Page 12 of Into the Dawn
As she exhaled, the smoke trail was carried away on the cool breeze. Even though it was summer, the temperature had dropped considerably as soon as the storm rolled in. Her thin form couldn’t handle the cold, but she was wearing several layers under the oversized sweater she had on, and a thick blanket helped block the worst of the chill.
Since she had lost all of her hair, she had started wearing soft cotton caps on her head. Her bright red locks had once been her crowning glory, but it was all gone now. Even her eyebrows were missing, making her look like a stranger she didn’t recognize whenever she glanced in the mirror.
As added protection, she’d also pulled up the hood of the fuzzy brown sweater that had cute little bear ears attached to it. She had the matching fuzzy teddy bear slippers on her feet, which were propped up on the cushioned wicker ottoman.
Despite her complex feelings for Mother Nature, Kylie loved rainstorms. The rhythmic patter of raindrops sounded like music to her. It could be a soothing symphony that calmed her restless mind, or a wild cacophony of noise that inspired creativity.
Although she knew that rain could be destructive, causing floods and landslides, the falling rain always reminded her of washing things clean. It was as if each droplet carried away the grime of the world, leaving everything refreshed and renewed.
Kylie had written some of her best songs during storms. In fact, she had won her last major award for a song she’d written by candlelight after the power had gone down during a particularly bad thunderstorm. As long as there was a piano or guitar close by, she wanted to play it. But even when there were no instruments available, she wanted to sing and create new music.
But these days, she didn’t have the energy to sing anymore.
And that broke her fucking heart.
Music wasn’t just a hobby or a job to her. It was an integral part of her soul. She didn’t just like to sing. She needed to sing. Every note, every melody resonated deep within her, and the lyrics were her way of speaking to the world. Even though her body was no longer capable of allowing her to perform, the desire was still there.
She could still hear the symphonies in her mind, feel the rhythm in her heart, and imagine the harmonies that once flowed effortlessly from her fingertips. But she could no longer share what was in her mind or heart with her fans. It was as if the music was trapped inside her, yearning to be set free. Not being able to create new songs was a constant ache, but music was still her solace.
Even now, she had classical music playing softly over the speaker system. The beautiful string melody was the perfectaccompaniment to the storm. As the rain continued to fall, the music seemed to dance along with it, each note adding to the symphony of nature.
Her ranch had been her sanctuary during her illness. She spent a lot of time sitting on the back porch since it overlooked the spectacular tranquility garden she’d had installed. There was a large koi pond that was fed by a waterfall cascading over levels of smooth stones. On nice days, she liked to sit in the pretty gazebo by the water’s edge or stroll along the stone path that led down to the natural creek that ran between her property and the Ross family.
As the storm intensified, thunder boomed overhead and lightning lit up the sky in vibrant flashes. The wind blew some of the rain onto the wraparound porch of her ranch house, but only a light sprinkle reached her. It was late, but the clock didn’t matter to her anymore. She knew she should head inside to get some rest, but she wanted to linger a little bit longer.
Inhaling more smoke, she acknowledged the fact that this was likely the last storm she would ever witness. While that was a sad thought, it was simply reality.
She was going to die soon.
Kylie could sense it.
Most of her affairs had been put in order before she’d gotten really sick. Learning from her parents, she had an iron-clad, comprehensive will along with video proof to ensure no one could fight it. She’d made sure her friends and the charities she’d chosen would receive assets she’d allocated to them, and those horrible relatives of hers would never get a single dime.
That was what she liked to call a bitch-slap of karma on her way out.
A part of her wished she had forgone treatment altogether and just focused on doing as much of her to-do list as she could over the last few years. It would have been nice to travelthe world instead of suffering through painful surgeries and treatments and lying in a hospital bed, but hindsight was a petty bitch for a reason.
She knew regrets were a waste of time, but the one thing she hadn’t been able to do was record the last song she’d written as a goodbye to her fans. She’d come up with several drafts of the song but had never been fully pleased with any of the versions until a few weeks ago. The lyrics to the chorus had come to her in a dream, and she had frantically written them down before she could forgot them.
It was a good song meant for powerful vocals, accentuated by an electric violin and a rhythmic beat. Layla, Abby, and Buddy had bawled their eyes out the first time she had played it for them. They said the haunting melody and Kylie’s emotional delivery made it perfect.
Too bad someone else was going to have to record it after she was gone.
She wished she could do it, but her voice was weak and she had no breath control left. She didn’t want the last thing her fans remembered her by to be something that didn’t even sound like her.
On the next crack of thunder, it felt like the entire house shook. She flinched as a spear of lightning struck directly in her garden. For a moment, it seemed like the entire world exploded with light. She held up a hand to shield her eyes against the intense flash, then she blinked to clear her vision as the light slowly faded.
Staring into the darkness, she blinked again.
Something had appeared in the lightning.
No, that would be crazy.
Shaking her head in disbelief, she started to turn away, then froze. As crazy as it seemed, there really were two large figures moving out of the darkness toward the house. They hadn’t beenthere a few seconds ago, which meant they had appeared out of thin air. That should have sent her fleeing in terror. Yet, inexplicably, she found herself rooted to the spot, unable to move.
Not in fear, but in fascination.
The pale glow of the solar lights lining the stone pathway in the garden allowed her to see two enormous figures emerging from the darkness. As they drew closer, she could see they were identical males, each a paragon of physical perfection.
