Chapter 101

Dan drove the entire family, plus Mitchell, to the memorial service in his SUV. He dropped Christine and Mitchell off near the rear of the building so Mitchell would not have as far to hobble to reach backstage. Christine held his good arm as he tried to keep his right leg from moving very much. His bullet wound was high on his thigh and chaffed when he tried to walk on that leg. To lessen the rubbing, Mitchell tried to keep that leg immobile and rely on his left leg to provide motion. It all made for an awkward gait. Any step with either leg still caused some pain in his injury.

When they arrived backstage, Mitchell and Christine were impressed with the caliber of speakers and performers present. A girl that finished in the top five in American Idol the previous year lived in their state. She had volunteered to sing "Amazing Grace". Cindy Burns and Laura Anderson were scheduled to speak. Governor O'Leary was scheduled to speak after the first prayer. The mayor and the police chief w