Twisted Fate

By Cathie Rosanske

Twisted Fate begins with Miranda, the youngest daughter of the Kacent family, who receives a phone call from her mother that her father was just in a horrible car accident and was taken to the local hospital where he is pronounced dead. On the way to meet her mother at the hospital, Miranda reflects on her family and the past events that drove her apart from her sisters, Rachelle and Kari. Unfortunately, two of them loved the same man, Kyle, who became the source of a seemingly unbridgeable divide for the girls.

But tragedy is again about to strike the family. They find there is scandalous truth surrounding their father’s death—could Kyle have had something to do with it? Will the family become closer because of this tragedy?

• Language: English
• Publisher: AuthorHouse
• Release date: Nov 30, 2018
• ISBN: 9781546270348

Cathie Rosanske

Coming from a world of twisted events herself, Cathie Rosanske is a master at bringing suspense and drama to her readers. Born and raised in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, Rosanske spent many days thinking of what might become of the future, and she realized that the way she could change her past was by rewriting some actual events. Using her creative abilities, she has changed her life through her writings. After raising her two children, Cathie’s life took an unexpected turn, leading her in a new direction…new twist…new fate.

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© 2018 Cathie Rosanske. All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.

Published by AuthorHouse 11/30/2018

ISBN: 978-1-5462-7035-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5462-7034-8 (e)

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models,

and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

CONTENTS

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Life happens in ways that we can’t even imagine. We wonder why, if there is a God, why would he allow us to go through so much pain, trauma, devastation, failure and hurt? We live our lives in God’s time and it all comes pouring through when we least expect it to and then it all finally makes sense. It has taken me years of pain, loneliness, sadness, happiness and joy and every other feeling in the world that you can imagine getting me to this point.

God made me go through it all so now I can become what I’ve always wanted to be, a writer. I needed all these experiences in my life to fully understand how to share my thoughts with feelings. They say you must write what you know about and now through the years I have many stories to tell.

This book is dedicated to my wonderful husband Michael and to

my great daughter-in-law Amanda, both who made me see that I needed to change my life and who helped me to make my dreams come true. I’ll love you both forever and thank you.

CHAPTER ONE

T HE AIR WAS WARM blowing through the window. Miranda drifted off to sleep watching the curtains blowing gently by the breeze. She laid there sleeping with the sheet gently draped across her legs and waist. Suddenly she was startled awake by the ringing of the phone. Reaching to find the phone she glanced at the clock, oh shit, she said when she realized that it was only 2:49 in the morning. Knowing that no one would be calling at that hour unless there was something seriously wrong, Miranda could feel her entire body turning ice cold as her hand reached toward the receiver. Feeling the cold chills traveling down her spine, Miranda clamped her hand around the receiver, certain that she didn’t want to hear what the person on the other end was about to say. Instead of the warm reception that she normally would answer the phone with, all Miranda blurted out was what happened?

Startled by the way Miranda answered the phone, Elizabeth started sobbing, Miranda, it’s…. it’s mom, Elizabeth squeaked out. Elizabeth’s entire body shook as she tried to finish, there was a…he…um…dad, was all she was able to say. Elizabeth stopped speaking because the tears were flowing profusely down her face. Feeling a burning sensation in her throat and against her face from the tears, Elizabeth could not continue to speak. She could feel her grip sliding from the receiver, unable to grasp it any longer; it crashed to the hard tile floor in the hospital waiting room. Hearing the receiver crashing to the floor sounded like a bomb exploding inside Elizabeth’s head. She clinched her hands over her ears to drown out the noise. Slowly she sank to her knees; all her strength seemed to be draining out of her entire body the harder she cried.

Not knowing exactly what was happening, Miranda started screaming into the phone, Mom where are you? What’s happening? Where’s dad? There wasn’t any reply from Elizabeth; the phone receiver just lay on the floor next to Elizabeth. Screaming into the still darkness of the night. Miranda kept trying to get an answer out of her mother, any answer at all.

After a few seconds, which seemed like endless hours to Miranda, there was someone on the other end of the line, Whom am I speaking with? The strange, unknown voice to Miranda was asking. This is Miranda Kacent, who the hell are you and where is my mother? What happened to my father? Miranda asked in a very demanding voice.

Realizing that there was much anger and concern in this young women’s voice, nurse Len took in a long, deep breath, trying to collect her thoughts as to what she would tell this woman. Feeling her muscles tightening inside of her, trying to avoid the hot burning sensation in the pit of her stomach, nurse Len began to speak in the calmest voice that she could muster up. Miranda, my name is nurse Len from St. Francis Hospital, your mother is sitting beside me, she is too upset to speak with you right now. Your father has been in an accident and he was just brought into the emergency room. No matter how many years she has been a nurse; it has never been easy to tell a family member that a loved one has been seriously injured, especially killed in such a horrible manner. For a moment she allowed herself to get lost in the silence and she started to say a prayer to herself for this family. The silence was suddenly broken by a sharp squeal on the other end of the line. Nurse Len realized that the noise she was hearing was Miranda crying.

