She glanced up and saw the same contrast when Anthony picked up Slade and swung him around. Slade favored Christy. His light arms were distinct against Anthony’s huge dark hands that held him tightly as they flew around in circles while both goats tried to keep up with them, nipping at Slade’s feet. The windows were closed, but Christy could hear the child’s squeals of delight.
She looked around the sunroom, and her eyes landed on some of the art projects she’d started, but had set aside when motherhood became a priority. A priority that she would never regret. She then reflected on the first picture she’d painted in this room. It was of a momentous thunderstorm with dark mountains in the background. She’d realized while painting it that the lightning didn’t seem as scary as she’d thought. And before she knew it, she was painting the reason why. As if in a trance, the mountain changed and began to resemble a man’s strong profile. Her man’s profile. When she’d finally built up the courage to show it to Anthony, he’d asked her if she was afraid of him. The answer was no. She wasn’t afraid of him. He was the reason she felt safe. That picture now hung over their bed, replacing the scary looking snarling bear she’d woken up to that first day after he’d abducted her from Vivian’s bedroom.
Not long after Slade was born, Christy sold the Chapman estate. And just last year, they decided to sell the dealerships. Anthony was in complete agreement with her, especially after getting a tip that there was a good chance of the operation getting some uninvited notice. Within hours of receiving that tip, Anthony heard the same news from Grizz. Anthony and Christy didn’t know where or how Grizz obtained certain information, but they never questioned it. Grizz was a good friend and a solid source.
Kit had recently shared with Christy that she was finally pregnant. She and Grizz were expecting before the end of the year.
Christy looked down at Christian and gently removed her nipple from his perfect tiny mouth. He started smiling in his sleep. Christy smiled too when she remembered what Gloria had told her a couple of years ago when she took a then baby Slade to the camp for her regular Tuesday afternoon visit.
“My momma always said that when they smile in their sleep like that, they’re talking to the angels.”
Christy warmed at the memory of Gloria’s words and kissed Christian on the forehead. She quietly reflected on how a conversation with Kit a few years ago, followed by Slade’s birth, allowed her to give God a second chance. She hadn’t realized how much anger, resentment and bitterness she’d clung to until she looked into Slade’s pale gray eyes. How could she love an innocent child with the untainted purity of a mother’s love when her heart was filled with hate and bitterness? Hate for Van who’d victimized her and the people who might have known and looked the other way; and bitterness for circumstances over which she’d had no control. If there was anything she’d learned from that epiphany, it was that with God’s help, she’d found a strength she didn’t know existed and a peace that had always eluded her.
The shrill ring of the phone broke through her tranquil and happy thoughts, and she grabbed the cordless phone quickly. Grateful that it didn’t wake Christian, she whispered, “Hello?”
What she heard next caused her heart to race. The fear that had tormented her soul so many years ago had become Kit’s reality. Grizz had been arrested.
Chapter Fifty-Two
Naples, Florida 1995
Ten years raced by and each one brought different heartbreaks, but also healing and happiness. It was the inevitable circle of life. The constant ups and downs of an earthly existence that no human could escape until their heart took its last beat. Tonight was to be a celebration of two very special “ups.” Not only was it their wedding anniversary, but they’d heard some exciting news from Christy’s doctor as well. They’d just finished toasting when Christy brought up another subject.
“He’s definitely a handful,” Anthony told Christy over dinner after he lightly tapped his glass against hers and set it down. The special news they were celebrating was that Christy’s doctor had confirmed the gender of their baby. It was a girl, and she would be arriving in approximately five months. They’d tried for years after Christian was born to have another child, and it wasn’t until Christy decided to finally give away all the baby furniture she’d saved from when the boys were little that she discovered the great news. It was almost as if her ovaries removed a roadblock that had been set up to keep Anthony’s sperm at bay.
“A handful?” Christy asked as she sipped her water and then set it down. She was not quite four months pregnant and still battling nausea. Water was the only liquid she could drink that didn’t upset her stomach. “He’s more than a handful, Anthony. He’s a chaos machine.”
“He’s mischievous,” Anthony corrected. “You compare him to Slade, and that’s not fair, Owani.”
Her eyes flashed. “I don’t compare him to Slade.” She paused and then added, “But if I do, it’s because I worry about Christian and it’s hard not to see how completely different they are. Slade is serious and studious. You know he’s only thirteen and is already thinking about going into law.”
“He wants to be a defense attorney like my sister,” Anthony boasted.
“Not anymore,” Christy told him. “He changed his mind. I guess he didn’t tell you that now he wants to go after the bad guys. He wants to be a prosecutor.”
Anthony threw back his head and laughed. Christy glanced around the fancy restaurant and shushed him. “It’s not funny, Anthony. Your son wants to put people like you in jail.”
“Good. Let him. It doesn’t change a thing, and he’ll make me proud no matter what he decides to do.”
“I can’t help but think about how horrible things were for Kit when Grizz was arrested ten years ago.”
“She hasn’t gone by the name Kit in a long time,” Anthony corrected. “I want to wash my hands before dinner comes, Owani. I’ll be back in a few minutes, and we’ll talk more about Christian or Slade. Or Kit. Or our daughter. Whatever you want.” He stood and kissed the top of her head as he passed her on his way to the restroom.
It gave Christy time to think about all that had transpired for their friends in the ten years since Grizz’s arrest. Anthony was right. Kit no longer went by the gang name Grizz had given her. She was now known as Ginny and seemed to be flourishing and happy in her marriage to Tommy Dillon.