Chapter 1
In the late afternoon the sun spills across the backyard, casting long shadows over the garden were laughter rings like music. The twins Grace and Gearld are now ten years old, darting between hedges in a high-stakes game of tag. Paul, their cousin is six years old, and is deep in construction mode, stacking sticks like he’s building the next Taj Mahal. Then there’s Little Belle, just a few months old sleeping soundly in her mom’s arms, with her tiny fist curled against her mother’s chest.
Marie: (rocking Belle, whispering) “Honey, she finally surrendered. I swear this girl fights sleep harder than you fight your inbox.”
Andy: (walking over, loosening his tie) “Hey, I heard that. And for the record, paperwork doesn’t scream in my face at 3 a.m. Or drool on my shirt.”
Marie: (smiling) “No, but it does give you that sexy vein-popping migraine look.”
Andy: (kissing her forehead) “Ah, romance. How are the chaos twins?”
Marie: “Grace is trying to convince Gearld she’s faster because she was born two minutes earlier.”
Andy: (laughing) “She’s got my competitive streak, and your logic.”
Just then, the side gate creaks open. Rosabell and Conner stroll in, hand in hand, looking like they just stepped out of a rom-com. Their daughter Layla, who is five years old bolts ahead with a squeal and beelines for Paul.
Rosabell: “Hope we’re not crashing the backyard circus.”
Marie: “Please. You’re the headliners.”
Conner: (grinning) “Layla’s been asking about Paul since breakfast. She says he is her favorite cousin.”
Andy: (raising an eyebrow) “She’s already picking favorites? Bold move.”
Rosabell: (laughing) “Don’t start. We’re still recovering from the drama of our own love story.”
Marie: “Speaking of drama…. I still remember the day you told us you were marrying Conner. I thought Andy was going to combust.”
Andy: (mocking) “I didn’t combust. I just… had a passionate allergic reaction to the idea.”
Conner: “Understandable. I was the guy who hated you.”
Andy: (shrugging) “And now you are family. You have proven yourself, and I’ll admit it I was wrong about you.”
Rosabell: (grinning) “Say that again. Slower…. Maybe in writing.”
Andy: (smirking) “I… was… wrong. Don’t push it.”
They all laugh as Layla tugs Paul toward the sandbox, dragging him like a little general.
Marie: (watching the kids) “Look at them. It’s wild how far we have come.”
Rosabell: (softly) “Yeah… but not all of us made it.”
The laughter fades as quiet settles over the group. Andy’s gaze drifts toward the horizon, eyes shadowed.
Andy: “William just disappeared. No calls or letters. It’s like he vanished with her.”
Conner: “You think he’s still out there?”
Andy: “I don’t know. I hope so.”
Rosabell: (quietly) “Our sister’s death broke him.”
Marie: “It broke all of us. We just… patched ourselves differently.”
Andy: (jaw tight) “She was the heart of this family. The glue and the fire. She was the reason we didn’t kill each other.”
Conner: (gently) “Andy, I know I’ve said it a thousand times, but I really am so—”
Andy: (cutting him off, waving a hand) “Don’t, Conner. We weren’t friends. We were enemies. We said things and did things. So, let’s honor her by moving forward. By laughing and living.”
There was a beat of silence. Then the sound of Paul yelling
Paul: “My fort needs reinforcements!”
Breaks the tension as Layla throws a stick at him like a javelin. Gearld and Grace race past them all arguing about who’s the fastest.
Marie: (smiling through tears) “They’re loud, messy, and perfect.”
Rosabell: “Bella would love this.”
Andy: “She would be in the middle of it. Probably leading the charge.”
They all nodded letting the grief linger, but so does the love. As the sun dips lower, the family leans into the chaos, the laughter, and the healing.
As the sun starts to dip low over the horizon, casting a golden haze across the villa’s polished floors. The crash of waves outside is the only sound that interrupts the quiet tension inside. Kyle sits beside his son Junior, who’s curled up in a fleece blanket, sipping lemon tea.
Junior: (softly) “Dad… are you and Mom getting a divorce?”
Kyle: (startled) “What? No! Why would you even say that?”
Junior: (eyes downcast) “Because you sleep in the guest room, and she cries every night.”
Kyle’s heart stops as the mug in his hand trembles slightly.
Kyle: (voice cracking) “Are you sure she cries every night?”
Junior: (nodding) “Yes, Dad. What did you do? It feels like… she hates you.”
Kyle pulls his son into his arms, holding him like he’s the last piece of peace he has left. Junior is only four years old, and understands his parents are not on good terms. He sees the cracks in the smiles, the silence in the hallways, the weight in his mother’s eyes.
Kyle: (whispering) “She does hate me. But I’m trying, son. I swear I’m trying.”
Junior: “What did you do?”
Kyle: (sighing) “I… I told a lie. A big lie.”
Junior: (serious) “But you always say lying is bad.”
