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)
I slam my fist into the bag hanging in the corner.
“Did you hear me! Do you? Take me. I’ll be your sacrifice.”
I hold my arms out to the sides, my muscles twitching as the emotions become almost too much. I tilt my head to the ceiling and close my eyes.
“I’m right here. I give myself to you. Just let them be okay.”
I take a deep breath and blow it out, a feeling of warmth settling over my soul.
“Please, God, please, let them be okay.”
JULIA
“Please, God, please, let him be okay.”
I kneel in front of our bed, folding my hands in front of me. It reminds me of when I was a very little girl and my grandmother taught me how to pray. It’s not something I’ve done a whole lot of in my life, but something that has always made me feel comforted.
“I’ve been asking a whole lot of you lately,” I say out loud, my voice echoing around the room. “It seems you think I’m a whole lot stronger than I am. Well, I’m not.”
I dip my head, resting it on my forearms. “I’m not strong, not strong enough to deal with this.”
My words are choked by my sobs. Tears drip steadily off my chin and onto the University of Minnesota Wrestling T-shirt I found and slipped on.
“Please don’t abandon us tonight. Please keep your hand on him, God, and keep him safe. I need you to keep him safe. I’ve already given you Gage and am fighting to keep Everleigh. Why do you want to take everyone that I love?”
My entire body shakes, tears coming so powerfully, my sobs nearly ripping me in pieces.
“You can’t have him. I won’t give him up. I won’t!” I wail. “If you’re trying to punish me for something I’ve done, punish me! Give me cancer. Let me be in an accident. Take my legs and arms if you have to, but stop taking my heart and soul piece by piece. Please.”
I fall back onto the floor and lay flat, my hands on my heart. My chest shakes with the force of the sobs. I’m alone, terrified, and I know the worst is yet to come.
FIFTY-EIGHT
CREW
When the door swings open again, I can hear the crowd. Sal and Will come in and shut the door solidly behind them. “You ready?” Sal asks, his voice stern.
I roll my neck and stretch my arms overhead. “Yeah.”
Will nods, not really needing to say anything else. The look on his face explains it all. I nod back and the start of a grin begins on his face.
“Let’s get to it,” Sal says, opening the door again. The roar of the crowd pours into the room, music pumping through the stadium. The electricity is palpable, even from back here. It’s obvious that this isn’t just another fight for Hunter Davidson; this fight is a big deal . . . to all of us.
I take a step forward but Sal stops abruptly. He closes the door once again and turns to me.
“I just want to say something before we walk down that aisle.” He watches me carefully, like he’s searching for the words he wants to say.
“A number of years ago, I was driving passed Shaw’s and saw a bunch of kids fighting. Out of all of them, there was one guy that caught my eye. I stopped and got out and approached him. He was cocky and tough as nails. I’m looking at that same guy right now. He’s the toughest son of a bitch I’ve ever met.”
He pauses and takes a deep breath.
“Whatever happens after we open this door and walk down the aisle, don’t forget who you are. When I open this door, you’re gonna see things like you’ve never seen before. There’s gonna be more people out there than at all of your NCAA wrestling meets combined. There are movie stars, politicians, models, CEOs and all of them will have something to say. But you worry about who Crew Gentry is. You remember what you’re fighting for.
“You’ve gone from that unpolished kid with no direction into the man you are right now. A man that has more heart, sense, and loyalty in his pinky finger than most men have in their soul. It’s easy to be a man when you are the man, when life is easy and you’re shitting roses. But the true test of a man is how he handles things when life gets tough. When life throws you so many combinations that you can’t slip them fast enough. Let me tell ya, kid, you already passed that test. Now let’s go out there and finish this.”
We’re standing toe-to-toe. I can feel his energy, feel his support roll off of him. I absorb every bit of it I can and let it hit home, let his words marinate in my skull.