was concerned they were done. In her book this was worse than cheating, the greatest betrayal that was there. But then again, she wasn’t exactly rational whenever anger was guiding her.
She left the Argent, with no particular destination in mind as she roamed Sterling’s streets. At night the city looked deceivingly exciting, like a new adventure was just waiting behind the corner. But at this point Josephine knew better than to let it delude her. If anything, muggers and rapists were the only things lurking. That, and the prospect of imprisonment, of your freedom being taken from you.
She found herself at Jules’ place, not quite sure why she ended up here in the first place. He’d be the only one to calm her down, to talk some sense into her and maybe even have her see the good in Brennan’s actions. But was that what she really wanted? Certainly not. And still, she didn’t turn on her heel to leave again but instead pulled out the key he had given her months ago. It had become her most precious possession.
Her hand slid into her pocket where the little metal object securely weighed down, providing her with a sense of comfort. She always claimed that she no longer had a home, hadn’t had one since that one fatal day when her whole life was ripped from her. Jules, however, … He was the closest to home she’d probably get to anytime soon. And it was the confines of his place where she truly felt safe, so far even that she’d occasionally let down her guards.
A sigh left her lips and she pulled the key out before sliding it into its hole, turning it in a way that felt all too familiar to her by now. Only that this time the door wouldn’t open.
She eyed the key in confusion, wondering if maybe it was the wrong one, which was absurd, considering that it was the only key she owned … Still, it wouldn’t work when she slid it into the keyhole another time, trying again and again. “Jules?” she called out, knocking on the door as a lump appeared in her throat. It had taken a few moments before realization finally set in or maybe she simply didn’t want to believe it, that unbearable and ugly truth that he had left after all. But then it hit her like a precisely aimed punch in the gut, knocking the air out of her lungs. She couldn’t blame him and yet in a way she did as angry tears blurred her vision. But it wasn’t him she was angry at, but herself.
This was happening. He would have told her if he had changed the locks for whatever reason. This was really happening. And suddenly, Josephine couldn’t breathe, starting to feel panic build up within her as she panted desperately with her hands resting on the door to steady herself.
She couldn’t lose it now, she needed to stay calm, to figure out where to stay tonight, how to deal with this on her own, without Jules, without Brennan, without Clara … She had done it before, with no one there to pick up the pieces, but it had never been this hard … And it was when Josephine felt her legs give in when she knew she was fucked.
