Wooing My Ex-wife Again Novel by Natalie Winter

Anastasia

The sudden explosion threw me backward, sending me flying a few feet into the air. I collided against the cardboard cutouts of trees and clouds placed all around the open premises.

At first, my ears couldn’t hear anything except a ringing sound. I hauled myself up into a sitting position,

The garden had been alive with laughter and joy as the school function reached its peak. Lea, my precious little girl, had scrambled out of my arms and rushed forward towards the lifesize Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck characters that were waving at the children enthusiastically. And then, Julian’s lips had brushed mine.

Everything had been peaceful and perfect until it was not. Gone was the festive atmosphere and the sounds of chatting and laughing.

Suddenly, everything changed in an instant. The world was torn apart by a deafening explosion, a blast so powerful it felt like the ground was ripped from beneath my feet. The cheerful music was replaced by a terrifying roar, and then an eerie silence before the chaos erupted.

A thick cloud of dark smoke billowed upwards, twisting and expanding, turning the bright, sunny sky into a murky, foreboding entity. I felt my lungs burn as the acrid stench of burning debris filled the air, making it hard to breathe.

My heart pounded in my chest, my breath catching in my throat.

What did just happen?

Lea! Where was she????

“Lea!” I screamed, my voice breaking with terror. Panic gripped me, cold and paralyzing. The joyous scene had transformed into a nightmare.

I scrambled to stand up on my feet and saw parents frantically searching for their children, their desperate cries blending with the frightened screams of the kids.

Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck were thrown to the sides by the blast too and lay motionless, their cheerful faces now a haunting contrast to the chaos around them.

I scanned the chaotic scene, my eyes darting through the thick, swirling smoke. Fear clawed at my insides, each moment without sight of Lea an eternity of dread.

The smoke stung my eyes, and I struggled to see, the world around me a blur of panic and fear. My heart felt like it was being squeezed in a deathly grip, every beat a painful reminder that I had to find my daughter.

“Lea!” I cried again, my voice hoarse with desperation. Tears streamed down my face as I pushed through the crowd, my heart hammering in my chest.

Every second felt like a lifetime, my mind racing with terrifying

possibilities. My hands shook, my body trembling with the effort to stay upright as I stumbled through the chaos.

She had been right in front of my eyes. But now I could not see her. The explosion had taken everybody by surprise and I saw the school staff members hastily move to help in whatever way they could.

I ran towards one of them and asked, “Lea, have you seen Lea?” I asked a young girl who frantically shook her head.

My heels were beginning to hurt so I threw them away and ran towards a few more staff members wearing the uniform, asking about my baby girl.

Half of them shook their heads while half didn’t even bother replying. And there was a good reason for it.

A chunk of the wall of the small hall had collapsed and they were trying to rescue those stuck beneath.

“Call the ambulance and firefighters!!” somebody shouted as I looked around to find Lea.

Then, through the haze of smoke and confusion, I saw a small figure huddled under a piece of debris. I think I saw the same colored skirt Lea had been wearing.

My heart leaped with a mixture of hope and fear. I scrambled forward, adrenaline giving me strength as I pulled the debris off the child. “Lea, I’m here!” I cried, and frantically pulled the chunks of fallen debris.

Crying and sobbing, I pushed the debris away and gingerly pulled her into my arms. The girl was lying face down and I gently pushed her hair away. Even before I did that I realized it wasn’t Lea.

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The child looked up at me with wide, tear–filled eyes, her face dirty and streaked with soot. She was terrified and utterly shaken. I gave a rough sob, relief at saving her mixed with crushing disappointment. “It’s okay, sweetie, you’re safe now,” I croaked, trying to keep my voice calm when I felt footsteps rush behind me.

“Kelsie!! Oh, my poor girl!!”

A frantic sounding woman took Kelsie from my lap and kissed her before thanking me over and over.

But I couldn’t hear her anymore. My girl was still missing.

As she took their child and rushed away, I fell to my knees, a scream of anguish tearing from my throat. “Lea! Where are you?” I cried hoarsely, my voice breaking. Despair and terror washed over me, the fear of not finding my daughter overwhelming.

My hands clawed at the ground, fingers digging into the dirt as if I could somehow anchor myself in the midst of this nightmare.

Then I remembered–Julian was here too. He had been with us, just moments before the blast. He had run forward when the explosion happened. Panic surged through me again. “Julian!” I shouted, scrambling to my feet. “Julian, where are you?”

After what felt like an eternity, Julian appeared, his face ashen and eyes wide with fear. He was dragging two people along with him, two injured parents to a safe place.

“Ana!” he called, running towards me. His presence should have been a comfort, but the fear and desperation in his eyes only mirrored my own. “Julian, you have to find Lea!” I cried, grabbing his arm with a grip so tight it hurt. “You have to find Lea! I can’t-” My voice broke, tears streaming down my face. “I can’t lose her, Julian. I can’t!”

“Ana, I will find her,” he said, his voice shaking but determined. He pulled me into his arms, holding me tightly. I could feel his heart pounding against my chest, his own fear and guilt mixing with my anguish. “I promise you, I will find Lea. No matter what.”

His words were meant to comfort me, but the fear and pain inside me were too great. “You promised me before,” I spat, anger and anguish lacing my words. “You promised to protect us, and look where we are! Find her, Julian. You have to find her! You took the blood oath!!”

Julian’s face tightened with guilt and resolve. “I will,” he said, his voice barely a whisper. “I will find her, Ana. I swear it.”

As he pulled away to begin searching, I sank back to my knees, my body wracked with sobs. The garden, once a place of joy and laughter, was now a scene of horror and despair, the bright colors overshadowed by the dark, rising smoke.

I clung to the hope that Julian would find Lea, that he would bring her back to me, but the fear and anguish were almost too much to bear.

The smoke continued to rise, mingling with the sounds of panicked screams and the wails of the injured. My clothes were dirty and torn, my hair disheveled, my face streaked with tears and soot.

Every muscle in my body ached with the effort to keep moving, to keep searching, to not give in to the terror that threatened to consume me. I wiped at my face, smearing the dirt and tears, my vision blurred by the constant flow of tears.Belonging © NôvelDram/a.Org.

The taste of smoke and salt lingered in my mouth, and I felt my mouth going dry.

“Lea,” I whispered, my voice barely audible over the noise. “Please, be okay. Please, let her be okay.”

I prayed to the Moon Goddess as I looked around frantically, unsure of where my little princess was.