Cedar Woman (134 page)

The
s
t
ory
unfolded
like
a
J
a
mes
Dean
m
ovie.
Michael
and
Vi
c
k
i enj
o
y
ed
t
h
e p
o
w
wo
w
a
n
d
M
ichael his
re
u
n
i
on with
his
f
am
ily and
Boy La
d
d
.
They
s
t
a
y
ed
t
h
e
full
t
h
ree
da
y
s,
a
n
d
took
a
day
to
investi
g
ate
t
h
e war
eh
ouse
f
ro
m
wh
i
ch
t
h
ey
were
t
h
i
nk
i
ng
of
o
r
der
i
ng
t
h
eir
specialized meats.
Ea
g
er to
return
h
o
m
e, t
h
ey
d
eci
d
e
d
to
lea
v
e in
the late-after
n
oo
n
,
i
n
s
t
ead
of
s
tayi
ng ov
e
r.
D
ecid
i
ng
t
o
s
ur
p
r
i
se Lena w
i
t
h
t
h
eir
early arri
v
al, t
h
ey set
o
f
f in Mic
h
ael’s a
u
t
o
m
ob
ile a
n
d
h
ea
d
ed
h
o
me.

T
h
ey a
l
m
o
st
ma
d
e it.
A
drunk
d
r
iv
e
r
slammed into Micha
e
l’s car a
m
ere
18
m
iles
f
r
om
t
h
eir
desti
n
ation.
M
ic
h
ael
t
h
rew
hi
m
self
in
f
r
ont
of V
i
cki,
b
u
t
t
h
e
airb
a
g
m
a
lfun
c
tioned,
and
bo
th
were
c
r
u
s
h
e
d.
They
died i
n
sta
n
tly.

Liste
n
i
n
g attenti
v
ely to
t
h
e
police
o
fficer,
Le
n
a
qu
ietly fai
n
t
e
d
.

C
h
apter
S
i
xt
e
en

O
n
ly t
h
e R
o
cks Li
v
e
Fore
v
er

Ar
a
p
a
h
o
Qu
o
t
e

The
s
m
ell
of flowers overwhel
m
ed
her.
Lena was v
a
guely
aw
a
re of S
o
nn
y’
s
arm ar
ou
nd
h
e
r
s
m
all
shou
l
der
s
,
o
f
Nickie
leani
n
g
against
her
as if
f
o
r sup
p
o
r
t.

On one
level, she
realized
t
h
at
Mi
chael
was
g
o
ne
fo
rev
er
,
b
u
t
her love would not
let her accept
that he
was
gone from
her until
she too rode u
po
n
t
h
e
w
i
ng
of
t
h
e
Th
u
n
d
er
b
ir
d.

S
o
nny
was
n
u
m
b
.
Like
t
h
e
victim of
a
guns
h
o
t
w
o
un
d
to
t
h
e
hear
t
, he
felt no
t
hi
ng
,
b
u
t
he
k
n
e
w
t
h
e
da
y
,
t
h
e
h
o
u
r
,
t
h
e
m
inute
w
ou
l
d
co
m
e wh
e
n
t
h
e
n
u
m
bn
e
ss
wo
re
of
f,
a
nd
t
h
e pain
wo
uld be,
l
i
terall
y
,
heart- re
n
d
i
n
g.

His
gaze
w
a
ndered
from coff
i
n
to
c
o
ffin.
T
h
e
double
fun
e
ral
m
ade sense:
Vicki
had
beco
m
e
su
c
h
a
p
a
rt
of
M
i
c
h
ael’s
life
t
h
at
it
was
rig
h
t t
h
at t
h
e
t
w
o be
m
ourn
e
d
t
oge
t
h
e
r
.

S
o
nny
gaz
e
d
u
p
o
n V
i
ck
i
’s
st
i
ll for
m
.

Su
c
h
a
c
a
ri
n
g
a
n
d
givi
n
g
w
o
ma
n
,
Son
ny
t
h
o
u
g
h
t
,
cle
n
c
h
in
g
h
is
eyes in
o
r
d
er to fig
h
t
b
ack
tears.

M
e
m
o
ries
of
Vicki
f
o
r
m
ed
in
his
m
ind:
Vicki,
e
m
bracing
him
on his
first
day at
the
restaur
a
nt, assur
in
g
him t
h
at he
was
w
elco
m
e;
V
i
cki, smili
n
g
as
s
h
e
wal
k
ed
to
h
e
r
o
f
fice,
a
s
k
ip
in
h
er
step
testifyi
n
g
t
o
h
er
joy