Total pages in book: 106
Estimated words: 97951 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 490(@200wpm)___ 392(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 97951 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 490(@200wpm)___ 392(@250wpm)___ 327(@300wpm)
“Broken children have to heal, or the broken cycle will continue. I’m not going to let anyone from my past or present stop me from achieving my objectives, stop my healing, and doing what is best for me and my family, Daddy. Regardless of everything, and I mean this from the bottom of my heart, I want you to rest in peace. I hold no ill will towards you. I am releasing it today. The resentment. Gone! The hatred. Gone! The blame. Gone! The forgiveness? I’m workin’ on it…
“I want you to know that I am okay, regardless of you abandoning me. God was there. I’ve been carried a mighty long way. My brother, though younger than me, was a protector, too. I can’t stop the rain, but I can trust myself to survive the storm. You were the storm, and now, the sun is out, daddy. Ain’t nothing that has happened to me, not happened to someone else already that walked this Earth before me. Someone out there survived the same hardships I’ve endured, ’cause ain’t nothing new under the sun. This is my first time coming to your grave, and it will be my last. I am done with this. The sun will not go down on my wrath for another day. I have said what I have to say and now, I am saying, “Goodbye.”
She bowed her head while the tears kept flowing, stinging her eyes. Lennox took her in his arms and rocked her. She held onto him right back, wrapping her arms around him. Squeezing for dear life…
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
A Cross to Bear and a Champagne Wedding
Grandpa Wilde sat in his study carving a block of wood. He hadn’t done such a thing in years, and being out of practice earned him a few splinters. He bent over, taking his time, being as meticulous as could be. The knife moved deep and slow as he whittled the wood into form. The largest window in his office was open, so he enjoyed the view of his back terrace. The chirping of birds and a nice breeze flowed as The Monkees’, ‘Daydream Believer’ played throughout the house. He paused to swipe a thin strand of his long hair from his face with a flick of his finger. Most of his tresses were pulled back in a taut silver braid that draped his back. Today, he simply felt like doing something new, but something old, too. Returning to his roots.
“As a boy, I used to make things out of wood. I was pretty good at it, too… Somethin’ borrowed, somethin’ blue…”
In a few hours, his grandson, Lennox Wilde, would be getting married. He smiled big and wide, imagining Lennox’s exhilaration on his special day.
“Gotta give it to ’em,” he mumbled. “That bastard really pulled that shit off. Surprised me, and that’s hard to do. I didn’t think Lenny boy had it in him. Well, Lennox, looks like you and that devilish bitch are cut from the same dirty cloth. A match made in heaven or hell. I thought about showing up, doin’ something to remind you that I can still get at cha, but I made a promise to you in that contract, and I also have your sister to keep in mind. I imagine Silva’s there in attendance, and she wouldn’t like that. Now the tables have turned.” He shook his head and chuckled to himself. “First it was you on the outs with her. Now, it’s me. Can’t say I like it over this way too much. Can’t say it feels good. I don’t deserve this though. I gave that girl everything and was there for her and her goofy husband in their time of need. I figured Lennox would tell her everything when I asked her to reach out to him, sing like a bird, but I didn’t think Silva’s ass would believe him!
“After all, I’ve worked on her since she was a little girl. Molding her. Treating her like a princess. I let it be known that he was a paid killer, amongst other things. Whew weeee!” He chortled, though inside, his heart was broken into a thousand tiny pieces. “It don’t much matter anymore. A deal is a deal. I told myself, promised myself actually, that if these boys found a way out of their contract that met my specifications, I’d leave ’em be. I kinda regret doing that now, but sometimes we have to keep our own selves in check. Checks ’nd balances, if you will. Lennox, you went a little too far. You sure did a number on ol’ Sam. Of course, I’m not certain what part was you, and what part was Kage’s mentally deranged ass. Now I’ve got another child not talkin’ to me, my son Frederick, and Sam can’t talk to me even if he wanted to.