Hitched & Hitched Again: A Comedy of Marital Mayhem novel Chapter 1393

"Yeah, yeah, you’re right. This is a big deal—I’ll take it seriously. I’ll talk to Keaton about it tomorrow, just sit down and have a real conversation with him."

Elysia let out a long sigh and relaxed into Tarquin’s arms. "Even though Winona hasn’t really shown it, what Zane did to her was seriously damaging."

"It’s only because she’s so tough—if she were even a little bit more fragile, I honestly don’t think she’d have made it through."

"But no matter how strong she is, she’s still just a girl. If something like this happened again, I don’t think she’d survive it. That’s why I’m so worried."

Tarquin hugged her tighter and nodded. "I get it, I really do. Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it. Oh, and some good news—Zane left the country."

Not catching him was bad news, sure.

But him leaving—well, that was a win for Winona.

With Zane out of the country, there’s no way he could show up and hurt her again.

Elysia’s eyes widened in surprise. "Really?"

"Yeah. So at least for now, Winona’s safe. No need to worry about Zane coming back for revenge."

Elysia nodded quickly. "That is good news, actually. Does Keaton know? Has Winona been told?"

"Keaton knows. I’m pretty sure he’s already told her."

Elysia released another breath, her worries easing a little.

Suddenly, she remembered about Elizabeth Gonzalez’s ashes.

"By the way, I heard from Father Michael today. He wanted to know what we wanted to do—whether to keep having memorial services for Mom, or if it’s time to finally lay her to rest."

After they found Elizabeth’s ashes, they didn’t bury her right away.

Instead, they’d left her at the church for Father Michael to pray over her.

The original plan was just one memorial cycle, but then with the pandemic and everything, they’d had to hole up in the woods, and things just got delayed.

So they ended up keeping her there a little longer than intended.

Elysia nodded. "Okay, whatever you say. You’ll need to pick a date for the burial, and we’ll have to open Dad’s casket."

Elizabeth and Kendrick had been so in love—it only made sense to lay them to rest together.

They’d have to open Kendrick’s grave, and place Elizabeth’s ashes at his side.

Tarquin’s expression was somber. "Yeah, I know."

Elysia hugged him, her cheek pressed to his chest in comfort.

"For your mom and dad, this is a happy thing, really. They’ve probably been waiting to see each other again for a long time. Don’t be sad."

"...Yeah."

He wasn’t sad. It was, in its own way, a celebration.

Besides, he’d been wanting to open the coffin anyway. There were things he needed to confirm.