Page 38 of Ashes of Us
Because Danica had already held a celebration of life for Jasper, which most of the family attended, and because they wouldn't be able to have an open casket due to the damage on his face, she decided, with Cecil's blessing, to forgo a wake and do a graveside funeral.
Neither she, Jasper, nor his family belonged to a specific church, opting instead to let everyone choose the best way to observe their individual beliefs.
Jasper believed in God but wasn't drawn to any of the larger religious institutions, so she knew he wouldn't want a church service or anything like that.
Cecil agreed with her on everything she thought Jasper would want, including doing an eco-friendly funeral, which involved minimally invasive burial options, no embalming and a biodegradable casket.
They set a date and time with the funeral home and cemetery.
The funeral director went over what they would handle on her behalf, including filing the death certificate with the city and making arrangements with the cemetery, and provided her with a checklist of tasks she needed to complete.
They sat together and wrote the obituary, with Danica sending the director her favourite picture of Jasper for it.
Then the funeral director let Cecil spend some time with Jasper's body while Danica and Emilia went back to her house to get the clothes Jasper would be buried in.
Danica filled Emilia in on her and Cecil's conversation that morning, and Emilia explained that it was Jasper's Aunt Geri who had posted in the group chat that Amy kicked Cecil out.
Geri might have been Cecil's younger sister, but she was Amy's best friend and was firmly in her corner.
When almost everyone came back saying Cecil was in the right, she had removed herself and blocked everyone.
“Yeah, no one was really sorry to see her go,” Emilia admitted. “I did find out through the grapevine that they haven't hired a private investigator, but they plan to subpoena Jasper's therapist and your marriage counsellor to take the stand.”
“That's gonna backfire spectacularly.” Danica grinned as she put down the window and tilted her head toward it, enjoying the feel of the warm summer air on her face.
“Well, the couple's therapist will for sure, I have no idea what he was telling his therapist.” Her smile faded for a moment, but she reminded herself that Jasper had been dedicated to repairing the marriage and had assured her countless times he wanted them to get back to normal.
“He was using therapy as a way to improve himself for you, Danica,” Emilia said, frowning as she put up Danica's window from her side. “I know you're not used to having air conditioning, but it doesn't work if you put the windows down.”
Danica rolled her eyes, trying not to laugh.
AC was an expensive option when her cars were first made, and out of the three of them, only the Firebird, the car she drove the least, had it installed.
It wasn't a big deal to her; she preferred not having it because she found it dried out and irritated her skin.
However, Emilia ran hot and loved her AC; her car even had cooling options in the seats, something Danica thought was ridiculous until she sat on Emilia's leather seats on a hot summer day in a tank top. “Alright, sorry.”
“Anyway, I agree, subpoenaing your therapists will backfire, but they don't have a lot of choice in the matter.
They're clinging to any hope they can find about proving Jasper wanted to keep the baby.” Emilia reached out and turned the AC up a little, and Danica immediately reached out and turned it all the way down on her side.
There were some features on modern cars that she would make an exception to her rule about keeping to manufacturers' specs in classic vehicles, and dual climate control was one of them, along with a heated steering wheel and heated seats.
“It doesn't make sense.” Danica shifted so she was facing Emilia, letting her confusion show. “Cecil said Lucy had Amy believing her lies and delusions. Why does she think Jasper would want to keep the baby? Does she really think Jasper was going to leave me and be with her?”
“I think she did and does believe that.” Emilia nodded as she pulled into Danica's driveway. “I think you need to tell Maverick to do some digging into Lucy, specifically into what her relationship with Jasper was like when they dated and what her ex-husband has to say about things.”
“From what I've seen of Maverick, I'm sure he's already looking into that.” Danica rubbed her forehead, feeling a headache coming on.
“But I'll make the suggestion.” They got out of the car, and while Danica dug through the clothes she had left that belonged to Jasper, choosing his favourite jeans and the Boston Celtics jersey signed by the 2008 championship team to bury him in.
It was his prized possession, and she knew it was worth a lot of money, but she didn't think he would forgive her if she sold it.
It was one of about a dozen items she had put aside, unable to give away because they were so important to him, while Emilia made enough coffee for three thermoses.