Trying to pull herself together enough to comfort Miranda, nurse Len found herself kneeling, putting her arm around Elizabeth gave her the strength that she needed to inform Miranda as to what happened to her father. Taking in another long, deep breath and holding it for as long as she could, nurse Len could hear in her own voice, the amazing calmness in which she spoke, as she let out the breath and started to speak to Miranda. Your father was traveling on interstate forty-one when an on coming car struck his vehicle. The man in the other car had been drinking and he crossed over the centerline. Thankfully, there was a state patrol car in the area and he was able to radio for help immediately. Nurse Len broke off from what she was saying; just long enough to let what she said register with Miranda, knowing that what she had to say next would be extremely devastating for her to hear. Grasping at straws, trying to find a way to be as gentle as she possibly could, nurse Len found herself starring at the crucifix that was hanging on the bleach white wall in the waiting room. Her eyes glancing slowly at each of the four walls, she could feel a bitter chill creeping through every muscle of her body as she suddenly realized just how cold and unfeeling that hospital waiting room felt. How horrible it must be for the patient’s families to have to sit and wait in such a disgusting place. All the walls were bleach white, with only the one crucifix hanging on the wall. The drab, almost dingy, blue and green leather chairs lined up in a single row against the south wall. The tiles which used to be white and green, now an almost grayish white and dull greenish color, swamped with scuff marks, and the sliding glass window, which enclosed the nurses station, filled with smudges of fingerprints, was enough to make anyone feel depressed and withdrawn. Knowing that she had to tell Miranda the rest, she started by saying, When the emergency medical team arrived, they found that your father had severe head injuries and they started to work on him immediately. She cut off her words because of the raw feeling in her throat. It burned so badly that it felt as though the last of her air had been squeezed out of her. Gasping for air she continued on, they did all that they could, but he went into cardiac arrest. Oh, dear Miranda, your father was pronounced dead at the seen of the accident. Nurse Len was Cut off from saying anything else when Miranda blurted out, No! Dear God, no! My father can’t be dead!" After a few seconds Miranda stopped crying and there was a dead silence on the phone line.

Imaging the worst of possible situations, nurse Len stood frozen in one spot, unable to speak. With tears streaming down her pale white face, nurse Len was suddenly startled by a warm, almost hot touch. She looked at her arm to find, in complete amazement, that Elizabeth was clinching onto it. Starring at Elizabeth, she somehow became mesmerized by her soft, gentle touch and the warm glow that radiated from Elizabeth’s whole body. Elizabeth gave a soft squeeze to nurse Len’s arm and asked, What’s your name dear? So, overwhelmed by Elizabeth’s empathy, which should have been the other way around, in a shaky voice she said, Tara, my name is Tara Len. A bright smile came over Elizabeth’s face, her eyes still bloodshot from crying and her face still streaked from where the tears rolled down her checks, Elizabeth spoke in almost a whisper, May I speak with my daughter again please? Handing the telephone receiver back to Elizabeth, Tara couldn’t help but admire the iron strength that somehow flooded back into Elizabeth. Before talking with Miranda, Elizabeth gave a soft, brief hug to Tara and ever so softly she said, Thank you dear for coming to my rescue a few moments ago. We hurt badly, but I know that Jake is now in a safe place where he will never be hurt by anyone again. In her heart though, she felt a sharp pain that traveled to the pit of her stomach, oh how badly she wished that she could turn back the hands of time and have Jake back in her arms once again. Knowing that as much as she prayed about it, it would never change the horrible truth that lay in front of her, Jake was gone forever.

Bringing the telephone receiver up to her ear, she prayed to God that Miranda would still be on the other end. Her whole body was trembling, but she knew for her daughter’s sake that she couldn’t fall apart on the phone again. Swallowing hard against her throat, Elizabeth could feel a knot building up; it felt like the size of a bolder in her throat. All she had now were her daughter’s and she needed their support as much as they needed hers’, but she had to notify them of what happened first.

Taking a deep breath, she gathered her strength and said, Miranda, dear, please say that you’re still there. It only took a second before she heard Miranda saying, "Oh mom is it really true? Has dad really been killed? Before Elizabeth knew it, the words were pouring out of her mouth, Oh sugar its true. God must have needed him more than we did. It was a horrible way to leave, but your father is safe now sweetie, free from any pain or worries. He loved us all Miranda, you know that, now it’s time for us to let go of what we used to have, but we will always have the memories of dad and we still have the one thing that he loved the most in life, his family!"

