Total pages in book: 73
Estimated words: 69777 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 349(@200wpm)___ 279(@250wpm)___ 233(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 69777 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 349(@200wpm)___ 279(@250wpm)___ 233(@300wpm)
But every time I thought of it, my chest ached so bad that I couldn’t breathe. “I don’t think I am ready to leave yet. It’s a process.”
Leaving someone you loved should have an instruction book.
“I understand. But once you’re away from there, it’ll be less painful.”
Possibly. If I could survive actually driving away. I knew I was going to have to eventually, but today wasn’t that day, and tomorrow wouldn’t be either. I had to grieve, and I needed to be locked away in a room to do it.
“I’m sure it will be. Just a couple of days to prepare. We need our things.” I had no idea how we were going to get those. I’d not been in a good headspace to pack things up yesterday.
“Will someone go get them for you?” she asked hesitantly.
“Maeme will arrange it, I think.”
“She’s the grandmother, right? I mean, it’s really nice she is letting y’all stay, but can you trust her? She is Mafia.”
“Yeah, I can. She doesn’t agree with Storm’s choices.”
She’d looked let down in him, ashamed of him, but not surprised. As if she had thought it was a possibility.
“Okay,” she replied. “I’ll wait to hear from you.”
“Thanks, Pepper.”
“That’s what friends are for.”
Until her, I hadn’t known just how helpful it was.
We said our goodbyes and ended the call. I knew there wasn’t a better option for us. Going to Miami was the best answer. I had a job, we had a place to stay for the moment, and I had a friend. I should be relieved, but I just felt an emptiness when I thought of it.
My phone dinged, and I looked down at it. Storm’s name was like a punch in my gut. I read the one sentence he’d sent.
No matter where you go, you will always be mine.
I dropped the phone and covered my face, wishing I hadn’t looked at it. He hadn’t called or texted after I left yesterday, and part of me had expected him to. I’d told myself if he did, I would turn my phone off. But there had been nothing from him. He must still be monitoring my calls.
A knock on my door startled me, and I stared at it. I wasn’t ready to see anyone. Not even Dovie, and I hated that. She deserved more from me. I was doing all I could to keep from falling apart over and over.
The knob turned, and Maeme appeared with a tray of food in her hands.
“Thought I’d bring you breakfast. You need to eat something. Dovie has already eaten and is out in the sunroom, reading a book.”
I nodded. “Thank you. I’m sorry I haven’t come out. I just …” I didn’t know what to say. I was a complete wreck?
“Don’t go apologizing to me. You’ve had your world rocked. That’s the kind of blow that knocks you to your knees. You stay in here as long as you need.”
She placed the food on the bed in front of me.
“Thank you,” I said again, not knowing what else to say.
She was treating me like one of her own when I wasn’t. Storm was. I didn’t have adequate enough words to say to her.
“I’m gonna say something, and then I won’t say no more,” she began. “That boy did some downright stupid stuff.” She shook her head with a sigh. “I ain’t agreeing with any of it. Not a one. But until you, I’d have said Storm was one of the most sane boys out of my bunch. My own grandson included. Whatever it was that caused him to do the things he did must have been caused by some powerful emotion. That ain’t something everyone gets in this life. Which is probably good since it’s criminal behavior, but that’s beside the point. This life here, the one we live, it ain’t black and white. It’s a real dark shade of gray. And not everyone is meant for the things that might not be considered stable in our heads.”
She patted me on the hand and motioned for the food. “Now, eat something, or you’ll get weak.”
I could only nod. She turned and left the room, closing the door with a quiet click. I stared at the breakfast she’d brought me. Waffles, bacon, fresh berries, and whipped cream. Even looking at it, I had no appetite. She’d gone to the trouble of making it and bringing it up here to me. I had to force some of it down.
I thought over the things she’d said. Not sure if she was trying to tell me I either had to face the fact that Storm was and would always be twisted or that they were all twisted in their own way. This was deeper than them being involved in criminal activities. I understood that. I didn’t judge.