Cedar Woman (179 page)

“
It’s all r
i
gh
t
,
Kelly.
It’s all ri
gh
t.
I
n
eed
t
o t
h
i
n
k,
bu
t
I’ll
be o
k
ay.” Kelly
res
p
o
n
d
e
d
with
a
t
h
u
m
p
of
h
e
r
tail
and
a
n
u
d
g
e
of
L
e
na’s
h
a
n
d
.

Lena
sat
on
t
h
e
flo
o
r,
h
e
r
b
a
ck
against
t
h
e
bed
fra
m
e,
and
sl
o
wly
pet

Kell
y
’s
f
u
zzy
hea
d
,
once
a
ga
in
r
ep
o
si
n
g on
her i
n
a
’
s
la
p
.

I
d
id
l
o
ve
M
ich
ael,
but
w
a
s
i
t
bef
o
re
or
a
ft
er
our
w
e
d
d
ing
?

M
e
m
o
ries
of
t
h
eir
ti
m
e
t
og
et
h
er
in
t
h
e Short North
con
d
o
floo
d
ed
b
ack.
It
was a
g
ood
t
i
m
e,
a
h
ap
p
y
t
i
m
e,
th
e
d
ays
filled
with
w
o
r
k
ing
t
oget
h
e
r
at
V
i
cki’
s
,
t
h
e
l
a
t
e
n
i
gh
t
s
f
i
ll
ed
w
it
h
l
o
ve
m
ak
i
ng
an
d

ende
a
r
m
ents.

Did I
f
a
ll in
love with
h
i
m t
h
e
n
?

Yet, wit
h
in
those
m
e
m
o
ries
o
f
Michael,
dwe
l
t
those
of
Sonny
as
well: Sonny,
always there,
especia
l
ly
after
Michael
and
Vick
i
’s
deaths;
Sonny, s
t
epp
i
ng
i
n
as
f
a
t
h
er
t
o
L
og
a
n, c
o
n
ti
nual
l
y c
h
ecki
n
g
t
o see
t
h
at
b
o
t
h w
e
re safe
a
n
d car
e
d f
o
r.

S
o
nn
y
.

Lena
l
o
o
k
e
d
d
o
w
n
i
n
to h
e
r
l
o
vi
n
g
c
o
m
p
ani
o
n’s
e
y
es
a
n
d sigh
e
d. “Do
e
s
it
m
a
tte
r
,
S
u
nka
S
k
a
?
” she
ask
e
d.
I
l
o
ved hi
m
,
and
that is what

m
atters.
B
u
t,
he
is
g
one
no
w
,
a
nd
I
h
a
ve
m
ourn
e
d
t
h
ese
17
y
ea
r
s.
It
is t
i
m
e to
l
ov
e again?

S
o
nn
y
.

Lena re
m
e
m
b
ered h
e
r fat
h
e
r
a
n
d h
i
s val
i
ant
s
tr
u
g
g
l
e
t
o r
e
gain h
i
s
m
obil
i
t
y
,
his
stre
n
g
t
h
.
She
r
em
e
m
b
ered
t
h
e
lessons
s
h
e
learn
e
d
f
rom
him d
u
ri
n
g
t
h
ose
h
ard
ti
m
es.
A
t
e
was
not
a
fra
i
d
to
l
o
ve.
A
t
e
tri
u
m
phed
f
o
r love.

“
Yes, it’s ti
m
e
to
lo
v
e a
g
ain.”

W
i
t
h
t
h
at,
L
e
na
slipp
e
d
to
t
h
e
flo
o
r
b
es
ide
Kell
y
’s
w
arm bod
y
. Wr
ap
p
i
n
g
her
ar
m
s aro
un
d
h
er
l
o
vi
n
g f
o
r
m
,
after
al
m
o
st
two dec
a
de
s
,
sh
e fi
n
ally
we
p
t
.
S
h
e
w
e
p
t
f
o
r
t
h
e
l
o
ss
of
you
n
g
lo
v
e,
f
o
r
t
h
e
d
eath
o
f
a

y
o
u
n
g
m
an
in
his
pri
m
e,
her
lovi
n
g
a
do
p
ted
m
o
t
h
er,
an
d
finall
y
,
f
o
r
t
h
e

jo
y
of
lo
v
e
renewed.