Redeeming the Darkness

Chapter Nineteen - Zane

We bought plane tickets to Ohio the next morning and left a couple days after that. I did everything I could to make sure my demons were left at home because I knew how much this trip meant to Ivy. I didn't want to fail her anymore than I already had.

When she'd kissed me during the interview, it was as if that simple act leached the darkness that clouded my mind. If only it could stay that way, forever.

According to Ivy we were only minutes away from the home she grew up in. She was literally bouncing in her seat like it was Christmas morning. Her joy was infectious, but every time I began to smile, I remembered Sandro was in the car as well, driving.

She'd insisted that he come with us so he wasn't bored at home, and when we arrived to pick up the car we rented, she asked him to drive.

Whatever.

"There it is!" Ivy squealed.

I looked up to see a large two story home in the middle of a clearing, surrounded by trees. There were horses, goats, and a cow in the fence on one side of the driveway and about twelve cars on the other side. Apparently they were having a family reunion.

"Who are all these people?" I asked.

"They're my family!"

You've got to be kidding. "You are blood related to every single person in that house?"

"Blood doesn't make you family, Zane," she answered. "But yes, they are all my family."

We parked, and it was like magic, as soon as Sandro cut the engine, the door to the house flew open and about ten thousand people ran outside like they were fleeing zombies.

Ivy started screaming and trying to take off her seatbelt at the same time, but she was too excited to focus on one task. I reached over and undid her seatbelt and she jumped out of the car, running into the first person's set of arms. She was about the same size as Ivy but her hair was much longer and she looked older. I assumed it was her mother but there were so many people, I couldn't be sure.

She filed through everyone and I didn't know whether to relax or be afraid when I recognized a few faces. Her Aunt Sam, her grandfather and the cousin that called her were all in the crowd. Her cousin came up to me first, as well as he could on crutches.

"Hey, new cuz," he said, grabbing me in an awkward, over the crutches hug. I patted his back.

"Don't kill me, but I forget your name," I said.

"No problem, bro. I'm Callahan but you can call me Cal. This is my brother, Logan." He pointed to the guy walking up beside him. Logan had long hair pulled back into a ponytail and tattoos from his hands to his neck. I knew that for sure because his shirt was off. He had piercings in his face and ears, too. I shook his hand and said, "Nice to meet you, Logan."

"You, too." His smile was genuine.

"You must be Zane." A deep voice said to my left, and I turned to face a man about my height. "I'm Phil, Ivy's grandfather."

I didn't miss the narrowing of his eyes or the clenched fists at his side. If he was her grandpa then he definitely was nearing seventy years old but there wasn't a doubt in my mind he would be able to take me down. He was built differently than the other grandpa I'd met when I had my car worked on, but he looked no less strong.

"It's nice to meet you, Phil." I stretched out my hand, praying he'd see it as a peace offering and forgive me for marrying Ivy before letting her tell her family. When he took my hand and slowly smiled I felt a weight lift off my shoulders. If I had her grandpa's forgiveness, surely I'd have her dad's, too.