Total pages in book: 225
Estimated words: 218500 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1093(@200wpm)___ 874(@250wpm)___ 728(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 218500 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1093(@200wpm)___ 874(@250wpm)___ 728(@300wpm)
Something catches the corner of my eye. One of the security guards pointing to the sky, looking at another guard.
There’s commotion beyond the trees where Ash stands and Naomi shouts, “Asher!” as a ball of fire erupts in the branches of the big oak tree directly behind him. The spark is quickly a fireball as Ash dives out of the way, disappearing behind our great grandfather’s headstone just in time to miss a bunch of fiery branches falling to where he was standing.
Before any of us can fully digest what we’re seeing, another fireball erupts to the left of that, behind a concrete fountain.
“It was a drone!” Josh gasps.
What the fuck?
People move fast and security guards surround my family as I turtle over Chloe while the sound of another explosion pierces the air.
What the fucking clusterfuck bullshit is this?
And now it’s also blizzarding. The air is filled with smoke, snow, and sparks. And I’m on the ground amid all the chairs, on top of my wife, and I need to get her the fuck out of here. And now!
Her frightened eyes hit my face as I help her to her feet, but crowd her, herding her through the human security guard wall toward the cluster of vehicles outside the perimeter of the service area. I lift her up and hold her close, glancing over my shoulder to see Josh pushing my father’s wheelchair as five suited guards form a wall around them.
“Don’t protect me, protect my fucking daughters you goddamn dimwits!” he cusses.
Guards surround all of us, so his statement doesn’t make sense to me.
I move faster but catch the fury on my father’s face as he’s wheeled away from his wife’s casket. A fiery tree branch lands on the ground beside it and sets the easel holding the collage of photos on fire.
Grace cries out in hysterics from Jonah’s embrace and Jonah pushes her in my direction so he can go stomp the fire out before it gets to my mother’s casket.
“Stay close, Grace,” I advise. “Hold onto my shirt.”
Ash joins Jonah, but Naomi grabs Ash and tugs on his arm, pulling him out of the way as another branch falls, just missing him. Eli is putting a crying Sabrina into my father’s limo. He rushes back to my mother’s casket. I have Chloe and Grace, but Ash, Jonah, and Carson along with two male cousins and Eli grab the handles for my mother’s casket and act as pallbearers, carrying her away from her gravesite as the fire spreads. Naomi rushes and puts her hand on the same handle as Ash, helping.
She’s already dead. No way am I leaving my wife unattended during this shit in order to rescue a dead woman.
“What the fuck!” My father shouts hoarsely as he’s helped by Josh and his driver into his stretch limo. “Fucking deal with this. You hear me, boys? Elijah!”
Dad stares at Eli with murder on his face.
“We will,” Eli vows with a mirrored expression as he backs away from the Hearse.
My eyes hit my own wife, who is where she belongs. In my arms. But she’s terrified. Pale. Also crying.
“I’ve got you. Nothing’s gonna hurt you,” I swear to her, pressing my lips to hers. I move us and get her into the passenger seat of my car. Grace gets into my father’s limo.
“Stay together. Convoy, Derek!” Eli shouts at me.
Carson pipes up. “Back to the Steele homestead everyone, please. And carefully.”
Chloe stares over her shoulder at the flame-engulfed cemetery as I drive away, hearing the sirens of the coming emergency responders.
I don’t want to go to the Steele homestead, but I don’t speak as Derek drives. Both of his hands are on the steering wheel, but his right hand is jerking as if he’s having muscle spasms. This was happening at the cemetery, too. I think it’s some sort of PTSD-related tremor. I can’t remember the exact terminology but do remember that people can have involuntary body responses because of trauma. I’m no expert, but Coraline minored in psychology, and we spent many hours quizzing one another during exams.
He’s breathing hard, staring ahead, mouth alternating between jaw clenching and lip curling.
My heart is racing, and I’ve got a tension headache.
What in the world was that? Someone said drones. Drones causing fires and explosions in a cemetery? I’m shook. It was horrific. People were running, screaming, and crying. Security was trying to get people to their vehicles in an orderly fashion, but it was chaotic. And Derek’s single-minded focus, as always, was me. He covered my body with his. He focused on getting me to safety. And his hand won’t stop twitching as he drives, but he seems to be in command of the vehicle.
It’s just a short drive back to Derek’s parents’ home and a valet gets into the driver’s seat before I’m out of the passenger seat. Derek is already grabbing my hand before the shoes that Grace sent me, black and red versions of the ones I was admiring like hers from the day of the anniversary brunch, touch the ground and we’re moving toward the house. My eyes scan the sky. Derek notices and grinds his teeth.