Breathe in…..…Breathe out.
Hope sees several white flower petals release their grasp on the tree and slowly fall to the ground, twisting and turning as they drop…drop…drop. They end their journey clinging to her hair, resting on her chest, and joining the other petals that are relaxing on the blanket.
Breathe in………….…Breathe out.
She takes in the sounds all around her that grow louder and louder the more she focuses on the here and now, and shuts everything else out. She listens to the water ripple down the stream behind them until it pours into the pond. The birds are singing with such intensity as they zip from one tree to the next in a dance as beautiful as any ballerina.
Breathe in…...................................…Breathe out.
Suddenly, Bonnie breaks the spell when she touches Hope on the face and says, “Aunt Hope……look at the red bird!”
Hope sits up and sees a bright red bird standing on the middle of her mom’s headstone. It starts singing the most wonderful tune as it dances back and forth as if to say, “Look at me….look at me.”
“It's a cardinal,” Hope says. “It’s a beautiful cardinal.”
Hope starts to cry, but remembers the words that Tian told her long ago in her tiny Thai house––the last words Faith spoke in the hospital.
“Don’t cry Mali… I be alright. I go to Jesus now. I free. Now I free.”
–– EPILOGUE ––
K ate, and her son Ben, returned to Waco to be with her family after Ryan’s death when she learned that Grace, Hope, and Bonnie will get all the money as well as the home and garden that she spent most her life working on. She couldn’t believe Ryan left Ben out of his will. Who raises a kid since he was a toddler but never even mentions him in his will? Obviously Ryan wasn’t the man she thought he was. All the years they spent together must have meant nothing.
With nowhere else to turn, she had to do something. Before leaving town, she went back to her lawyer’s office to make sure the will was valid. “I want to fight the will. Can you represent me in the case?” Kate asks.
“Ryan changed his will two weeks before his death. He went to the best probate attorney in town. He’ll vigorously defend the will that he created. All the necessary signatures and notaries are in place. Honestly, I just don’t see the grounds for contesting his will.”
“Can’t I try?” Kate asks.
“Sure you can try, but it will be very costly.”
“Don’t you lawyers work on a contingency fee or something?” Kate asks.
“That's for injuries when someone gets a settlement. For these type of cases any lawyer is going to charge you by the hour.”
“I don’t have the money to pay the eighteen thousand dollar bill you just sent me. How the hell can I pay for some big fight?”
“Why don’t you talk to our accounting department about a payment plan on your bill. I’m sure they’ll work something out with you.”
Kate has no intention of using the little money she has left paying some lawyer to fight a battle she cannot win. She sure won’t pay the same lawyer who, as far as she’s concerned, just lost her case and left her with nothing. Still, there has to be an answer. “What about his life insurance policy?” Kate asks.
“It seems that Ryan cancelled his life insurance policy three days after you gave him the papers to sign.”
Kate takes her e-cigarette from her purse and holds it in her hand. She gave up smoking after Ryan made a little comment on their second date about people who smoke. It was nothing big––actually it was quite subtle––but she quit smoking that very night and never touched a cigarette in thirteen years until recently. Smoking is prohibited inside the building but her lawyer’s better judgment tells him to let it go.
She looks nothing like the woman who met Ryan at the Hilton only a few weeks back. She was wearing a $2,200.00 dress and matching Gucci shoes and purse. Her clothes, her hair, and her makeup all exuded confidence. Now her face shows the worry and sleepless nights she’s been living with. She’s already lost twelve pounds from not eating. Her hand shakes a little as she takes a puff and blows the smoke straight up without thinking a thing about it. It helps to calm her nerves.
“It makes no sense,” Kate says exasperated. “Why cancel his life insurance? Why not just name his kids as the beneficiaries?”
“I don’t know what to tell you. I have no idea what he was thinking.”
“How did this happen?” she asks.
“It appears that Ryan was quite clever in managing the family property, Mrs. Brunick. The pre-marital agreement you signed made sure all his earnings throughout the marriage remained his separate property. If you divorced, you would have received $100,000 for each year of the marriage. If Ryan dies, however, his last will determines everything. Well, pursuant to his will, the kids will get almost all the money, the stocks and bonds, the vacation home, and all the rental homes.”
“What do you mean almost all the money?” Kate asks.
“Well, he left some money to his church.”
“How much?”
“Two hundred fifty thousand dollars.”
