Page 49 of To the Moon and Back
Ashley pulled up the first photo. “This is how it looked on the fence. When Brady left it there.”
Jenna tried to focus. Was she dreaming? Could this really be happening? Someone had found Brady after all this time? She squinted at the photo, then used her fingers to make the image larger.
Sure enough, there it was. Written across the front of a scrolled-up letter. “For Jenna.” She brought her hand to her mouth and stared at the screen. “He left that there? For me?” Jenna looked at Ashley. “Just a few weeks ago?”
“Yes. My family was visiting for spring break.” Ashley shook her head. “Look at the next photo. Please, Jenna.”
She scrolled to the right and there it was. A photo of the letter, opened. And at the bottom, his name and number. Brady Bradshaw. Jenna couldn’t catch her breath. She exhaled. Relax. You have to relax. In twenty minutes she needed to be back in the classroom. She couldn’t fall apart.
Ashley handed over the phone, and again Jenna made the image larger. As she did, she read every line of the letter.
Dear Jenna,
Like I do every year, I wrote you a letter. In case you come to the memorial today. In case you want to find me as much as I want to find you. Every year I do this, I leave you a note in case. Anyway, here I am again, eleventh year in a row.
Jenna closed her eyes for a few seconds. Eleven years in a row? He’d been there every year, looking for her? She found her place and kept reading. He said that again he had come to find her, because every year wound up the same. No response to his letter. Next he had a question for her. One that hit a place in her heart she had ignored for so long.
Don’t you remember, Jenna? What it was like having that one day together?
“Yes,” Jenna whispered. “I still remember.” She was so lost in the letter she forgot she was sitting next to the stranger. She kept reading.
His letter said that he’d lost her number, but he’d thought it would be easy to find her. And how after all this time he still thinks about her.
The truth is, I don’t think about anyone but you. I’m a firefighter in Oklahoma City. It gives me purpose. But I’m alone. I’m always alone.
Tears filled Jenna’s eyes and spilled onto her cheeks. She looked up at the sky, warding off the sobs building in her heart. Brady, I’m so sorry. How could I have missed this? All these years. She steeled herself against the heartache and read the rest of the note.
It was the hardest part. He wrote how he was waiting for her and he’d be back again next year. On the anniversary.
And one of these days, Jenna . . . one of these days you’ll be here. I’ll find you. I have to believe that. Remember what you said? Our hearts are the same. And so they are. Always. Brady Bradshaw.
Jenna was shivering, but it had nothing to do with the cool afternoon. She handed the phone back to Ashley. “I . . . I can’t believe this.”
“I looked you up on Facebook. I . . . don’t know your situation. You’re divorced? . . . Your last name is different. But I figured it might be you. And if it was . . .” Ashley hesitated. “I thought you’d want to know.”
Jenna felt the familiar sinking feeling. “I’m not married. My husband, he left me a few years ago. He’s . . . moved on.”
A genuine look of sadness filled Ashley’s eyes. “I’m sorry. Really.”
“Me, too. But I’m not alone. I have my faith.” A supernatural strength resonated within her. The way it did whenever she remembered her situation. “That’s what matters.”
Ashley’s face grew serious. “There’s more, Jenna.” The color seemed to drain from her cheeks. “Brady . . . he’s hurt. He’s in ICU at a hospital in Oklahoma City.”
“What?” Jenna stood and paced away from the bench. Her legs shook. How could any of this be happening? “How did he get hurt?”
“In a fire a few days ago.” Ashley slid to the edge of the bench. “He’s fighting for his life.” She hesitated, as if she wasn’t sure what to say next. “I knew the only way to tell you any of this was in person.”
Jenna hadn’t even asked the woman where she was from. “How far did you drive?”
“I live in Bloomington. My husband is a firefighter. Maybe that’s why . . .” Ashley’s voice trailed off. “I don’t know. I had to come find you.”
Ashley went on to explain that she’d been in touch with Brady and even though he hadn’t been able to find Jenna, Ashley had a strong belief she could. That she might somehow connect them. Even if their lives had moved on.
“And now . . .” Jenna sat back down on the bench beside Ashley. “Thank you. Can you please . . . would you send me those pictures?”
“Definitely.” Ashley took Jenna’s cell number and texted her the photos.
Jenna looked at them again. “Do you know what hospital he’s at?”
