Page 57 of Anchored to the Storm

Watching him love Sarah, so purely, I realized he had never forgotten how his grandpa and grandma shared affection.

Still staring at me, he told Sarah, “What a pair we make. Both with fathers who tried to kill us. Both with fathers who succeeded with our mothers.”

If my heart didn’t insist on living to help my friends, my Misfits, I think it would’ve stopped beating that night.

I woke a couple of times during the night when Harmony checked on us. I’d give her a thumbs up, then she would sigh with relief before shutting the door again. Next thing I knew, when I woke again, I heard a happy giggle. “There’s bacon.”

The scent of bacon filled the bedroom and charged my hunger. “Harmony is setting me up for failure. How will I ever find a girl who cooks like her so I can marry her?”

Another giggle commenced as Sarah shot out of Ethan’s bed and raced from the room. He and I sat up, looked at each other, then darted from our beds. Sarah was after all the delicious bacon. And she was going to get her fill because Ethan and I got our shoulders wedged in the doorway, fighting for breakfast.

Ethan shouted, “Sarah! You better save us some!”

“Get off me!” I tried to shove at Ethan, but my arms were stuck with my elbows bent, the width of my shoulders pinning me there like a challenged T-Rex. All I had that was working properly was a leg, and I used it to trip Finn as he ran past us, laughing.

Crash! Went the jock into a wall. “Asshole.”

I tried to get the next body darting past us, but the little fucker was quick. Seb jumped over Finn on the floor, then shot down the stairs. “Saraaaaah! Share!”

Just as Finn was finally getting off the floor, I sprang free from the tricky doorway and stepped on him. Oof! Complained the jock as he was flattened back to the floor.

It happened again as Ethan followed me.

Finn was going to shove a baseball bat up our asses. We knew this because that’s exactly what he yelled as we took two steps at a time.

I was thankful for the fun. For the grasp of lighter moments. I loved how we all smiled at the end of breakfast when Ethan tried to enjoy his last piece of bacon until Sarah’s pout had him handing it over. Of course, we all called him a pansy, but in secret, she had made it safely through the night. And even she felt a little lighter.

Tonight, we were going to a sad affair: the vigil. We needed all the strength we could muster.

It was growing dark. The sun had dropped low in the sky and now barely hovered above the horizon. Soon the splotches of gold, red, and purple would disappear. We all piled into Dale’s van and drove toward the outskirts of town. The pastor’s church, due to Blue’s mother’s request, is where Blue was buried. The van was quiet. All the Misfits were slightly ill to be returning.

Dale revealed the tension he held with his no-nonsense tone when he said, “There’s something about this preacher-slash-pastor that isn’t sitting well with me. You all need to stay away from him. Got it?”

The air in the van thickened like a deadly fog. “Got it,” we all mumbled.

Dale added, “My research has stumped me. Lots of questions. I’ve found claims from previous followers that report medical care is against the religion.”

That’s precisely what Johnny had told us.

Dale continued, “Some sort of independent Christian group, but now, in interviews, this pastor disputes those claims.”

Trying to cover his fucking tracks.

He exhaled, his heavy heart so evident. "So, tonight, we stick together and make this all about our Blue.”

It’s all about Blue, promise. And possibly a murder. -Shrug-

Passing the field before reaching the church, where Baby Blue had been found, was a monument of sorts. A wooden cross rose from the ground, surrounded by stuffed teddy bears and balloons.

I quickly looked away because I didn’t want to imagine how she looked when found, clinging to life. Seeing her in the hospital, after being tended to, was bad enough.

From the back seat, I reached to the seat in front of me and grabbed Seb’s shoulder. I gave it a loving ng shake, then directed his tense face from the passenger window to the windshield.

He gave a curt nod.

Pulling up to the church, it already looked so different from when we had attended Blue’s funeral.

Dale sounded beyond troubled. “Someone is already putting recent donations to use.” He shook his head. “Doesn’t seem right, if you’re asking me.”