Read Online The Storm (The Storm #4) by Samantha Towle - Free Book Online

first and then Queens.”
    Nodding, Dave indicates his understanding, changing lanes.
    It doesn’t take long to get to the cemetery. Dave parks the car, not far from where Jonny’s buried.
    I remove my seat belt. Reaching for the handle, I see Bob’s not moving.
    “Are you coming?” I ask him.
    He shakes his head. “I was here a few days ago. You go and have some one-on-one time with him.”
    I give him a grateful smile.
    Leaning forward, I say to Dave, “Stay here with Bob. I won’t be long.”
    He looks back over his shoulder at me. His expression is one of concern, as it always is when I suggest solo trips. “I should come with you, just in case.”
    “I’ll be fine. No one is around,” I assure him, nodding at the almost empty cemetery.
    Only one guy is here, a good distance away, tending to the surrounding gardens.
    “Are you sure?”
    “I’m sure.” I pat his shoulder before getting out of the car.
    I shut the door, and I get my ball cap from my jacket pocket and put it on. I pull the peak low, more out of habit than anything. I’m not exactly at risk of being mobbed here.
    I walk the short distance down the tree-lined path, and then I cut across, heading for Jonny’s grave. I slow my pace as I approach, my eyes landing on his mother’s headstone.
    Lyn is buried next to Jonny. Bob has the plot on the other side of Jonny for when he—
    I don’t want to think about that right now.
    Coming to a stop at the foot of Jonny’s grave, I crouch down, getting to my knees, and I press my hands to the grass. “Hey…so I met Storm earlier. God, I can’t believe you have a son, Jon, and you never even got to meet him. It just feels…wrong. But I’m gonna take care of him. You don’t have to worry. Your dad and I, Tom and Den, too—we’ve got his back. Anything he needs…”
    Driving my hand through my hair, I blow out a breath.
    “He’s so much like you…it…” I turn my eyes away from his headstone, my fingers curling into the grass. “It fucking hurt to look at him. How crazy is that? It hurt to look at a kid. And I know, if you could right now, you’d tell me to shut my pussy ass up, get the fuck out of here, and go see your kid.
    “I just…I wanted to see you before I saw him again. I was kinda hoping you’d show me a sign or some shit at how to best handle this with Storm. He’s angry, Jon. He’s thirteen, and his mom is dying. He just found out about you being his dad, and he’s pissed.
    “Honestly, I’m pissed for him. I’m…fucking mad at you for dying. I’ve always been mad at you for that—now, even more so. Why the fuck did you get in your car that night.” I grit my teeth, shaking my head. “I just wish…I wish you’d known about him, Jon. Maybe it would have changed things. Made you stop using drugs. Maybe you would never have gotten in your car that night—no, not maybe. You wouldn’t have. I have to believe that. I have to believe that, if you’d known about Storm, then you would have sorted your shit out and got clean for him.”
    Shaking my head, I let out a humorless chuckle.
    “Hindsight—it’s a motherfucker, ain’t it?”
    I stare ahead at nothing for a moment. Then, I push up to my feet and put my hands in my pockets. I look at Jonny’s name etched deep into the headstone.
    “I miss you, man.”
    Then, I turn on my heel and head back to the car.

When we pull up in front of the bakery, it’s closed, but the lights are on.
    Bob and I exit the car. Dave isn’t staying this time. He’s going to have dinner with an old friend and come back to pick us up in a few hours.
    I knock on the glass door. A few seconds later, Marie appears. She unlocks the door, letting us in. She isn’t smiling at me, but she isn’t scowling either, so I take that as a good thing.
    I hear Dave’s car pulling away as Marie closes the door behind us.
    “Go on up,” she tells us.
    I lead the way, and Bob follows me through the back and up the stairs. When I reach the