Just over three years ago, Valencia stopped the anti-depressants and visits to Dr. Eross. Her mental health has improved tremendously and it’s all due to her strength and that dark void from our past being filled. The twins have stopped therapy, and a couple of months after finding Addilyn we flew our immediate friends and family to join us in Fiji to renew our vows. It was one of the most heartfelt moments of my life.
Naturally, there are also bad days. Those where one of us wakes in the middle of the night to a nightmare. I’ve had my fair share featuring Marcus. He used to haunt my dreams every single night after he was killed. But as the weeks faded into months, they stopped and I took comfort in the thought that his evil is at peace now. I never wanted it to end that way, but Marcus played with the devil the moment he thought he could rise above Seattle Police. He’s with our father now…That brings an odd comfort I don’t think I will ever quite understand.
Seattle Police confirmed Marcus Giannotti to be the mastermind behind Addilyn’s abduction. He hired a dozen men and women—who are now imprisoned—to aid his quest for revenge and paid them with the profit he made selling drugs and the money he borrowed from me. Marcus orchestrated the vandalism at my retirement village project. He was the distorted voice. He threw Lencia into the water. He stole my Porsche and torched it. Hired somebody to abduct Addilyn and kept her in a basement the entire time. His intention was never to hurt her, after all, it was revealed that three nannies signed an NDA and were taking care of Addilyn this entire time. It was why she was in perfect health, and that too brought a strange comfort.
Sergeant Flynn was adamant that if Marcus hadn’t died that day, he would have been looking at life without parole. He took the easy way out. That is the coward he was.
As for Bryce McCarson, he was convicted of second degree auto theft, kidnapping in the second degree of Valencia, Slonne, and Oscar, accessory to an attempted murder, and unlawful imprisonment. Bryce pled guilty and was sentenced to six years imprisonment and after completing his prison sentence will serve four years of federal supervised release. He is also ordered to pay restitution.
Valencia and I haven’t visited him in jail yet…and I don’t know if we ever will.
There’s a great heaviness in my chest that always appears at the thought of Bryce. He was a confident, complex man who helped destroy our family. On the flip side, his rage melted into compassionate empathy and helped us reunite our family. I think many people see his tattooed skin and rough exterior and instantly label him a villain. As much as I despise him for what he did, I don’t think I will ever be able to say those words. I don’t think Valencia will either.
Why?
Because ultimately, Bryce was the one who led us to Addilyn.
The two men Valencia and I murdered were never accounted for. Sandro outdid himself and executed such a complex plan that the police believe they fled the country. I haven’t seen Sandro since that last time. It will be Lencia’s and my secret until our last breaths. In this story nobody is perfect, but we are brave. Our sacrifices will stay with us forever, but we did what we needed to do to protect our family and I will never ever regret that.
“Oh no, Daddy! They’re coming!”
Oh, hell no!
Loud shuffling beside us has me look there. Oscar rushes around the backyard with a cheeky grin. He must have been tagged in the midst of my thoughts and so I pull Addilyn against my chest, hiding her from visibility.
We stay still at the anticipation of Valencia or Slonne finding us at any moment.
Their nearing voices and the crushing of leaves makes Addilyn muffle a shriek.
“Don’t worry, Daddy’s not going to let them get you.”
Just then Valencia stops in her tracks feet away. “Check behind the trees, Oscar! Maybe they’re there.”
Darling, I think you just broke my heart.
They’re feet away which means we don’t have much time. I hold onto our daughter tighter and chuckle against her sweet, vanilla floral, and woodsy scent. Ever since we used Lencia’s perfume to help Slonne’s nightmares, we’ve done the same thing for Addilyn as her own type of cure on the nights she needs to get the monsters to go away.
Addilyn’s still too young to understand the severity of what happened just yet. And while my wife and I have sat Oscar and Slonne down to ease into the topic, we need to give our youngest more time.
Oscar changes up the game and unexpectedly tags Valencia. She gasps but laughs when he runs off with Weston and Slonne.
Yes! That’s my boy!
The moment Valencia lifts her gaze further and sees us, I know it’s all over.
“Well, well, well.” She grins, diverting our daughter’s attention too. “Look what we have here!”
Before I can move she taps my back and I’m the one laughing now.
And that right there is the love of my life.
“RUN!” she grabs Addilyn’s hand and they rush through our endless backyard.
All of our laughs merge into one as Slonne retreats off to her grandmother and Oscar joins my team as we try our best to zone in on one of them. The bubbly, bright Helena we all know and love cheers her sister on. I call on Lance to join us but he’s too occupied with his fiancé, Amanda, to notice. That’s a man in love right there. After the incident, I was thankful he made a quick recovery and the injuries weren’t as severe as we initially thought. Before he could officially resume site managing, he spent the days in the office. When my assistant returned from leave, they hit it off and now they’re engaged to be married next year.
“Let’s split up,” I call