This is like fingernails on a chalkboard. It’s almost comical. “Freakin’ great,” Kate says again blowing smoke into the air. She sits back in her chair and takes another puff. Her anger and frustration continue to build the longer this meeting goes on. Clearly challenging his judgment, she shakes her head and asks, “Why didn't we just file the divorce papers?”
“We discussed this, Mrs. Brunick. We agreed we’d have more leverage if we tried to settle before making things public. Otherwise we had to deal with that prenup.”
Kate’s anger gets the best of her so she talks louder. “No, you discussed it. Under the prenup I would have received one million three hundred thousand dollars, but I listened to you. I followed everything you said. Remember….don’t negotiate!” she yells. “Well, look at me now. I have nothing––actually, I have less than nothing because I owe you. I haven’t worked in thirteen years. Now what am I supposed to do?”
“How could anyone have seen this coming?” her lawyer asks.
“Isn’t that your job? Aren’t you supposed to see things coming? I guarantee you, Ryan would have seen it coming.”
Her lawyer sits in his chair without responding. He has another client, a paying client, about to arrive. At this point he wants her out of his office, but he doesn’t know how to ask her to leave.
Kate inhales, blows the smoke directly towards him, and says, “Ryan won. He played me for a fool…he played you for a fool.”
“Mrs. Brunick….he’s dead. How can you say that he won?”
“What if Ryan didn’t die?” Kate asks.
“What do you mean?”
“Just what I said. What if he didn’t die in that wreck?”
“What are you talking about? The police investigated this. Ryan’s secretary saw him drinking and was concerned about his safety. The security guard, and two witnesses, saw him leave the building very intoxicated. Several motorists saw him weaving all over the road right before the crash. He almost ran two of them off the road. They identified Ryan as the driver.”
“Really?” Kate asks, dismissing everything he just said. “We’ve driven down that road hundreds of times. Do you actually think Ryan Brunick would ever drive his car off some cliff?”
“Yeah, but he’s never been that intoxicated.”
Kate looks away, takes another hit from her e-cig, and shakes her head in disbelief.
Her lawyer knows Kate’s desperate for an answer––no matter how implausible. He reaches forward and pats her hand. “Mrs. Brunick, are you okay? I understand you’re upset, but what you’re suggesting is impossible.”
She pulls her hand away, clearly showing her disdain for the man she hired to protect her. With nothing left to discuss, she returns her e-cigarette to her purse and clips it shut. She stands up and asks, “How many times….how many times have you gone against Ryan?”
<
br /> “Four times,” he answers.
“And how many times did Ryan win?”
“Four,” he says much quieter, looking down.
“Don’t you see?” Kate asks shaking her head. “Of course you lost. You’re no different than everyone else in this town. Ryan never loses. He always wins at everything.”
Kate walks right out the door, but her lawyer stays behind. He leans back in his chair and looks up at the ceiling contemplating this whole mess. He closes his eyes, shakes his head, and whispers, “Ryan might be smart…but this is impossible.”
–– ACKNOWLEDGMENT ––
I would like to take a moment and thank all my readers who invested their time and energy into reading my books. I know this sounds cliché, but in my case it couldn’t be more true. I didn't’ grow up thinking One day I’d like to write a book. I had the idea for The Killing of Faith so many years ago, but I was coming to conclusion that I would never write it. When I finished the book, I wasn’t sure how it would be received. The response from readers has been really great.
I never thought I’d write a second book. While writing, The Killing of Faith, I was not even thinking about another book. It was only when I started getting feedback, emails, and reviews from you –the reader–that I started a second book. I offer a big thank you to everyone who bought, read, reviewed, tweeted and/or Facebooked about The Killing of Faith, for helping me grow as a writer, and for joining me in this journey.
I especially want to thank my advance reader group who read, edited, and gave me feedback on The Beginning of Hope so I could get the book into your hands. Thanks to Varena Rozanski, Kay Painter, Rosanne Meyers, Ellen Aish, Pamela Long, Jo Richardson, Cesily Miller, Ted Wood, Christie Schneider, Suzy Orpin, Steve Bowling, and Robert Cummings.
I want to thank my fellow author, Doug Hardee. He inspired me to keep writing about Faith and Ryan. Without his thoughts and words, there would be no series.
Finally I want to thank my daughter, Kamrie Holms, who always takes the time to read my novels and give insight and suggestions on the world of a young adult female in today’s world. Thank you sweetie!
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The Beginning of Hope: The Highly Anticipated, Mind-Blowing Sequel to the Killing of Faith (The Killing of Faith Series Book 2) Page 24