Heart Of Marley

by Leigh, T. K.

  I smiled at her optimism.

  “I’m sorry about Mr. Monroe,” she offered. “But don’t worry. We’re concocting another scheme to mess with the rich housewives of this town. Even from up here. Oh, Grams says hi. And she’s not in pain anymore.” She turned to look at me, her chin quivering. “Either am I, but I hate all the pain that I’ve caused everyone. You were right. I should have talked to you first. I never should have…” She trailed off. “I always was a little impulsive and dramatic, wasn’t I?” she joked.

  “I really want to hate you for what you did. I miss you so fucking much, Marley. My heart physically hurts.”

  She nodded at me and wiped the tears falling down my cheeks. “I know. It hurts me, too. But there’s a reason for it, Cam.”

  “Then, by all means, please tell me what it is because I can’t possibly see a reason for it all, Marley. I honestly can’t.”

  She looked around slyly as if trying to ensure that no one would overhear her.

  “What are you doing?” I asked.

  “I could get into so much trouble if the big light finds out about this…”

  “You mean God? He does exist?”

  She shrugged. “That’s one of the big questions, isn’t it? You said it yourself. You’re a firm believer in the light and that’s what you are, Cam. And that’s what you will be. Someone is going to come into your life that is going to need you more than I did. You’re going to be her reason to live. You’re going to be this girl’s light in her otherwise dark existence. But, more importantly, she’s going to become your light, too. Your purpose. Your higher calling. You’ll bring her back from tragedy, despair, and torment. She’ll be a survivor, and it’ll be your beautiful heart full of light that makes her see that her past doesn’t define who she is. By doing that, you’re going to be able to save hundreds of women from having to endure unspeakable things. I needed to go… To keep them alive. That’s the purpose.”

  “How will I know?”

  “You will. This course is already charted. It won’t be an easy road for you, Cam. You’re going to try to save every girl you come across, thinking that by helping them, it’ll make up for what happened to me. But my course was charted, too. It was meant to happen.” She paused briefly, her lips turning up slightly in the corners. “Just so you know,” she said, her voice playful. “Your first born will be a girl. Feel free to name her after me.”

  “You know I will.” It was silent for a moment before I asked the question I didn’t want the answer to. “Will I ever see you again?”

  “Oh, Cam,” she exhaled. “You will. But not until it’s time. I’ll always be with you, watching over you.” She wiped the tears that had fallen down her cheeks, her voice turning light. “Well… almost always. I won’t be with you in the bathroom. You need to stop jerking off so much, by the way.”

  I shook my head as laughter and sobs rolled through my body.

  “Let me go, Cam,” she implored me. “You need to so that you can move on with your life. If you don’t, you’ll never be able to help everyone that you’re meant to. Please.”

  I took a deep breath, hating the thought of ever letting my sister go, but I knew that I couldn’t move forward if I didn’t. “Okay,” I agreed dejectedly.

  “Can you do me a favor?” she asked solemnly.

  “What is it?”

  “Can you tell Doug that I said hi when you see him? I know he’s worried about me. I just haven’t been able to bring myself to pay him a visit yet. I don’t know if I ever will.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Sure. I’ll tell my best friend that my dead sister visited me in a dream and said hi. That won’t put me the psych ward or anything.”

  “No. That won’t. But you’ll end up there eventually, the future Dr. Cameron Michael Bowen. You’ll make a difference. And you’ll save a lot of girls. You’ll meet one girl who will make you forget all your pain. Don’t worry. I’ll send you a sign.”

  “A sign?” I asked. “What kind…?”

  She raised her eyebrows at me.

  I nodded. “Got it. To the moon and back, Marley Jane.”

  “From the stars to the ocean, Cameron Michael.”

  EPILOGUE

  Twenty Years Later

  PUTTING MY LEXUS IN park outside of my house just a few blocks from the downtown area of Fernandina Beach on Amelia Island, Florida, my heart was racing in my chest, brilliant blue eyes permanently ingrained in my mind. The most amazing, gorgeous, spectacular blue eyes that I had ever seen. Getting out of the car, I walked through the front door of my house and ran up the stairs, opening the window in one of the guest rooms.

