From the Embers

by Aly Martinez

Was the timing ideal? Absolutely fucking not. Especially when, a few months later, my label scrapped my album and then dropped me completely.

jesus

It was salt in the wound, but like so much of my marriage, I just kept right on smiling. “Sounds great.”

:(

With a deafening boom, the entire house exploded.

like i knew it was coming but just imaginingit in my head is just so crazy

Having company in hell didn’t change the fact that you were still actually in hell.

He rocked us from side to side, more like he was trying to calm a crying baby than slow dance. “We got this, Bree. Me and you. We got this.” And for the first time since our world had exploded, I felt like maybe he was right.

Just as I’d hoped, she was smiling, and it caused my lips to stretch as well. For whatever reason, keeping her in a good mood kept me in one. Making her smile or chuckle hit different now.

🥺

Or her surprising fondness for Henry Alexander. Was he her type? Never mind.

op

But something changed between us that night. A shift in the atmosphere. A peek of the sun behind the clouds. The turning of the tide. Or, as I would later learn, the first spark in a wildfire.

“Oh, God,” I breathed, pitch-black darkness cloaking my vision as I spread my legs wider, his callused fingers sliding over my opening.

HELLO ?????

No, seriously, what the actual fuck was wrong with my subconscious. Eason? Not Shemar Moore or Michael Fassbender or even Henry Alexander?

FJSDKFJJGSKD

Either way, Bree would want it back, so I plugged it into the charger and moved on without thinking much of it.

OH THERES GONNA BE TEA ON THERE HUH ??? STOPPPP

There was no name or a photo programmed in for the contact, but based on the text, Rob was more than familiar with the sender. I can’t stop thinking about how deep you got last night. What. The. Fuck.

my thoughts exactly

But carved into my soul for all my days to come was the life-altering moment when a naked photo of my wife appeared on the screen.

BRUH

“Yeah,” Eason huffed. “I guess that van wasn’t the only thing he and I shared.”

sheesh

And then she dealt me the most devastating blow I would ever endure. “I think Luna might be Rob’s daughter.”

OHHHHHH SHIT

Fuck, why did that feel so good? I’d spent all day planning because I’d wanted the night to be perfect—for her. And in one sentence, she’d made it perfect—for me.

so cuteeeee im melting

“Ash, I haven’t even had coffee yet. Can we please save the cat talk until after breakfast?” “No,” he whined. “Because at breakfast you’re going to make us talk about you and Eason getting married.” I clamped my mouth shut. But Eason let out a long, “Whoooooa!”

KIDS ARE SO FUNNY JDHDJDJCJD

Being in love with Eason Maxwell was the easiest thing I’d ever done. I’d spent so many years trying to build the perfect life with the perfect husband, the perfect kids, and the perfect company. But mastering the perception of perfect isn’t the same as finding genuine happiness.

As I stood there staring at her, I chuckled at the jar of untouched red M&M’s on her nightstand. I only knew they were untouched because she still hadn’t found the engagement ring inside. She’d get there though.

STFU RIGHT NOWWWW

Our bond might have been forged through tragedy, but our love flourished through patience, genuine respect, and understanding.

So, as I fell asleep in bed with her that night, a smile on my face, love in my chest, contentment coursing through my veins, I had no idea our greatest trials were yet to come.

oh no…

Drawing in a deep breath, I looked at Bree. “You deal with this. I’ll take care of the girls.” “You can’t!” Asher yelled. “He took her! He took her!” “Who?” Bree asked. In his next breath, my whole world stopped. “Luna! Daddy took her!”

WHAT IS HAPPENING

I remembered when it struck me that only Madison was crying in the background. I remembered busting into the room to find Luna’s bed empty. I remembered the frantic search as I yelled for Bree, my heart still clinging to hope that Luna had just gotten out of bed and gone downstairs. But carved into my soul for the rest of my days would be the earth-shattering sound of Asher shouting, “Not her daddy! My daddy!”

NO NO NO NO NO THERE IS NO WAY BRUH HE DID NOT SURVIVE THAT SHIT

Two lines typed in black ink. Nothing special yet completely earth-shattering. $5 million to buy her back

OH HELL NAH BRO

Then there was Asher, who swore up and down, unwaveringly, that he’d woken up to see his dead father carrying Luna down the hall.

but there’s no wayyyy i thought they recovered the bodies from the fire ???

“Because less than twenty-four hours before your house exploded, the man who kidnapped your daughter sent him half a million dollars.”

EXCUSE ME

His name slipped through my lips on a violent whisper. “Rob?”

WHAT IN THE ACTUAL FUCK

A sinister smile curled the corners of his mouth. “No. You buried Steven. That dumb fuck deserved to die. Setting off the explosive in the basement too soon. Fucking amateur cost me my whole damn life.”

broooooo

“Do you have any idea how hard it was to find someone willing to kill you two? I spent months siphoning money from Prism. I plotted out every fucking detail, right down to how Jessica would spend her time lounging by the pool—or better yet, on her knees, treating me like a fucking king.”

omg ?????

“I have loved you since before I knew I loved you. I have loved you since before I was supposed to love you. And I will continue to love you every single day for the rest of eternity. I cannot tell you life will always be easy. Let’s be honest, I’m still going to call you Sug sometimes.”

I don’t care how you need me or even if you need me at all—I’ll still be here, considering myself the luckiest man on the planet as long as we do this life together.”

However, at the current moment, I was more worried about our fourth child making its debut in the middle of the Grammys.

STOPPPP