PROLOGUE
The end of GOLD LUST
Julia
The cape slipped from my fingertips as I blinked. The room around me wobbled, much like the illusion of heat on hot pavement. The temperature began to rise.
Margaret slouched down on the sofa.
“Margaret?” Her name from my lips sounded odd. “Vicki,” I yelled her name as her glass of champagne shattered on the edge of the hearth and she reached for the mantel.
“Don’t drink it…” she mumbled as her knees buckled.
I’d only had a sip of the champagne, not as much as either of the other ladies. Yet my hands began to tremble as I tried to steady myself.
“You aren’t wearing the pearls.”
I turned to the unfamiliar voice. Blinking, I tried to focus. “W-what are you doing here?”
It was the woman from the consignment shop, the same one at the coffee shop.
The dress she wore matched mine.
The exact same.
In her grasp, she was holding the box with the pearls. “Let me help you.”
I pushed my way past her to the bathroom. Turning on the faucet, I splashed water to my lips.
The light-haired woman came around the corner. “You’re very pretty. Of course, you do have youth…that will fade.”
My stomach cramped as I leaned forward. “Please leave.”
My thoughts went to my phone, but I couldn’t recall where I’d put it. “My bodyguard….”
“Oh, I think it’s time for you to rest, Julia.”
“No. My wedding.”
She had my champagne flute. “Here. Take another drink.”
I shook my head, swiping the flute from her grasp. The crystal exploded upon impact. Shards of glass and liquid littered the floor. “Vicki.” I tried to scream, but my voice was merely a whisper. My fingers blanched as I held tight to the vanity. “I…I.”
The woman smiled as my knees gave out and the cramping increased.
On my knees, I could see her lips moving and hear her voice, but everything around me was too far away—as if I were watching through a telescope. I flinched as she leaned down, pulling the hairpiece from my hair.
From my place on the floor, I watched as she added the accessory to her hair. “I need to hurry. It’s my wedding day.”
“Who…?” I wasn’t sure if the word was audible. “Who are you?”
Her smile faded as she adjusted a necklace with a large solitary diamond in the reflection. “You know who I am.”
I shook my head. The pieces weren’t falling into place.
“I’m the woman Van loves, the only one he’s ever loved.”
Her smile reminded me of a cartoon—too large and too exaggerated.