  It had been years since I had come out here, but something about the girl that fell into my life so unexpectedly made it seem like the right thing to do. And the way her body felt against mine as I carried her into her house after she passed out from getting over-served at a bar was unlike anything I had ever experienced before. There was this magnetism I felt and I had known her for less than twenty-four hours. I had no idea what to think. I needed my sister to tell me that I was just horny and that was why I felt this way, but that dream I had on the roof of my aunt and uncle’s house was still fresh in my mind, even twenty years later.

  Climbing onto the roof of my Victorian house, I leaned back. “Hey, Mar,” I said. “Is this your version of a belated birthday present, or just your way of smacking some sense into me? Or is this her? It’s been twenty years, for crying out loud! Part of me thinks that you were just messing with me.”

  I sighed. “I get it. I know I’ve been a bit of a prick since, well…the past few years.” I paused. “See, this is when you’d say ‘since forever’ so I’ll just pretend you said it. And this is me rolling my eyes at your dig at me, okay?”

  The smile disappeared from my face. “She’s lost, just like you were. She’s scared. But she’s strong, just like you were. I wish you saw that.” A tear fell down my face from the memory of my sister. “I just hope you’re proud of the life that I’ve led. I owe it all to you, ya know. If you didn’t do what you did, I would have probably just gone on to law school and be stuck working for some schmuck that decided what cases I would have to take. But you saw a different calling for me.”

  I shook my head, chuckling to myself. “I remember all those times you said I’d make a good therapist.” My expression turned stoic. “Well, you were right, Marley Jane. I’m a damn good psychiatrist and it’s because of you. Because I hate myself for not seeing the signs, for not stopping you from doing what you did, and for keeping secrets from you. I can’t help but think…”

  I stared off at the ocean that was visible over the roof tops. “I know, I know. You’d tell me I can’t think that way, that it was going to happen no matter what because your course was charted, so let’s just agree to disagree, okay?”

  I continued to lay on the roof and watched the stars glimmer in the sky, remembering all the times in my youth that I would sit on the roof with Marley and make up new constellations. “I guess I just wanted to come and talk to you. I don’t feel you like I do over at Aunt Terryn and Uncle Graham’s house, but I still feel something. I guess I always kind of feel you around me. I’d like to think that you’re watching over me…over all of us.

  “You should see Meg and Jules. Meg got married after college and she already has her hands full with two kids. Julianne is still in med. school, but she goes home as much as she can. Uncle Graham is still running that crisis center for women he started in your honor. He found a purpose in your death, as you know, and left the church. I’m real close to him…and Aunt Terryn. She works at the center with him and they’ve really made a difference. Whenever I go home to visit, I help out there, too. I still see the guilt in their eyes. They’re still shouldering the blame, but I think it was that guilt that forced them to reevaluate their current path and choose a new one. And a lot of people in that town did the same. It’s definitely not like it used to be. They still have that pageant but, from what I hear, it’s
different. Oh, and Meg and Julianne were certainly not allowed to participate in any pageants. A lot of girls were pulled from all of it after you died.

  “Let’s see. What else would you want to know? Oh, Doug’s still doing well. We’ve stayed in touch over the years. It took him a while to finally get over your death, and I still don’t think he’s completely over it, but he’s moved on. I still see Brianna once in a while when I go home. It was hard at first because I was reminded of how much I miss you, but it’s gotten easier.”

  I sighed, placing my hands behind my head and could almost sense my sister lying next to me, her eyes bright. “This is when you’d tell me to stop rambling and dish about the girl, isn’t it?” I paused, as if waiting for Marley to reply. “Well, her name’s Jolene, but she doesn’t want anyone to know that. I like her. I really, really like her. She’s running from something and I can’t help but think that she was dropped in my life for a reason. Maybe this is the girl you told me about in that dream all those years ago.”

