Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 55271 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 276(@200wpm)___ 221(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 55271 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 276(@200wpm)___ 221(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
“You’re right. Let’s do this.” I stand up, hand going out to help her sit up.
“Okay, here’s your letter. We’ll read them together but not aloud. I’m not sure I can handle doing that without crying.” She hands me the letter addressed to me.
My hand trembles as I see my name written in Montgomery’s signature scrawl. I settle down on the floor, back meeting the dresser. Tulsa moves so she’s sitting across from me, our legs touching one another’s once we straighten them out.
“You good?” I ask while I slide my finger beneath the sealed envelope, preparing myself for the unknown.
“I am. Strangely enough, it’s bringing me a sense of peace.” With that settled, I pull the letter from the envelope, take a deep breath, and settle in.
Ledger,
If you’re reading this, it means I’m long gone, living on the other side, watching down on you and Tulsa Rose. I know, you know. Not that it wasn’t obvious to see, the looks, the way you handled her by not going after something you couldn’t have. It means more than you’ll ever know. Tulsa is one of a kind, stubborn like only the Montgomerys are, and goes after what she wants, no matter who’s standing in her way. Which is why, without a doubt in my mind, you went along with what I left in the will. I know it’s going to hurt, not only her but you as well. Thank you. Thank you for being there for all of us.
Take care of yourself, take care of my sister, keep her safe, and love her like I know only you can. Life is for the living. Until we meet again, brother.
Love,
Montgomery
I close my eyes and tip my head back. The letter floats to my lap. I’m too busy trying to keep my emotions in check, trying my damn hardest not to break down, to be strong, for myself, for Tulsa, and damn it all to hell, for Mont. Fuck, I could kick his ass, making us wait all these years later, only for Tulsa to find them when it could have been as simple as leaving them with Flay. Fucking drama llama. A chuckle escapes me because this is exactly who he is, and damn does it make me miss him even more.
17
TULSA ROSE
My eyes leak like a fountain as I read the words in the letter, watching as every tear transfers onto the paper, smearing the ink and ruining the most priceless thing I have to my name.
Tulsa Rose,
Where do I begin? I guess the hard stuff needs to come first. I’ve written this letter and rewritten it a thousand times over. The fact that you’re reading this means I’ve failed you, that I left you after everyone else did, too. I’m so fucking sorry. If it’s any consolation, I was hoping to destroy this by the time you were off to college. No luck there. Don’t hate Ledger for sending you away. I saw the way you were around him, too close to being of legal age that I couldn’t keep the two of you apart. Not my main goal anyways. You are destined for big things, and if you stayed in Orange Blossom for college, you’d never experience the best part of your twenties life has to give.
I suck back some of my tears, knowing he lost out on his experience when Mom passed away. And when Daddy was gone, too, Montgomery definitely wouldn’t leave. Instead, he took business classes online, only in the beginning stages of getting his own business up and off the ground for a drunk driver to destroy his dreams, making him leave this earth entirely too soon.
I’m sorry that I won’t be at your graduation, either of them, or to watch you marry my best friend, because it’s not an if, it’s a when. I have one word of advice. It’s to live like today is your last, love with your whole heart, and to never take advantage of tomorrow. Tomorrow may not come. Anytime you need to talk, I’ll be in the woods by across the pond.
Love you big, baby sis,
Montgomery
The gaping hole in my heart that was only starting to scab over bursts wide open. I hold the letter to my chest, bring my knees in closer, and wrap myself up in a ball. No one prepares you for a handwritten letter, the one you can visualize your brother writing while sitting at the kitchen table or on the back patio, where he hung out when he needed to calm himself down from work, from me being an annoying sister, or because life was not kind to the Williams kids, even more so for Mont. It didn’t bother him, or at least he didn’t show it. My big brother, the man who put everything on the line, didn’t once think about himself when Mom passed, took care of me in a way Daddy no longer could, believes he failed me, and now I can’t tell him that he did everything imaginable. I’m so distraught, swallowed up by my own feelings, unaware of the presence surrounding me. His big body somehow manages to wrap around me, filling me with a warmth I had no idea I needed. The sobs wreck my world, and I feel like I’m back to square freaking one.