by Joanna Wylde
“It’s time,” Carrie said. “They’re all waiting for you.”
Joy gave me a sudden, panicked look and I laughed.
“You’ve been sleeping with him for three years,” I reminded her, my voice echoing hers earlier. “I think you’ll be okay. Now let’s get downstairs before your father gets bored and decides to go for a ride or something.”
• • •
The look on Gage’s face as Joy came down the stairs would stay with me for the rest of my life.
He’d seen the dress before, of course—he’d paid for it, after all—but still . . . it was different this time.
“You look beautiful, little girl,” he said, holding out his arm for her. “Are you sure you want to marry that kid? I don’t think he’s good enough for you.”
“He’s the only man I’ve ever met who will put up with you,” she said sharply. “You better take what you can get or you’ll be stuck with me forever.”
From the lawn, I heard the music start, and the bridesmaids began lining up.
“Time to get our asses outside,” Carrie told me. Usually the mother of the bride would be escorted by an usher or family member, but Carrie had insisted on walking me down herself, and who was I to argue? Together we held hands, offering each other a tight squeeze, and then I gave my husband and daughter one last look.
My perfect family. Today everything changed, but I could handle that. Enrique was a good boy, and she loved him.
Joy winked at me, then glanced toward the window.
“It’s time, Mom. They’re all waiting. You lead the way.”
AUTHOR’S NOTE
When I started writing this book in 2015, Washington State was suffering from the worst fire season in its recorded history. By late June, more than 313 wildfires were already burning across the region. Many of these merged into massive fire complexes, including the Okanogan Complex, the largest single fire in state history. On August 19, three firefighters were killed when their vehicle crashed and was overtaken by the flames. President Obama declared a federal emergency that same week, on August 21.
Around that time, my family had planned a trip to Mount Rainier, to be followed by a visit to the Okanogan and Methow regions to research this book. I remember sitting on the deck of my brother’s cabin, writing as small white flakes of ash fell across my keyboard. We didn’t have full access to the news, but when my brother called later that night to tell me I should cancel the rest of my trip, I wasn’t surprised. The interstate (I-90) was already shut down, as were many state highways. We eventually made our way home by following smaller roads. At times, I could hardly see where I was driving because of all the smoke.
That summer and fall, so much smoke covered eastern Washington and northern Idaho (where I live) that the sky was orange during the day, and you couldn’t see the sun. Children had to stay inside, and sporting events were canceled. The smoke reached as far north as Calgary, Alberta, where dangerous levels of ozone and particulates were measured at ground level. These massive plumes covered thousands of square miles.
Closer to the fires, residents were forced to evacuate, and I remember watching as the emergency alerts came out, ratcheting up the levels as the situation grew more critical. Enormous planes (DC-10s) flew low over the town of Chelan, dropping red fire retardant on homes as the people evacuated. Just like Carrie’s fictional aunt in Reaper’s Fire, many rural residents had no choice but to turn their livestock free and hope for the best.
By October, more than a million acres had burned as three thousand firefighters, the Washington State National Guard, and the U.S. Army fought to save homes and lives. Joining them were fire crews from many states. There were even fire managers who came all the way from Australia and New Zealand, including some of those who fought the Black Saturday bushfires. As in the book, the governor also called upon residents to volunteer.
The closest thing I’ve ever experienced to this event was the eruption of Mount St. Helens, which happened when I was a very small child. I hope I never see anything like it again.
Because I was so deeply impacted by this natural disaster during the writing of Reaper’s Fire, I made a deliberate decision to adjust the series timeline slightly to accommodate its inclusion. I just couldn’t see how a book that took place within the fire zone could be written without including the events of last summer. This change doesn’t effect the content, story line, or internal consistency of any individual book, but it did create a slight discrepancy within the larger series timeline. Ultimately, the goal of fiction is to tell a good story, and sometimes that means bending the rules. I hope you enjoyed reading Tinker and Gage’s story.
Joanna Wylde is the New York Times bestselling author of the Reapers Motorcycle Club novels, including Reaper’s Fall and Reaper’s Stand, and the Silver Valley series, including Silver Bastard. Visit her online at joannawylde.net, facebook.com/joannawyldebooks, and twitter.com/joannawylde.
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