Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 63289 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 316(@200wpm)___ 253(@250wpm)___ 211(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 63289 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 316(@200wpm)___ 253(@250wpm)___ 211(@300wpm)
So of course in the third book Love Amidst the Ruins, Zane and Aria had a child of their own, named Adam—the first human/zombie baby in the world.
On the day my fourth book, Desperate Hearts was released the kids started school. All of the grandparents showed up at the house to wish them off that morning.
My mother brought cookies and mini-bibles for their book bags.
Ethan's mother and her new husband provided the expensive book bags that were close to $5,000 each. Horror covered her face as my mother placed those aluminum foil wrapped cookies into the back of each designer bag.
And Ethan's father arrived alone, without his new young wife that had been causing scandal after scandal in the newspapers. Apparently, she had a thing for rappers and recording her sexual acts. Many of those rappers leaked the footage.
However, no one brought this up that morning.
Still, we all felt for bad for him.
Thankfully, as always, once Ethan's father saw the kids, joy decorated his face. He handed them each a thousand dollar bill that I thought was beyond excessive for school lunch money.
Then, Ethan and I drove them to school.
To my surprise, not only were the parents waiting at the kids' school, but the news cameras too.
Reporters stuck microphones in my face, wanting me to respond on the zombie mania that had been taking over the planet.
I had no idea what they were talking about. They had to show me all of the footage of thousands upon thousands of people sleeping outside of bookstores around the world and waiting for the fourth release.
Desperate Hearts was supposed to be the final book in the Undead Love Chronicles. Zane and Aria had to deal with the fate of their world hanging in the balance. Throughout the intense story, they fought not just for their family's survival, but for the survival of humanity itself.
Days later, the book sold out in many stores. People began to riot, demanding that the books weren't getting printed fast enough.
That year was the last time I could go outside without paparazzi following us. Ethan got us all guards and I slowly began to get comfortable with the odd idea of being extremally famous.
Additionally, Ethan helped me to start HeArt that year too.
My non-profit organization had a mission to heal children through the arts.
We established HeArt centers in fifty impoverished neighborhoods throughout the country. There, we offered free art classes to children in the community. These classes were designed to provide the children with a creative outlet and a way to express themselves. I knew this would be beneficial for those who were dealing with trauma, poverty, and other challenges from a rough environment.
Art had helped me long ago. It could help others.
In addition to art classes, HeArt provided counseling services for kids struggling with trauma, depression, and grief, as well as tutoring to help with academics.
The centers also delved into cultural enrichment. They made sure to hold monthly events that provided opportunities for children to experience different cultures and art forms like dance, music, and theater.
It had been a massive project that needed major funding well beyond my millions in royalties.
But, Ethan pushed hard with helping me. He negotiated tons of corporate donations, hired a grant assistant to apply for support, and held several celebrity benefit concerts to raise the remaining money.
HeArt was a success that no one could ignore.
Other celebrities joined in, starting their own HeArt centers in their old neighborhoods.
This year Ethan and I had been invited to so many ceremonies where we would be accepting awards for our efforts—the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy, the William E. Simon Prize for Philanthropic Leadership, and the Conrad N. Hilton Humanitarian Prize.
Meanwhile, this week we had a movie premier to attend.
Last year, I signed a massive 5-movie deal with Paramount Pictures. They had wanted to be bring the Undead Love Chronicles to the big screen.
So far, I'd felt good about this new path in my life.
Movies. Wow.
I loved everyone that was cast in the roles. Ethan, the kids, and I had even gone to the set a few times to check out the filming.
And the trailer was unbelievable.
However, I still had not seen the finished movie.
My stomach twisted, hoping that they would get everything right. I'd read once that author Stephen King hated every movie adaption of his book. I hoped I wouldn't feel the same way too.
Ryan snapped his fingers in front of me. “Maya? Maya?”
I blinked.
“Where did you go?”
I widened my eyes. “Down memory lane.”
“Well, more important.” Ryan crossed his arms over his chest. “Where is my book?”
“Ryan, are you serious right now?”
“You pay me in stories about Zane.”
“I do not.”
“Then, let us make this a deal. You give me Zane and I style you.”
I laughed. “You're too expensive these days. It wouldn't be right.”
“I would give you a 90% discount if you can put those lovely words in my hand right now.”