Total pages in book: 124
Estimated words: 118459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 592(@200wpm)___ 474(@250wpm)___ 395(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 118459 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 592(@200wpm)___ 474(@250wpm)___ 395(@300wpm)
Let’s hope, Ever. Let’s fucking hope.
FIFTY-FIVE
JULIA
I wake up to the sound of a dog barking outside. I reach my hand across the bed and pat around. Emptiness.
I sit up quickly and look around. There’s light pouring in the window and my heart leaps in my chest. Panic begins to set in.
Where are they?
I grab my robe and race out the door. Down the hall I go, rounding the corner to the living room. Ever is curled up on the couch, her cartoons playing softly on the television.
“Hey, baby girl. Where’s Crew?” I ask, tying my robe snugly around my waist.
“Daddy left.”
One hand goes to my throat and I choke back the tears.
He’s gone. Oh my God. What if . . .
“How long?” I ask. “Before your show started or after?” I glance at the clock.
“I watched part of one and then all of this one.”
A good forty-five minutes.
I smile as warmly as I can. “Okay. How are you feeling today?”
“Good. Daddy told me some secrets before he left. I can tell you one of them.” She grins mischievously. “There is an envelope for you on the counter. Daddy said to make sure you see it and you don’t spill your coffee on it.”
My heart races, thumping against all the walls in my chest. I barrel into the kitchen and spot the manila envelope propped up against the toaster.
Jules is scribbled on the front in Crew’s messy handwriting. I stare at it, almost afraid to touch it. But in the end, my curiosity wins out.
I pick it up and it’s heavier than I expect. I pop open the metal tabs in the back and pull out a stack of papers. I set them on the counter and go to toss away the envelope when I feel something in the bottom. I turn it upside down and something falls to the counter, rolling across the surface until it comes to a stop beside the coffee maker.
I start to pick it up and freeze. My knees go weak, a sob escaping from my throat. With a trembling hand, I reach out and pick up my wedding ring from Gage. I hold it up and look at it, no worse for the wear. I clutch it in my palm and squeeze my eyes shut. I can’t even process this right now.
Slipping it onto my right hand so I don’t lose it, I relish the feeling of it back in my possession. I can’t believe it’s here, that I have it back.
I pick up the stack of papers. The top one is a note from Crew. I shuffle through the rest and drop them on the floor.
My God.
Dropping to my knees, I scoop them up and try to keep my tears from dotting them. They’re the most beautiful, yet horrific, pages I’ve ever seen.
Life Insurance Policy No. 110302070202, Mr. Crew Michael Gentry. Pay On Death, Mrs. Julia Nicole Gentry.
I’m afraid to touch them. I shove them back in the envelope like they’re burning me. I never want to see them again.
With tears streaming down my cheeks, a heart beating so hard I think it might shatter, I pick up the note.
Jules,
First of all, yeah, I ’m totally stealing this idea from Gage.
Whatever happens tonight, remember it was my decision and mine alone.
I intend on walking in the front door in the middle of the night. You should be in our bed waiting on me. There’ll be no more of you sleeping elsewhere. After this is off my back, things will change a little bit. I’ll be around more. I’ll be able to help you with Ever. I’ll try to be everything you ever need.
If things don’t go as planned, there are papers in here. There’s a business card in there somewhere. Call the guy listed and he’ll take care of you. I knew him in college and he’s a decent guy. If I don’t make it home tonight, he’ll make sure things are taken care of. He knows to pay for the therapy and then cut you a check for the rest. Everything else, call Will.
I know you’re crying and you should stop.
I know you’re scared and you shouldn’t be. By the end of the night tonight, you’ll have the money we need one way or the other. Because if I don’t walk off that mat a winner, you can cash those life insurance papers in. That’s the thing . . . we win either way. I promised you the money and you’ll have it.
I love you. I’ll love you until my last breath.
Crew
PS~Your ring is in here, too. Keep it. It’s yours.
I crumble onto the floor, unable to control the sobs escaping my throat.
I cry for Crew, for Ever, for me, for Gage.
I cry for the baby I’m carrying that I didn’t get the chance to tell him about.