Lost in Silence (The Lost Series Book 1) by Tracie Douglas Read Free Book Online

it.
    “Alice, please don’t sleep in there, come to the bed,” I say softly, hoping she will listen. She doesn’t. “At least take a pillow and the blanket.”
    No response.
    I sit for what seems like hours before I hear her soft snores coming from her makeshift bedroom. I sigh, stand up and flop onto the bed. I won’t bother her anymore but after this night, I’ll be damned if she sleeps in another closet.

Chapter 4
    Alice
    I woke to silence.
    Beautiful silence.
    Was I dreaming? Had I really escaped Erik again?
    It wasn’t a dream, it couldn’t have been. Then why am I sleeping in the closet? My eyes fill with tears. I should’ve listened to my family, my friends, when they told me Erik was a bad guy. I would give anything to go back to that moment and make a different choice. Why can’t I go back?
    I hadn’t thought about them in years, my family and friends. Thinking of them only hurt, so it was rare I let myself go there.
    When I went away to Julliard, it was the first time I had been away from home. The friends I made there were the first friends I ever had. To say I lived a sheltered childhood was putting it lightly. It consisted of tutors, lessons and all things violin. My grandfather was a well known violinist. His talent was something the world had only seen on occasion. My father was a good violinist but no matter how much he practiced or studied, he never had the notoriety or talent of his father. My parents spent their time working and training, their music was always first. I rarely saw them outside a concert hall or practice room. My grandfather always made time for me though and went to great lengths to make me feel special in the world.
    From the moment I was able to hold a violin, I lived it. I breathed it. I slept with it. I even bled all over it. My father was determined to see me surpass my grandfather and made it a point to give me whatever advantage I needed to make it happen. Since he didn’t possess the talent to be greater he was dead set on making sure his one and only daughter did, which made for a lonely childhood. Despite always be surrounded by people, I was alone. I yearned for a normal childhood filled with sleepovers, play dates, parties, friendships, boyfriends, hell, even school. But I wasn’t allowed and instead spent my days with a violin in hand rehearsing from morning to night.
    Juilliard couldn’t have come at a better time but it was my parents’ worst nightmare. One of the most prestigious performing arts schools in the country accepted me as a student, at age fourteen no less, but I wasn’t allowed to attend. Juilliard would take me away from them and that was unacceptable since I was still a child. They made me defer my acceptance until I was eighteen. Guess I wasn’t ready to experience life on my own yet. Maybe they were right.
    But Juilliard was my way out, my way to finally break free of my parents and their strict rules. The day I turned eighteen, I latched onto it with both hands and refused to let go. I fought daily with my parents, pushing them to keep their word to me. They tried everything to get me to stay but I wouldn’t hear any of it. I wanted Juilliard.
    Now I wish I hadn’t fought them so hard. I wish I had given into to them one last time and taken the position of second chair in their orchestra. If I had, I wouldn’t be cowered in a closet of some seedy motel room with olive green carpet.
    A soft knock at the door jolts me out of my thoughts.
    “Alice, are you awake?” the voice from last night asks softly from the other side. Hudson . “I brought you some breakfast and a fresh change of clothes. You can shower if you want.”
    My mind flashes through the last twenty-four hours, reminding me of how I came to be here. I had escaped Erik again. Thanks to Hudson and a not so easily fooled detective, they saw through Erik’s webs of lies and arrested him. I was camped out in Hudson’s closet and I was safe, at least for the time being.
    Shit ,