Kyle: “It is, but I did it to protect her.”
Junior: “From what?”
Kyle: (gently) “Something you wouldn’t understand.”
Junior: “Then tell me what I can understand.”
Kyle smiles faintly, while brushing a hand through his son’s hair.
Kyle: “You have a big family. Aunts, uncles, and a lot of cousins.”
Junior: (eyes wide) “Holy mother of cow…”
Kyle chuckles, the sound is bittersweet.
Kyle: “That’s the same look your mom had.”
Junior: “So Mom’s not an only child?”
Kyle: “Nope. She’s the youngest out of her siblings.”
Junior: “And they all have kids?”
Kyle: “They sure do.”
Junior: “I want to meet them.”
Kyle: (pausing) “One day you will. I promise.”
Just then, the air shifts as the warmth drains from the room. Bellarose stands in the doorway, arms crossed while her expression is unreadable.
Junior: (beaming)“Mom!”
Bellarose: (softly) “Hi Ju-bug.”
Junior: (excited) “Guess what? Dad told me we have a big family! Aunts! Uncles! And Cousins!”
Kyle watches her smile fade as her jaw tightens, and her voice drops to ice.
Bellarose: (coldly) “Seriously, Kyle?”
Kyle: (standing) “Bell, please let me explain—”
Bellarose: (cutting him off) “You told him? Really…. you told him about a family I don’t even remember?”
Kyle: “He asked, and I couldn’t lie.”
Bellarose: (stepping closer) “But you lied to me for years.”
Kyle: “You were in a coma and woke up with no memory. I thought—”
Bellarose: “You thought what Kyle. That I would be better off not knowing who I was?”
Junior: (quietly): “Mom…”
Bellarose: (softening) “I’m sorry Ju-bug, It’s okay I’m not mad at you.”
Kyle: “I was scared, Bell. Scared you would leave me.”
Bellarose: (tears forming) “You didn’t give me the choice.”
Silence flows through the room as the waves crash louder now, as if echoing the tension.
Junior: “Mom… do you want to meet them?”
Bellarose: (whispering) “I don’t know, Ju-bug.”
She turns and walks out of the room. Her footsteps echoed like thunder, while Kyle and Junior watched her go.
Kyle’s Thoughts:If looks could kill, this island would be a graveyard. I cheated, lied, and let her get hurt. Now I’ve reopened wounds that will never heal. But I haven’t told her everything about that night on who shot her or about what she lost.
Kyle: (forcing a smile) “How about we finish our drinks and let Mom cool down?”
Junior: (sighing) “Okay…”
Kyle hugs him close, the moment fragile.
Kyle (softly): “I’ll make it right.”
Suddenly, metal clicks against the back of Kyle’s skull as his breath catches.
Man One: (low, unfamiliar) “aww, this is cute. Father and son enjoying the waves.”
Kyle stiffens while he grips Junior’s hand, shielding him.
Kyle: (firm) “Take me and leave my son out of this.”
Man Two: (mocking) “You don’t give orders here.”
Junior: (whispering) “Daddy… who are they?”
Kyle: (calmly) “I don’t know, son. But I’ve got you.”
Kyle’s Thoughts:How the hell did they get past security?
Man Three: (stepping forward) “Where’s your wife?”
Kyle: (defiant) “I don’t know.”
Man Two: (laughing) “Wrong answer.”
Man One: “We know she’s here. Don’t play dumb.”
Man Three: “Tell us or will make this messy.”
Kyle’s Thoughts:If they touch her, I’ll bury them.
Kyle: (growling) “Leave her out of this.”
Man Two: “We could…”
Man Three: “But we won’t.”
The gun digs deeper into Kyle’s skull as pain shoots through his head.
Man One: (cold) “Last time I’m going to ask. Where is she? Or does your son get a front-row seat to your execution?”
Kyle glances at Junior as his eyes wide with tears brimming in them.
Kyle: “My wife is not—”
Junior: (blurting out) “She’s upstairs! Third door to the right!”
One of the men bolts.
Kyle: (shocked) “Junior… why?”
Junior: (crying) “Because I’d rather us be together… than one of you dead.”
Man One: (to his team): “Smart kid. Tie up the dad and toss his ass in the trunk. The kid goes in the back seat were the snacks are in the bag.”
Kyle thrashes as ropes bite into his wrists. A blindfold slips over his eyes as Junior’s hand trembles in his.
Kyle: (whispering) “Stay strong, son. I’m right here.”
Junior: (screaming) “No! Let me go! Daddy! Help me! DADDY!”
Kyle is dragged down the hallway and tossed inside the trunk as they slam the trunk close.
Kyle’s Thoughts: “Damn it. I failed her again. I failed my son. But no not this time… I won’t stay down. I’ll burn their world to ash. I’ll save my family no matter what it takes.
~~~ TOO BE CONTINUED ~~~
