GREAT NEWS—THE BOOK VERSION OF REPAIRING THE LEGACY, THE ENDURING LEGACY, WILL BE RELEASED ON AUGUST 25TH.

See the bottom for more information.

With this segment of Chapter Fourteen of Repairing the Legacy, we continue the serialization of Repairing the Legacy. This is a rough draft work in progress and may not reflect the final form. Time period: set after the ending of The Martiniere Legacy main trilogy. I’m breaking longer chapters into sections for readability. This is the sixth part of Chapter Fourteen. There will be six parts to this chapter.

New to the series? Chapter order:

Chapter One, Section One

Return of the Prodigal Son (2 parts)

Conversations and a Dinner (2 parts)

Dancing into Change (2 parts)

Sisterly Compromises (3 parts)

Conspiracies at the Rodeo (3 parts)

Passing the Baton (4 parts)

Research Complications (3 parts)

Chasing After Shadows (3 parts)

Fifth Anniversary Present (3 parts)

Mariah (5 parts)

Shadows, Redux (3 parts)

Accidents Happen (4 parts)

Maternal Memories (4 parts)

Photo by Pedro Mealha on Unsplash

December, 2070

GABE

While talking with Donald briefly helped, things got really bad around the one-year anniversary of Mike’s heart attack in December. Mike finally exploded at Gabe, or at least as best as he could shout with limited lung function. Gabe let Mike yell himself out, mainly repetitions of I don’t matter to anyone, who cares if I live or die, maybe I’m better off dead, I’m just a crippled clone boy and the image of an evil man.

God. The darkness Mike had been carrying within him. Where had all that negativity come from? Not from anything that Gabe or Ruby or anyone else had ever done or said, at least that Gabe knew.

That damned worm? Whatever it was that kept yanking files out to rub Mike’s origin in his face?

Whatever it was, it was evil. It was wrong.

Mike was cherished by the Family. An example of what Philip could have been.

Gabe sat by Mike’s bed and took his hand.

“You matter to me. To Ruby. To Bran. To Ronnie.”

That last one got to Mike—Gabe could tell. Baby Ronnie was the only one who didn’t let Mike’s moods put him off, but insisted on cuddling with Unca Mike. The only time Mike smiled was around Ronnie.

They talked it out, and Mike’s moods were never quite as dour after that.

A good thing, because shortly after that talk, Mike went into the hospital in Portland. He would either leave with a cyborg heart and lungs or—he’d be dead.

#

Technically, they were supposed to be staying with Justine at Donald’s Portland condo.

Realistically, Gabe and Ruby stayed with Mike, with short separate trips to the condo to change and shower.

Mike faded as each day ticked by. Panic attacks struck at any hour, at times so bad that the only means they had to soothe him was Ruby—as the lighter and more agile of them—in bed with Mike, holding him in her arms, while Gabe leaned over the bed and lent his support, hugging the two of them as best as he could.

They reassured him during those moments when it seemed that Mike wrestled with the specter of death. Gabe crooned old lullabies he faintly remembered from babyhood, a mix of Spanish, English, and French. Ruby told stories from Ryder family history.

After Mike settled, Ruby and Gabe took turns staying awake to watch while the other one found sleep the best that they could in the big hospital recliners.

His chest started to hurt in a familiar manner.

But Gabe could not, would not, leave Ruby and Mike alone in this vigil as long as he could stay upright.

No matter what the cost.

Maybe his sacrifice would save Mike.

#

Gabe ended up in surgery the day before Mike. A massive heart attack, requiring a quadruple bypass.

Martiniere money bought him a bed in the room next to Mike, so Ruby wasn’t running between hospitals.

Money’s good for something, for once.

#

December, 2072

Gabe’s recovery was faster than Mike’s, in part because the severity of Mike’s osteoporosis limited what he could do for physical therapy. For the first time in two years, they were able to go to Vienna and Paris in December, for the Spanish Riding School’s Winter Gala and Family Christmas. Gabe took advantage of the opportunity to book a private stable tour of the Lipizzan stallions—best for Mike, since he was now in a wheelchair.

Mike finished the tour with damp cheeks. The stallion in the last stall hung his head over the stall door, stretching his nose out to Mike. He carefully raised his hand to let the stallion sniff it, then scratched up the horse’s long nose to the spot just above his eyes, a favorite with most horses. After Mike dropped his hand, shaking with fatigue, the stallion eyed Mike. Then, carefully and oh-so-gently, the stallion nuzzled Mike’s forehead and cheeks, blowing softly.

Silent tears trickled out of Mike’s eyes, even as he grinned.

“He will ride again,” Ruby murmured into Gabe’s ear. “If I have anything to say about it.”

Gabe nodded, blinking back his own tears.

Something had to work out for their boy. Something.

ANNOUNCEMENTS:

First, The Enduring Legacy will be up at the usual ebook suspects next week, on August 25th. I’m also reissuing the first three volumes of The Martiniere Legacy this week, as soon as I finish proofing them. New covers, new back matter, some light continuity editing. Here’s what they look like:

But don’t hit that QR code just yet! I’m still proofing Realization.

I’ll have links up next week.

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