Page 25 of Broken Harmony
“She’s my best friend!” I sob. “I could have checked on her more.”
“And they would have arrested you for trespassing. They’re sick people, Ally. They would have done everything they could to ruin your life.”
“I would have happily gone to jail if it meant keeping her safe.”
“Ally.”
“Don’t Ally me!” I growl. “This whole fucking time you knew all the horrors she was going through and you didn’t tell me! Why, Mom, why would you keep this from me?”
“I was trying to protect you!” she sobs. “I was going to tell you the day you told me you won the competition. But then you told me you won, and I could hear how excited you were. You were about to start this amazing journey, Ally. I couldn’t take that away from you. I knew if I told you, you would have come home. You would have lost everything you worked so hard for.”
“That wasn’t your choice to make!” I scream, grabbing the phone as I force myself into a sitting position. “You should have told me. I could have been there for her, Mom. Maybe I couldn’t have prevented what happened, but I could have been there, holding her hand while she dealt with the horrific aftermath. She was alone.”
My chest tightens as I think about everything she’s been through, the pain she must have felt, the fear. And I wasn’t there for her.
“She was alone, and I wasn’t there to protect her.”
“I know, baby. I’m so sorry. I promise we’ve been watching out for her, making sure she has everything she needs. But it’s complicated. She’s under a no-contact order. Only the police and the Omega center have access to her.”
“She would have wanted me by her side,” I insist. But would she? I was the one who left her there, left her to be locked up and tortured.
“No, baby–”
“I’m coming home.” I struggle to get to my feet.
“What? No, Ally, don’t. There’s no point. They won’t let you see her. The trial ends today. She’s going to get her justice, baby, I promise. There’s no way they won’t lock them all up. She’s going to be okay."
“Nothing about this is okay!” I scream. “Nothing is okay. Nothing. I’m coming home. I don’t care what you say. I hate you!” I sob. “I hate you for lying to me. For taking away my chance to be there for my best friend!”
“Ally, don’t say that. Please don’t–”
I hang up the phone, throwing it on the ground as I run towards the bathroom. I made it just in time to puke up everything I had eaten this morning.
I cry harder than I’ve ever cried before, the pain in my chest so overwhelming that I’m struggling to breathe.
I need to get home. I need to see her, to make sure she’s okay.
“Fuck!” I roar. “Fuck!”
While I’ve been living this sweet life of fancy hotels and money, recording an album, making new friends, and starting a new life, the woman I’m in love with has been in literal hell.
Once I’m sure nothing else is coming up, I get to my feet, ignoring the way the world shifts under me as I stumble my way back into my room.
Grabbing my suitcase, I start shoving everything I can get my hands on into it. The only thing on my mind is getting out of here and back there.
I need to see her. To let her know how sorry I am. That I didn’t know, and if I did, I’d have been home in a heartbeat.
“Ally, what the fuck?” a voice sounds. My eyes snap up to see Julia standing in my doorway, looking at me in horror. “What are you doing?”
“Packing,” I grunt, going back to it.
“For what? You’re not leaving for another few days.”
“I’m going home.”
“Wait, what? No, you’re not.”
I swing a feral gaze her way. “Yes, I am.”
