“Make up my mind? You both are wearing jeans and leather jackets to my graduation ceremony!”
Wyatt rubs his chin and asks with confusion, “But didn’t you say wear something nice?” He motions up and down his chest. “These cost a fortune, one of the best that we have in the closet.”
She blinks in disbelief. “I meant to wear a suit. You have several of those!”
“A suit.” They both say at the same time and chuckle, nudging each other’s shoulder while Emmaline groans in frustration and shifts her attention to me.
Oh no.
I should have expected this but was too slow to catch up, and now I won’t be able to escape the line of fire.
“Mom!”
Ian says, “Hey, that’s not fair. You can’t involve grownups in our conversations.”
“Says who?”
“Says me,” Wyatt replies with a grin and then winks at the girls passing by who giggle loudly, and I shake my head at him. One of these days, this boy is going to be a womanizer.
And God help us all then.
“We’re just in time for a fight.” An amused voice from behind makes me turn around to see Sebastian walking toward us with Felicia and their ten-year-old daughter, Daisy, who rushes to us with a loud squeal.
She plasters herself against Emmaline, wrapping her hands around her middle, and cranes her neck back to meet her sister’s gaze. “You look so pretty!”
My daughter smiles, ruffling her hair, and replies, “You are pretty too.” She steps back and grabs her hand, allowing the girl to twirl in a circle, showcasing her perfect white dress with gold sandals that match her blonde locks perfectly.
“Hey, Aunt Phoenix,” she greets me, blowing me a kiss before she jumps to the boys, and Ian catches her in his arms where she giggles loudly. Then she points behind them. “There is ice cream.”
The twins once again glance in unison at Felicia. Sometimes, it astonishes even me how much in sync with each other they are, almost like one body separated into two halves. Combined with their identical looks and moods, they make one scary yet fascinating team for everyone.
And fiercely protective of each other—if you hurt one, you better be ready to face the other.
It doesn’t help they are both exceptionally smart too and sneaky, not that they can ever lie to me.
Or fool me into believing one or the other is in front of me.
“Go ahead.” Felicia nods, and the boys walk off as she leans toward me and hugs me. “How are you?” She drops her voice down to a whisper. “Happy to have a kid graduate?” She frowns. “I think I will be bawling my eyes out when the time comes for Daisy. I should buy some handkerchiefs in advance.”
Sebastian and she married three years after Lydia was charged with several murders. Due to her unstable mental state, she was put in a psychiatric ward for life with no chance of appeal or parole. They transferred her to prison several years later when, with medication and therapy, she was stable enough to be moved there.
The King family was so shaken up with what she did plus Zachary’s….
I shake my head, blocking away the painful memories that still rip my heart in two.
The whole family mourned for several years, not believing how their sweet girl turned into a cold-blooded murderer. It took me a long time to convince them all, especially Olivia, that it wasn’t their fault, and dwelling on what ifs wouldn’t help them. Yes, they should have gotten her to therapy all those years ago, instead of sighing in relief when she said she didn’t remember anything. When children are in pain and suffering, we should help them, instead of protecting ourselves from their truths that have the power to destroy us.
However, a sense of guilt wouldn’t have helped her, so instead, I told Olivia that the only thing she could do for her daughter was to be there for her.
And that’s what the entire family did, visited her every month and didn’t leave her in the depths of despair alone and without love.
What Lydia did… those were horrible and despicable things that no one should ever do, and there is no justification for them. Killing an innocent to numb your own pain is never the solution; allowing the darkness to consume your life isn’t one either.
The one who needed family, though, was the little girl still living inside her who waited for her family to come and find her when the whole world crumbled apart. Where the abusive monster took advantage of her weakness and shattered her spirit.
And that’s what she finally got, even if she got those things in a way no one expected.
The patriarch of the family, Anthony, never wanted to hear about her or visit her, not that anyone expected that.
How could they, after what she had done to him?
Even I could never go, despite my profession and compassion. I refused multiple times when Olivia wanted me to evaluate her mental state. Just seeing her broke disgusted goose bumps on my skin, bringing me back to that rainy day where life separated into before and after for me.
Anthony’s words from a long time ago still ring in my ears as he spoke them to Olivia, who cried silently, sitting on the couch.
I won’t forbid you from seeing her, but God, don’t ask anything else from me. Ever. You don’t speak her name in this house. As far as I’m concerned, she doesn’t exist for me. My son, Olivia. She shot my son. I will never forgive it.
Despite all this, their marriage stayed as strong as ever with all their grandkids regularly visiting them and having a great time, even though Anthony walks with a cane now after having an operation on his hip. According to him, he was injured when he tried to practice Emmaline’s ballet move, but she denies it.
Knowing both of them well, I feel like the truth lies somewhere in between.
A chuckle slips past my lips, thinking about their bond that only got stronger through the years. He doesn’t mind calling her his favorite grandchild. “Since she was accepted to Julliard, I won’t have much time to miss her. For now, she plans to stay at home.”
Felicia laughs. “Yeah, I’d be surprised if she lived anywhere else.”
Sebastian nods at me, patting his wife on the back gently before he walks toward Emmaline, who snaps a photo on her phone but stills when she sees him close.
They both shift uncomfortably as he finally speaks. “Congratulations, sweetheart.” Then he gives her a box with a bow on top. “I wasn’t sure if you needed those, but it seemed like a good choice at the time.”
Standing still in silver heels, she puts her phone inside the pocket of her purple pencil dress as her silky graduation gown is blown back by the wind, and then she opens the box.
She gasps before taking out a pair of matte-black pointe shoes and presses them to her chest while Sebastian explains. “I know you go through those quickly, since you exercise till your toes bleed.” He frowns, clearly not happy about this. “But I wanted to give you those as a lucky charm maybe? You can wear them during exams or whatever you guys have in this dance school.” When he finishes, his ears are red and he clears his throat. “I’m very proud of your accomplishments, sweetheart. I want you to know that.”
“My God, Dad, thank you.” She hugs him close, and Felicia sighs, wiping away her tears, as she always has those while looking at them.
“They are super cute together, aren’t they? Ever since we told her the truth.”