Page 103 of Born to be Wilder

These were different. These moved through me cleanly, without grief, without fear.

These were the tears of relief.

I was going to choose the mastectomy.

I was going to choose my life over my vanity.

I was going to choose one percent.

I would fight with everything I had, my little widows at my side, and I would survive.

And not just survive but thrive.

I would be here for years of wishes, of adventures, of laughs and love and ridiculous ideas and whatever road came next—I would be here for it all.

I looked back at my widows.

My women.

My sisters…

My warriors.

The ones who would see me through the rough days ahead.

The fortune teller had been right about that.

And with them supporting me with their grins and their screams, I stood in the light and the noise and the cascade of beads and I was not afraid.

I was Alice.

I would fight.

And I would win.

SYLVIE

Epilogue

The theater buzzed with energy, a potent mix of excitement about the movie premiere blended with all the regular people freaking out that they were surrounded by celebrities.

I fought to keep my cool, hiding the nerves crackling beneath my evening gown. I smoothed the deep-emerald silk to keep myself busy while I tried not to stare at the woman two rows ahead who I was ninety percent certain had won an Oscar last year. Or the man several seats to my left who definitely had.

“Oh my God. Oh my God.” Roxie grabbed Marge’s arm, her voice climbing. “Is that… That’s… I can’t even⁠—”

“Breathe, baby.” Marge patted her wife’s hand. Then she straightened her fringed vest—the same vest Buck had worn in the movie—and grinned. “Though yeah, that’s definitely him.”

Roxie made a sound that didn’t have words in it.

“How much you wanna bet it’s him asking me for an autograph after this movie premiere?” Marge gave a slow, confident nod. “He’s gonna want a piece of Buck, for sure.”

“I still can’t believe you wore a costume to the premiere. We’re supposed to be dressed nice,” I said to Marge, though I was smiling.

Unbeknownst to us, she’d made a deal with Roger to buy the entire Buck outfit after we left the movie set and had it shipped home.

The vest. The chaps. The hat. The spurs.

Everything.