For six years, I had imagined Olivia walking through a doorway.
I had pictured her older, perhaps thinner, with tired eyes and an apology trembling on her lips. I had imagined running to her, touching her face to make sure she was real, and asking why she had left me alone to raise our daughter.
I had never imagined meeting her with a gun pointed at the man who had destroyed our family.
“Olivia,” I whispered.
Her eyes found mine.
For one brief second, the weapon lowered.
“Damien.””
My knees nearly buckled.
She looked exactly like the woman I remembered, except for the scar running along her temple and the exhaustion etched into her face. Her hair had been cut unevenly, and a hospital identification bracelet still circled her wrist.
I took a step toward her.
She raised the gun again.
“Don’t move.””
I stopped.
“It’s me,” I said.
“It’s really me.””
“I know.””
“Then let me come to you.””
“Not until the girls are safe.””
Behind me, Sophie began crying.
“Mommy?””
Olivia’s face crumpled.
She looked at Sophie as though someone had reached into her chest and torn something loose.
“Oh, sweetheart.””
Sophie tried to run to her, but I caught her gently around the waist.
“Wait, baby.””
Olivia wiped her eyes with the back of her free hand.
“I’ve dreamed about holding you every night,” she whispered.
“Every single night.””
Ruby stood beside her sister, staring at Olivia with frightened curiosity.
“Are you our mommy?””
Olivia’s expression changed.
“Yes,” she answered.
“I’m the woman who gave birth to you both.””
Victor laughed.
“That’s a lovely reunion. Unfortunately, it doesn’t change anything.””
Olivia swung the gun toward him.
“Silence.””
He raised his hands, but the smile remained on his face.
“You’re making a mistake, Olivia. You should have stayed hidden.””
“You should have left my children alone.””
“Your children?”” Victor glanced at Ruby.
“One of those girls carries Richard Cole’s genetic material. You know what that means.””
“It means you and Richard were both monsters.””
Victor’s jaw tightened.
Olivia looked at me.
“Damien, I need you to listen carefully. There are things I couldn’t tell you over the phone because Victor monitored every call.””
“Where have you been?””
“Locked away. Moved between properties. Sometimes I was told you were dead.
Sometimes I was told you’d remarried. Victor wanted me to believe there was nothing left to return to.””
I felt sick.
“I searched for you.””
“I know.”” Her voice broke.
“I saw you once.””
“When?””
“Outside your house, eight months ago. I was across the street. Sophie was playing in the yard.””
I remembered the dark blue sedan in the security photograph.
“You were there.””
“Yes.””
“Why didn’t you come inside?””
“Because Victor had threatened to kill Sophie if I approached you. He had men watching the house. I thought staying away was the only way to keep her alive.””
I wanted to embrace her and scream at her in equal measure.
Instead, I asked the question that had haunted me since she disappeared.
“Did you ever stop loving me?””
Olivia lowered the gun slightly.
“Not for one second.””
Then Victor moved.
He reached inside his jacket, and Olivia shouted, “DON’T!””
A guard lunged toward her.
The gun fired.
The sound exploded through the room.
I threw myself over Sophie and Ruby as the girls screamed. A glass cabinet shattered behind us. The guard fell against the wall, clutching his shoulder.
Detective Harris’s voice rang out from the hallway.
“POLICE! DROP YOUR WEAPONS!””
The entire mansion erupted into chaos.
Two officers rushed through the doorway. Another tackled Victor before he could reach the stairs. Rachel dragged the girls behind the sofa while I ran to Olivia.
She stood trembling, the gun now pointed at the floor.
“Are you hurt?”” I asked.
She shook her head.
Then her legs gave way.
I caught her before she hit the floor.
For a moment, she simply stared at me, her fingers gripping my shirt as though she feared I might disappear.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
I pressed my forehead against hers.
“Don’t apologize yet. Just stay with me.””
Her eyes closed.
“I tried to come home.””
“I know.””
“They took everything from me.””
I held her tighter.
“Not everything.””
Behind us, Detective Harris ordered the remaining guards to the ground. Victor was handcuffed and dragged toward the front door, but he twisted around to look at Olivia.
“You have no idea what you’ve done,” he snarled.
Olivia rose unsteadily.
“Yes, Victor. I finally stopped being afraid of you.””
He spat at the floor.
“You think arresting me ends this? Richard’s program was bigger than you know. The clinic created more than one embryo. There are records, contracts, and people who will do anything to keep them hidden.””
Detective Harris pushed him forward.
“Save it for your lawyer.””
As the officers led Victor away, Olivia’s fingers tightened around mine.
“Damien, we have to find the original files.””
“Why?””
“Because the embryo Victor wants isn’t the only secret. My first child was born years before I met you. I was nineteen. I gave birth in a private clinic after my parents told me the baby had died.””
I stared at her.
“What?””
“They showed me a death certificate. I never saw the body. Years later, I discovered the certificate had been forged. Someone had taken my baby.””
Her eyes filled with tears.
“Richard found out. He knew where the child was. He used the secret to control me.””
I struggled to process the revelation.
“Did you ever find out if the baby was alive?””
Olivia nodded.
“Six months ago, I found a birth record hidden among the clinic files. It showed that my child had been transferred to a family under a false identity.””
“Who?””
“I don’t know. The name was redacted.””
She reached into her coat and removed a small photograph.
It showed a newborn wrapped in a pale yellow blanket.
On the back was a date and a name.
*ELISE.*
My heart stopped.
“Why does it say Elise?””
Olivia looked toward Rachel, who was standing beside the twins.
“Because my sister helped them take my baby.””
Rachel began to cry.
“I didn’t know what they were doing,” she whispered.
“I swear to you, Olivia.””
Olivia’s expression hardened.
“Then tell us what happened to my child.””
Rachel opened her mouth.
But before she could answer, Detective Harris returned with a sealed evidence bag.
Inside was a small silver bracelet engraved with a name.
*ELISE COLE.*
He looked directly at Olivia.
“Mrs. Cole, we found this in Victor’s private office. It was attached to a folder containing adoption records.””
Olivia stared at the bracelet.
Then she whispered, “That’s impossible.””
“Why?”” I asked.
She turned toward me, her face suddenly white.
“Because Elise wasn’t the name they gave my first baby.””
She pointed at the bracelet.
“It’s the name they gave my daughter after they stole her.””
And somewhere upstairs, a phone began ringing.
May you like
The caller ID displayed a name none of us expected.
*ELISE COLE.*