Miranda agreed with her mother to the fact that her father did love his family; she only wished that she felt the same way. The only things that Miranda could ever remember her and her sisters agreeing on, is that they always disagreed. She felt like saying, oh how dad loved each one of us; I only wish that we loved each other the same way. Instead all she said was, The others’, do they know? No, Elizabeth replied, I haven’t called anyone else yet, you were the first one.

Miranda had an awful feeling that her mother was going to ask her to come to the hospital, she wasn’t sure if she could deal with it. After a moment Elizabeth did ask, Miranda, dear, would you please come to the hospital? The coroner wants me to identify his body and I really don’t want to be alone. Will you please come here to be with me? Without a moment’s hesitation, Miranda replied, yes, I’ll be there as fast as I can mom. Miranda said. As Elizabeth hung up the phone, she noticed that nurse Len was still sitting on a chair in the waiting room sobbing away.

Elizabeth walked over her and sat down in the chair next to her. Elizabeth slowly placed her hand on top of Tara’s; as she did she had this sudden urge to scream out, why in the hell are you still crying? It’s my husband that’s dead, not yours, but she knew that it wouldn’t help anyone feel better about the situation if she said that. Elizabeth sat, holding Tara’s hand for a few minutes. Out of the silence, Tara spoke, I’m sorry about your husband Mrs. Kacent. I know that, as a nurse I shouldn’t be reacting is such a manner. It’s, it’s just that I lost my own father in a car accident not to long ago and I realize now that I really wasn’t ready to come back to work yet. Elizabeth and Tara sat in the waiting room, comforting each other and talking until Miranda arrived.

As she placed the receiver back in the cradle, Miranda realized that she was only in a tank top and her underwear. She quickly ran over to her dresser and grabbed a pair of jeans out of a drawer. As she stepped into them and pulled them up, she realized how terribly bad her entire body was shaking. Without hesitation, she zipped and buttoned her pants and slid on a pair of loafers. Running toward the door, Miranda grabbed her sweatshirt and ran out of her apartment.

As the door slammed shut and she started running down the hallway, Miranda remembered that she forgot to grab her car keys that were lying on the desk next to the door. As she spun around she saw Doug Worthington standing in the doorway to his apartment looking at her with amazement. Miranda’s eyes caught his and only for a brief second, she allowed herself to get lost in the feelings that she has for him. Is everything all right? Doug asked with a concerned tone in his voice. Um…Oh shit my keys. Miranda muttered as she bolted back into her apartment to get them. As she headed back into the hallway, Doug was still out there leaning against the wall in front of Miranda’s apartment. Miranda glimpsed at him again, noticing his incredible body as he stood there in his tight tank top and sweatpants. His chest was so muscular, and she could see every ripple of his perfect body. Her eyes wondered down his body only for a second, but she couldn’t help but notice the obvious bulge that was in his pants. As Miranda’s thoughts quickly went back to her father and the fact that she needed to rush to the hospital, again Miranda stuttered Um…keys, got them, is all she was able to say as she ran back down the hallway. As she was going down the stairs, Doug could hear a very faint, bye, and than the door shutting as she left the building.

Miranda jumped into her car and whipped it into reverse and back up, nearly hitting the row of mailboxes that stood in front of the apartments. Putting her car into drive she sped out of the parking lot and down the street.

Driving down the road, Miranda’s thoughts went back to the last time she saw her sister’s and that horrible fight that they had.

Miranda and Kyle, her ex-boyfriend, walked through the front door of Miranda’s parent’s house; her sisters, Kari and Rachelle, were sitting on the couch. As they walked through the living room, Kari started making groaning noises like people making love. Kari watched them as they passed by her and than she puckered up her lips and started blowing kisses in the air. Miranda grabbed Kyle’s hand and pulled him along, don’t pay any attention to them, she said to Kyle as they continued their way through the house. Miranda and Kyle rushed into the family room and shut the door behind them. What the hell was that all about? Kyle asked with anticipation in his voice. Beats the shit out of me, Miranda replied, but I’m damn sure going to go find out. Kyle could tell by the look in Miranda’s eyes that she was going to really loose her temper. Kyle thought to himself as he stared at her, as delicate as she looks, as petite as she is, her soft skin and tiny hands, God I’d hate to be the person to piss her off. He knew that even though Miranda seemed fragile, she had a temper that raged inside of her and when she lost it, all hell would break out. I’ll be right back, Miranda said with a tone of anger in her voice; I’ll get us something to drink, okay? Yea, sure, but keep your cool as you pass by them okay! Kyle replied. Miranda just rolled her eyes back in her head and gave him a half-hearted smile, Yea, right, whatever, she said as she opened the door and headed back into the hallway.

Kari could hear the door opening from the family room and she flopped back down on the couch. As Miranda walked into the room again, Kari started in again with, Oh…oh God that feels so good. She broke off only for