  The sky began to glow and I could tell that the sun was about to rise. “I miss you like hell, Mar. I can’t help but think about where you would be if you were still here. Would you have gotten over your past? Or would it have eventually come back to haunt you? I guess we’ll never know.” I took a deep breath and began to raise myself off the roof. “Give Grams and Mama a hug and kiss for me, will ya?”

  I was about to crawl back through the window when I noticed three streams of light fall into the ocean in the distance. My jaw dropped, remembering her promise that she would send me a sign when the girl that would brighten my existence came into my life.

  Grinning in disbelief, I looked to the heavens. “You made your point. I get it. To the moon and back, Marley Jane…”

  PLAYLIST

  Enter Sandman - Metallica

  To The Moon And Back - Savage Garden

  Free Falling - Tom Petty

  Jane - Barenaked Ladies

  Us Against The World - Coldplay

  Dirty Diana - Michael Jackson

  When I See You Smile - Bad English

  Right Now - Van Halen

  More Than Words - Extreme

  Baby Did A Bad Bad Thing - Chris Isaak

  Runaway - Bon Jovi

  The Dreaming Tree - Dave Matthews Band

  Keep Breathing - Ingrid Michaelson

  Pay For What You Get - Dave Matthews Band

  November Rain - Guns N’ Roses

  Bed Of Roses - Bon Jovi

  Closer - Nine Inch Nails

  To Be With You - Mr. Big

  Silent All These Years - Tori Amos

  Something I Can Never Have - Nine Inch Nails

  Hate Me - Blue October

  Burn - In This Moment

  Janie’s Got A Gun - Aerosmith

  The Unforgiven - Metallica

  Far Behind - Candlebox

  My Immortal - Evanescence

  Nothing Else Matters - Metallica

  The Freshman - The Verve Pipe

  Tears In Heaven - Eric Clapton

  Hold My Heart - Sara Bareilles

  Send Me The Moon - Sara Bareilles

  I Can Let Go Now - Nathan East, Featuring Sara Bareilles

  That Year - Brandi Carlile

  Sister - Dave Matthews

  COMING SOON FROM T.K. LEIGH

  Heart of Brianna

  Brianna’s Story

  Anticipated Publication 2016

  Heartless

  Doug’s Story

  Anticipated Publication 2017

  Turn the page to read an excerpt from Heart of Light (Cam’s story) - now available across all retailers

  HEART OF LIGHT EXCERPT

  Read the rest of Cam’s journey in Heart Of Light

  THUMP. THUMP. SHE COULD swear her heartbeat echoed through the vast hotel suite she had been living in longer than she cared to remember. Years of planning led her to this moment. Nothing could go wrong. If it did, she didn’t want to think about what would happen. Her success depended on everyone playing their part…the head of housekeeping, the bus boy, the room service attendant, the girls, even poor Shelby.

  She carefully tiptoed across the living room, carrying just the bare necessities she would need to get as far away as possible. Glancing over her shoulder at the couch where he was passed out from the pills the room service attendant had slipped into his food, she knew she didn’t have much longer until he woke up. And she had no intention of being there when he did.

  Looking out the peephole into the hallway, she prayed that Shelby was able to entice the two guards normally stationed out there to leave their post. She would never be able to repay her for what she was doing at that very moment…all to help her. A chill ran through her body at the thought, but the girls were right. She didn’t have a choice. She had to get out.

  Carefully opening the heavy door, she looked back at him. Her heart raced when she saw him move slightly on the couch before he stilled again. She watched as his stomach rose and fell, the occasional snore sounding through her prison. Taking a deep breath, she glimpsed one last time at the man she used to look up to and admire. Now, every time she saw his gentle and attractive features…the chestnut eyes and strong jaw, the distinguished gray hair and broad shoulders…she saw him for what he really was. A monster that destroyed her very existence.

  She crept into the hallway, thankful to be one step closer to her freedom. But she still had to get out of the hotel before anyone discovered that she was missing.

  “You’re five minutes late, Jolene, baby,” an older black woman said, rushing up to her and pushing a laundry cart.

