The doctor smiled at us as we embraced, and I knew that everything was going to be okay. More than okay, because we had each other.
o0o
“Do you think it’ll be a boy or a girl?” Kirk asked me that night as he lay beside me in bed.
“It’s definitely going to be a boy,” I replied.
“You’re that sure? Do you have a crystal ball or something?”
“Sort of.” I rolled to face him. “Remember when I told you about seeing Megan at the bottom of the lake, and that she spoke to me?”
“Yes. She told you there was something you needed to do.”
“That’s right, but she said something else. I didn’t tell you because I was afraid I might jinx it, or maybe I just wasn’t sure I understood her correctly.”
“What did she say?”
I leaned up on an elbow. “She told me that I couldn’t follow her to heaven yet because I needed to take care of her brother.”
Kirk sat up as well and regarded me with fascination. “No kidding.”
“I told her, of course, that she didn’t have a brother, but she explained to me that he was waiting for his turn. So… I think we’re going to have a son.”
Kirk stared at me in disbelief. Then he inched closer on the bed and kissed me on the mouth.
Chapter Sixty-two
If happiness comes in waves, my life was bobbing about in a thrilling and terrifying windstorm at sea.
The day after the doctor confirmed that I was pregnant, the telephone rang. Kirk was at work, and I was home alone.
According to the call display, it was a 212 area code, which meant it was coming from New York.
Every nerve ending in my body tensed suddenly. What if it was one of the agents who had read Matt’s book? What if this person was calling to offer representation? They didn’t usually call to reject you.
After the third ring, I braced myself for anything, and picked up the phone. “Hello?”
“Is this Sophie Duncan?” It was a man’s voice.
“Yes, may I help you?”
There was a brief pause, then a click, which told me I had just been taken off speaker phone.
“Well, hello there,” the caller cheerfully said. “This is Dennis Velcoff from Phoenix Literary. You submitted your father’s book to us a few weeks ago.”
I sat down. “Yes, that’s right. It’s nice to hear from you, Mr. Velcoff. What can I do for you?”
He paused again. “I think the more important question is what I can do for you, Ms. Duncan, because I really loved the book. It’s the best thing to come across my desk in a dog’s age. I’d like to talk to you about representation. Do you have a minute?”
I began to quietly tap my feet on the floor, while I fought to keep my voice calm. “Of course.”
He launched into a detailed speech about all the things he loved in the book – the tragic elements of the story, the strength of the characters, the lyrical quality of the prose. He felt that it was not only a literary masterpiece, but that it had commercial value as well, which was a rare combination, and he was certain the plot would do well in the hands of a good screenwriter. It was just the sort of thing Brad Pitt was looking for. (He told me they’d had lunch the previous week.)
Mr. Velcoff wanted my permission to send it over to Mr. Pitt.
In the meantime, while “Brad” was looking at it, Mr. Velcoff wanted to shop it around to the right people in New York, and get me a book deal. He was absolutely certain he could get at least six figures for it – possible seven if the stars aligned just right.
Was I interested? he asked. I had to pick myself up off the floor in order to say yes.
o0o
Three weeks later, after a fierce bidding war between three large publishing houses, the deal closed at half a million dollars for the North American print rights, while Mr. Velcoff held onto the foreign rights. He intended to start selling those as soon as the offer for the film rights was nailed down.
Brad Pitt did, indeed, want to adapt it to film, and at that point, he and Dennis were still negotiating the deal.
The following day, I was offered a million dollars for the film option, and I happily took the check – which I donated, in equal amounts, to the oncology department at the children’s hospital where Megan was treated, and neurological cancer research.
With great pleasure, I placed the donations in Megan’s and my father’s names.
Chapter Sixty-three
If you’re reading this book, you’ve probably already figured out that Dennis represented me on this project as well, which also went for a significant advance. You can hunt around for the exact dollar amount on the Internet if you’re curious.
But let me remind you that it really doesn’t matter. I would have written this book for nothing, for it was a story I simply had to tell.
Epilogue
I am pleased to report that I gave birth to a healthy son and we named him Peter Matthew Duncan.
A year and a half later, Kirk and I had a second child – a daughter we named Cora.
These days, we live a happy, quiet life at our home in the New Hampshire countryside. Kirk still teaches music and occasionally plays a gig at a jazz club in the city.
I’m a full-time mother and part-time writer, who has learned to appreciate the small, special moments which never fail to take my breath away.
I still miss Megan. Sometimes I ache with a mother’s yearning to hold her in my arms, watch her sleep, smell the sweet scent of her skin. I wish she were still here so I could watch her grow into a beautiful young woman and seek out her destiny. She would be in middle school now if she had not departed this world, but that is not how things are, and I know I must accept it.
So, I do. I look at her picture on my desk and feel the spirit of her presence. I savor the love she left behind.
That will have to be enough, at least until we meet again.
So we are done now, I believe. That is my story, but I have no intention of typing THE END, because I no longer believe in such a thing. Hope lives forever.
Thank you for sharing this journey with me.
I wish you happiness and joy.
-o0o-
For more information about this book and the author, you are invited to visit E.V. Mitchell’s website at www.evmitchell.com.
Índice
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-one
Chapter Twenty-two
Chapter Twenty-three
Chapter Twenty-four
Chapter Twenty-five
Chapter Twenty-six
Chapter Twenty-seven
Chapter Twenty-eight
Chapter Twenty-nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-one
Chapter Thirty-two
Chapter Thirty-three
Chapter Thirty-four
Chapter Thirty-five
Chapter Thirty-six
Chapter Thirty-seven
Chapter Thirty-eight
Chapter Thirty-nine
Chapter Forty
Chapter Forty-one
Chapter Forty-two
Chapter Forty-three
Chapter Forty-four
Chapter Forty-five
Chapter Forty-six
Chapter Forty-seven
Chapter Forty-eight
Chapter Forty-nine
Chapter Fifty
Chapter Fifty-one
<
br /> Chapter Fifty-two
Chapter Fifty-three
Chapter Fifty-four
Chapter Fifty-five
Chapter Fifty-six
Chapter Fifty-seven
Chapter Fifty-eight
Chapter Fifty-nine
Chapter Sixty
Chapter Sixty-one
Chapter Sixty-two
Chapter Sixty-three
The Color of Heaven Page 19
