A cry shot from Beth’s lips like a bullet, traveling through the phone wires to pierce Caroline’s heart. In spite of everything, for a moment she felt genuinely sorry for Beth. She knew what it was like to lose a child.
“Of course the minute I saw you with your parents and sister, I knew who you were,” Beth continued. “Which just made me all the more desperate.”
“What made you stay in Calgary?” Greg Fisher asked. “You could have taken your sons and disappeared. You had a lot of practice, and you had to know the police would be coming after you.”
“Where would I go? How could I leave if there was even the slightest chance I might get my little girl back?”
The question lingered in the air even after the phone call ended.
“What’s going to happen to her?” Lili asked. “Will she go to jail?”
“I don’t know,” Greg Fisher said. “Obviously, this is only the start of our investigation, and while I’m confident the Canadian authorities will cooperate thoroughly, it’s been fifteen years, and we have no proof she’s lying. We’ll keep looking into things, of course. Maybe we’ll eventually find out the whole truth of what took place that night. I’d certainly like to be there if and when that happens.”
Hunter shook his head. “So we lose a child, our daughter loses a sister, our marriage falls apart, our lives are virtually destroyed, all because this woman wanted a baby and purposely ignored all evidence as to who that baby really was. And she gets away with it because it’s been fifteen years, her husband is dead, and there’s no proof she’s lying.”
“What matters is that we have Samantha back,” Caroline said simply.
And suddenly she and Hunter were in each other’s arms and he was sobbing on her shoulder. “I’m so sorry, Caroline. I’m so terribly, terribly sorry.”
“I know.”
“For everything.”
“I know. Me, too.” They cried together, Hunter’s tears wet against her cheek. For an instant, the years fell away. A miracle had brought their daughter back to them. Maybe another miracle could make them a real family again, albeit an extended one. She hugged him tight, inhaled his clean, soapy scent.
It was a scent she recognized all too well.
Caroline pulled out of his arms, understanding that he hadn’t been in meetings when they’d tried to reach him earlier. Some things never change, she thought sadly. No matter how many years pass.
“What do we tell the reporters?” Michelle asked.
“Let me take care of that,” Fisher volunteered. “I’ll see you guys tomorrow.” He handed Caroline his card. “Don’t hesitate to get in touch with me anytime.”
“Thank you.”
Caroline’s mother and brother arrived a short time after the police and federal agents had cleared out. “Samantha, darling,” Mary cried, brushing past Michelle and enfolding the young girl in her tight embrace. “I knew it. Didn’t I say right away it was you? Welcome home, darling. We have so much catching up to do.”
“Hey,” Steve said, inching forward. “What am I—chopped liver? Come on, sweetheart,” he said, beckoning Samantha into his open arms. “Come to your Uncle Stevie.”
A strangled cry escaped Michelle’s lips as Steve hugged his long-lost niece.
“Don’t be jealous, Micki,” her grandmother said. “It doesn’t become you.”
“Mother, for God’s sake,” Caroline said. “This is hardly the time.”
“She’s no longer an only child,” Mary argued. “She’ll have to get used to it sooner or later.”
“I should go,” Hunter said. “Diana will be getting worried.”
She has reason to be worried, Caroline thought.
“I’ll come with you,” Michelle said.
“You don’t want to stay here?” Samantha asked.
“Nah. This is your night. You and my mother deserve some time alone together. I’ll sleep at Dad’s.”
“I’ll have her back first thing in the morning,” Hunter said. “And if it’s all right, I’d like to bring Diana and the kids along, introduce Samantha to her half brother and half sister before the press conference.”
“There’s a press conference?” Mary asked.
“At noon,” Caroline told her.
“Let’s hope it goes better than the last one you gave.”
A wry chuckle escaped Caroline’s lips. “I think it’s time you went home as well, Mother.”
“What? We just got here.”
“Yes. And now you’re leaving.”
Mary straightened her shoulders and opened her mouth, as if preparing to object.
“Caroline’s right,” Steve intervened. “We should go. It’s been a very long day and I’m sure that Samantha is exhausted.”
“I am tired,” Samantha agreed.
“Then we’ll clear out of here and let you get some rest. And who knows, maybe now that the pressure’s off, you might actually start remembering things.”
Once again, Mary embraced Samantha. “Good night, darling. Sleep well.” She walked to the front door, opened it, and stepped outside.
“Can you tell us what’s going on in there?” a reporter shouted.
“Don’t ask me. I’m only the grandmother,” Mary replied as Caroline shut the door after her.