  “I’m sorry. I tried to get out on time, but it took a bit longer for those pills to work on him,” Jolene whispered as she crawled into the cart. “Probably from all the shit he does regularly.” She took a calming breath as she covered herself with old laundry sheets and bath towels, the musty smell making her gag.

  “It’s okay, darling. We’re almost done here. We’ll get you out safe.” Rosa pushed the cart down the hallway toward the service elevator.

  “What’s going on here?” a loud, booming voice called out.

  Rosa looked up, trying to hide her nerves. “Just bringing these dirty sheets to the laundry downstairs, sir,” she said, mindful of the gun peeking out of the large man’s jacket. She hated working at that hotel, but she didn’t have a choice. She was those girls only hope of escape.

  “Isn’t that supposed to be done in the afternoon? It’s past midnight.”

  “I know, sir, but we were short-staffed today.” She shook in fear. No one was allowed on the top floor after nine at night. That was when he held his little poker games, auctioning the girls off to whomever offered the most money. It broke Rosa’s heart knowing that, just beyond the hallway’s walls, the girls were dying a little bit more inside.

  “It’s getting done now,” she continued, her voice turning strong once more.

  “Fine,” the large man said, a scowl crossing his face. “Get on with it then. Don’t make this a habit. I really don’t want to involve the boss in this shit.” He walked away.

  Rosa breathed a sigh of relief and continued to push the laundry cart down the long corridor toward the service elevator. “It’s okay, baby girl. Almost there,” she whispered quietly as the doors opened.

  But not quietly enough.

  “Who are you talking to?” The large man spun around, running toward the elevator just as the doors closed, banging on the metal exterior in frustration. He had a bad feeling about tonight, particularly after noticing that Mr. Falconi’s bodyguards were not stationed outside of his suite.

  Grabbing his phone, he dialed a number. “Joe. It’s me. Get someone down to laundry. Check the cart the maid is pushing.” He hung up and walked in the direction of his boss’ suite. Nervously, he knocked on the door.

  “Boss, you in there?”

  Nothing.

  No response.

  “Tony. It’s Ralph. You got Jolene in there with yo
u?”

  Still no sound. No rustling. No movement.

  “Okay. I’m coming in.” He took a deep breath, hoping he wasn’t interrupting anything between his boss and his girl. Grabbing his universal keycard, he slid it in the slot and slowly opened the door. His eyes grew wide when he observed his boss passed out on the couch in the living room, the room service tray scattered on the floor in front of him.

  He drew his gun, scanning the suite for any sign of what could have happened.

  “Jolene!” he yelled. “Where are you, princess?!”

  He made his way toward the second bedroom, hoping that Falconi had instructed Jolene to take a client in there instead of one of the other rooms. His heart dropped when the door was wide open, the extravagant bedroom distressingly empty.

  He ran into the room, checking everywhere for some sort of indication as to what could have happened. In the back of his mind, he knew that Jolene was gone.

  Returning to the living area, he grabbed a bottle of scotch off the wet bar and poured himself a drink, hoping that Joe had stopped the bitch maid with the laundry cart. His mind raced, trying to figure out how to tell his boss that his girl was gone. He just hoped it wasn’t too late to find her.

  ~~~~~~~~~~

  “JUST A FEW MORE minutes, Jolene, baby,” Rosa said, looking into the rearview mirror of the old station wagon at the still body covered with ratty blankets. “Patrick is inside getting your bus ticket, so you’ll be free of this place in just a little bit,” she explained, her chin quivering.

  She was relieved that she got Jolene out of the hotel without raising any more suspicion. A bus boy that had helped Rosa from time to time was able to hide her in a storage closet leading to the loading dock before any of the boss’ guys came to search the laundry cart. It all worked out just as they had hoped. Only a few people actually knew about what really went on in the hotel late at night, and even those who knew pretended they didn’t. It was too dangerous any other way, but that didn’t discourage Rosa. It was just by chance that she saw Jolene that day over a decade ago.