Total pages in book: 29
Estimated words: 29029 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 145(@200wpm)___ 116(@250wpm)___ 97(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 29029 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 145(@200wpm)___ 116(@250wpm)___ 97(@300wpm)
I’ll find her. I will find her if it’s the last thing I do.
Years ago, on a magical prom night that held promises of forever, Max Robinson planned to confess his feelings to his best friend and secret crush, Jenna Holland. But before he could utter the words he practiced countless times, Jenna disappeared.
Max was determined to find her, and he tried, but his efforts proved unsuccessful. He eventually moved on with college, a career, and an engagement to a woman who adores him.
Jenna has only blurred memories of being abducted on the day of her high school prom, but she has vivid recollections of the horrors and abuse she endured while held captive. She needs to reclaim her life, but the one person who can help her is no longer hers.
*************FULL BOOK START HERE*************
1
MAX
“I have your father on line one.”
“Thanks,” I say to my assistant, Trixie, and I pick up the phone. “Hey, Dad.”
Only silence greets me on the other end of the line.
“Dad? You there?”
“I’m here, Max.”
His voice is…strange. The depth is there, but the emotion behind it… I can’t place it. He doesn’t sound sad, but he doesn’t sound happy, either.
“What is it?” My heart rate begins to rise. “Are you okay? Is it Mom?”
“We’re fine.” Then the rumble of him clearing his throat. “I have…news.”
“Give me the bad news first,” I say.
“It’s not bad news, son. It’s…good news, actually.”
Good news? Then what’s with the strange voice?
“Okay…”
“It’s the best news, actually.”
“Then why do you sound so weird?”
“I’m sorry. I don’t mean to sound peculiar. Mom and I are still working through this, as are Dick and Susanna.”
Dick and Susanna?
He means Dick and Susanna Holland. The parents of Jenna Holland.
Jenna Holland…
Jenna was my best friend since preschool. By the time we were seniors in high school, I had fallen hopelessly in love with her. Since neither of us was dating anyone at the time, we decided to go to the senior prom together. We had both recently turned eighteen, and I planned an amazing night for us.
A night where I would tell Jenna the truth that I had discovered in my soul.
I loved her.
Part of me loves her still.
But we never made it to the prom…
“What are you trying to say, Dad?”
Another throat clear, this one longer and more reverberating. “It’s amazing news, Max. Jenna is home. She’s alive.”
Eight years earlier…
I saved up for months, counting every penny from my afterschool job at a local fast-food joint to pay for the limo I’d ordered for prom night.
Now, as I sit in the back, with only the head of my chauffeur visible in the front seat as we drive to Jenna’s home, I wish I’d done more. The white leather seats and fully stocked—with soft drinks, of course—don’t seem like enough. The classic black tuxedo I rented doesn’t seem like enough.
In my lap sits a white rose corsage, perfectly curated by the florist—at least that’s what the saleswoman said—to accent Jenna’s light violet dress, and it doesn’t seem like enough. I should have ordered lilies or orchids. Roses aren’t unique. Jenna deserves unique.
Jenna wears a lot of blues and violets. Those colors accent her unique eyes, which usually look blue—a light blue flecked with gold—but in the right light, they take on a violet hue. A violet hue that’s uniquely her and works with her long, dark hair.
Jenna and I both went through an ugly-duckling phase during puberty. I was a gawky nerd who wore glasses, she was skinny with stringy hair and bucked teeth.
Braces took care of Jenna’s teeth, and her hair thickened with time and became silky and shiny.
As for me? I got contact lenses and began to work out. During gym class freshman year, I found out I was pretty good at soccer, so I went out for the team, earning myself a varsity letter and a division-one scholarship to Ohio State University three years later.
But I’m going to give it up.
For Jenna Holland.
Unbeknownst to my parents, I applied in secret and was accepted to Dartmouth—Jenna’s choice. Tonight, I’ll tell her I’ve chosen Dartmouth as well.
Of course I have no scholarship offer from Dartmouth, but I’m giving up my free ride—and my chance to continue playing soccer—for Jenna.
If she feels the same way I do.
Tonight I’ll find out.
The limo arrives at Jenna’s house, which is only two blocks away from mine. We went to school together all these years, staying best friends the entire time, even during the I hate boys and I hate girls years, and then again during the hormonal and soul-crushing years of middle school and early high school.
She dated a football jock during most of high school, but they recently broken up because she found out he’d been cheating on her with a cheerleader, who was now pregnant.