They dropped off the clothes and picked up Cecil to visit the cemetery, where they viewed the available plots and chose one near a small pond, believing it was where he would want to be.
Cecil received a text from Amy as they were leaving, which was a single picture of his belongings on the front lawn and no other explanation.
Panicking because he could see the box that he kept his parents' wedding rings and heirloom pocket watch in on top of the pile, they left the cemetery immediately and made the drive to Dedham as quickly as Emilia felt comfortable going.
Luckily, the area Cecil and Amy lived in wasn't on a main street, so everything was still there when they arrived.
Amy's car was gone, and no one answered the door when Cecil banged on it, so they didn't have to deal with her or Lucy.
He had made a few phone calls on the drive over, and soon everyone in the family with a truck or trailer had arrived and begun loading up with everything from the garage and the lawn.
Danica and Emilia, along with Heather and some of the teenagers, were in Cecil's mancave over the garage, putting his books in boxes, when they heard Amy screeching that they needed to leave.
Danica moved to the window and opened it, watching as everyone ignored and walked around her, continuing to move boxes of tools and books out of the garage as if she didn't exist, something that pissed her off even more.
“You're all on my property illegally!” She squealed, red-faced and brandishing her hands wildly at them, even attempting to stop one of her nephews who was much bigger than her.
He just stared her down silently, with a disgusted look on his face, until she meekly stepped aside, her face red and upset.
“I'll call the cops!” she shouted again, trying to get someone to pay attention to her.
“Go ahead,” Cecil said calmly as he passed her, carrying a large drill press between him and one of his brothers.
“It's still my legal residence, you haven't given me an eviction notice, so technically what you did was very illegal.
I've invited them here to help me remove my things.
And while the house and vehicles may be in your name, the garage and business are in mine, so if I want to remove my possessions, I'm within my legal right.” Lucy got out of the car and tried to sneak off to the house, but Jasper's cousin, Felix, saw her and began making low calls like he was heckling a baseball player.
“Hoooommmeeewrecker! Hey, Hooommmeeewrecker! What's the matter, afraid to face us?”
Emilia joined Danica at the window, watching in amazement as no one broke a stride, still moving boxes, but low calls of “Hoooommmmeewrecker!” were rising in sync.
“Oh my god, this is beautiful.” She whispered as Lucy burst into tears and ran inside, Amy hot on her heels, still yelling that she was calling the cops.
The calls didn't stop; they increased in volume and became a chant as the men and women moved the boxes.
Even when the police arrived thirty minutes later, they continued.
Cecil explained his side of the story, and they spoke to Amy, telling her that Cecil had every right to collect his belongings and to have help with it.
If she hadn't served him with a formal eviction notice, she had no right to remove his things, and she was lucky he wasn't pressing charges.
To Danica's petty indignation, they asked everyone to stop chanting, saying that while they understood the reasoning, it was considered harassment and Lucy had a right to feel safe in her home.
Cecil asked that they stay, stating he felt his wife was delusional and he was concerned for his safety.
After a conversation about why, they kind of rolled their eyes, but sat in their car in front of the house while they finished moving things out, and Cecil approached, handing them his keys to the house to give to Amy and saying with a tone of finality.
“Tell her I'm done.”
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Back at Danica's, she moved the Charger out of the garage, and they did a quick clean inside so they could store all of Cecil's belongings.
Someone went to the store and came back with cases of beer, and someone else ordered pizza.
Before Danica knew what was happening, she had a bunch of Jasper's relatives sitting in the backyard as they took a food and drink break before they got started unloading the vehicles.
They were all in good spirits, laughing and joking about the “Homewrecker” chant and how ridiculous everything was, as Danica brought them up to speed on everything she could.
It was late in the evening when everyone finally left, including Cecil, who was eager to go for a spin in the Charger.
Danica promised to go with him the next day, transfer the title to his name, and help him get set up with his own insurance, as well as find him a divorce lawyer.
She sent a text to Alex, giving him a brief update on everything and explaining that she needed to be out until Monday, while also letting him know that the funeral was scheduled for Friday morning.
Then she sent Maverick a text asking him to dig into Lucy some more, specifically her relationship with Jasper and her ex-husband, his response making her smile.
I'm already on it. Want to meet tomorrow, and I'll update you?
Yes, please.