"Let me make this crystal clear: if you think you're remarrying and giving Kent some stepmother, over my dead body!"
I looked at my parents' weathered faces, the deep lines carved into their skin, the gray streaking through their hair.
The ache in my chest was unbearable.
In this whole world, they were probably the only ones who still cared about how I felt.
Neil kept his head down, silent. The memory of the accident that killed me must have surfaced, because his face was nothing but guilt and helplessness.
His mother and mine went at each other immediately.
"My son is in the prime of his life! He mourned your daughter for years. Why shouldn't he be allowed to move on?"
"Kent needs a mother right now. What's wrong with remarrying? Didn't you see the boy wants a new mom too?"
"Are you people trying to drive my son and my grandson into the ground?"
My mother's face went white with fury, her finger trembling as she pointed at the woman.
The next second, her eyes rolled shut and she collapsed.
My heart lurched. I rushed forward, caught her in my arms, and the word tore out of me before I could stop it:
"Mom!"
In the chaos, no one registered what I'd said.
No one except Neil. His pupils blew wide, and he stared at me like the ground had shifted beneath him.
