Logan's friend Victor keeps insisting it is a lucky charm. Ever since Logan put the picture in his pocket, he has been winning poker games and surviving deadly events. " 'Do you remember the firefight? The one where Jackson and the others died when the Humvee blew up...You saved my life.'
'No, I didn't. I just hauled you back.'
'Thibault, I followed you. When you jumped from the Humvee. I was going to stay, but when I saw you go, I knew I had no choice.'
'What are you talking ab-?'
'The picture,' Victor interrupted. 'I know you carry it with you. I followed your luck and it saved me.' " (Sparks 99)
After leaving the marines, Victor convinced Logan to search for the woman in the photograph. Logan, along with his dog, Zeus, walked all the way from Colorado to the small town of Hampton, North Carolina. Once Logan found Elizabeth, it wasn't smooth sailing from there. Logan applied for a job on Nana's (Elizabeth's grandmother) farm working in the dog kennel. Nana trains dogs for a living. She was in much need of Logan's help. Logan found a little house to live in. He also had to continuously put up with Elizabeth's ex- husband Clayton. Clayton didn't approve of Logan dating Elizabeth and building a strong relationship with their son, Ben. Clayton's family name in town is very big, so he can pretty much get away with anything, even breaking into Logan's house. "The blanket was the first giveaway. There was a tiny ridge in the blanket, caused by someone who didn't know how to tuck in the covers military fashion- something few, if anyone, would have noticed. He noticed. The clothes in his drawers showed similar disturbances: a rumple here, a sleve folded the wrong way there. Not only had someone entered the home while he'd been at work, but he'd searched thoroughly... All right, so Clayton wanted to cover his tracks. But there was still more to this than met the eye. And it had to do with Elizabeth" (Sparks 253 & 254). Clayton likes to control Elizabeth's life, so when Logan came along, it caused some problems.
Towards the end of the book, Elizabeth finds out the full reason why Logan came to Hampton. At first she was shocked, and wanted nothing to do with him anymore. She believed he was a stalker and could not be trusted. "Though she heard him plainly, she couldn't comprehend the words. She waited for more, and the steady silence that followed, she realized she found them... chilling somehow. The hairs on her arms pricked, and she took another step back. 'Who are you?' she hissed. ' What do you want from me?' " (Sparks 334). This definately put a wrinkle in their relationship. Elizabeth and Logan worked through it though, and it made their relationship stronger.
At the very end of the book, a major event occured. Clayton was drunk and came over to Elizabeth's house. He suggested that they go out on a date, for old times sake. Elizabeth said no, then Clayton threatened to get full custody of Ben. Ben overheard this conversation and said he would not go to live with his dad. He charged outside into the rain, and ran up to his unstable treehouse. Logan, Clayton, and Elizabeth ran after him. When Logan, Clayton, and Ben were on the bridge, it collapsed and the three boys fell down into the river below. Logan grabbed hold of a stick and got out. Zeus, Logan's dog, grabbed hold of Ben, and together they swam towards shore. However, Clayton wasn't so lucky. He died in the river, that day. "But when all was said and done, Keith Clayton would be remembered by her with unequivocal gratitude. She could never forget how he'd carried her when she fell that day. Or in the end, he'd died trying to save their son. That counted for something. That counted for a lot, and despite his other failings, that would always be how she chose to remember him" (Sparks 384).
No comments:
Post a Comment