Stepping onto the second floor landing, Olivia continued down the corridor, the sound of voices fading. The hallway was practically pitch black, another reminder of Melanie’s disappearance. She breathed life into the four walls of this house. Without her, there was no energy. There was no heartbeat. There was no soul.
Most nights, her laugh could be heard throughout the halls as she played make-believe or chased Runner. Olivia normally looked forward to the nights Melanie planned to sleep over at her cousin’s or a friend’s house so she could have a moment of peace and quiet with her husband, a rarity most of the time. Now she craved to hear her daughter’s infectious giggle.
Olivia slowed to a stop outside a door blocked with yellow police tape. They had been warned, rather strongly, by Agent Moretti not to cross any of the areas they had marked off. There was a chance they may need to comb the areas again for any evidence that had been overlooked the first time they thoroughly examined each and every nook and cranny of this room. What she was about to do could compromise the entire investigation, but she was no longer concerned with that. She was desperate to feel her daughter’s heart, hear her pulse, revel in her spirit.
Ducking beneath the police tape, she turned the knob and entered Melanie’s room. The space seemed different now. This was no longer home to a fearless girl who had more love for Olivia than she deserved. This would now become a place of nightmares for her daughter. Would she ever be able to sleep in this room again? Would she ever want to sleep alone? Would she ever feel safe?
Olivia struggled to come to terms with what Melanie’s life would be like if she survived this. She hadn’t done anything to deserve this. Alexander wasn’t without his faults, and neither was Olivia, but Melanie was so young, so pure, so innocent. Now, at far too young an age, she would be jaded by the cruelties of the world.
Would she ever see her smile again?
Would she ever hear her carefree laugh?
Would she ever feel her unconditional love as she flung her arms around her?
Bleakness invaded Olivia right down to her marrow as she fell onto Melanie’s unmade bed. Sheets that were once warm from her presence had grown cold, and Olivia could no longer keep it in. She wasn’t just watching a made-for-TV movie about a successful, semi-famous family losing their daughter. She was living the nightmare, wishing with everything she had that this would all be over soon, that it wasn’t real.
“Wake up!” Olivia screamed, slapping her face as relentless tears streamed down her cheeks. She curled into a ball, the torment growing inside her becoming unbearable. It felt like someone was ripping her open with sadistic apathy, the pace languid and sluggish, taking pleasure from each strained breath she struggled to capture. Her skin prickled with the heat of a thousand branding irons. No matter how loud she screamed, it wouldn’t dull the pain.
“Wake up, Olivia!” she bellowed again, louder and more desperate. Nothing worked. No matter what she did, no matter how loud her cries, nothing would wake her from this nightmare.
Sobs wracked through her body as she fought for air. She tried to gain control over her body and tears, but it was useless. She was no longer in command of her own destiny. Even the seemingly innate task of inhaling and exhaling had become arduous and complicated. Melanie was her lifeline, her reason for living. Without her, Olivia’s heart gave out, her lungs refused to work, her body shut down.
Suddenly, a pair of familiar, strong arms cradled her, lifting her off the torturous bed, cocooning her in a shelter only they could provide. They comforted her sobs, giving her exactly what she needed. She cried into her husband’s chest, a hundred tears falling for every regret. No words were spoken. Lowering himself to the floor and leaning against the wall, Alexander simply held her in his lap, wiping her tears, providing her with warmth in this cold, hateful world.
She didn’t know how many minutes ticked by as he remained there, silently assuring her with his presence that they would get through this, that everything would work out. Still, she knew they would never be the same. This had shaken their family to its core. There was no returning to the way things were before.
Olivia cried harder.
She cried for all the time she should have spent with her daughter instead of working tirelessly for one charity or another. She cried for all the times she told her no when she should have said yes. Yes, we can have pancakes for dinner. Yes, we can go feed the ducks at the pond. Yes, we can make Christmas cookies in July.
Exhaustion set in as her cries subsided and she closed her eyes. The last thing she saw before drifting off was Melanie standing alone in a dark room, a blank expression on her pale face.
Chapter Twenty-Four
December 19
11:15 PM
ALEXANDER TRIED TO REMAIN completely still as he held Olivia in his arms. She looked so peaceful as she slept, her chest rising and falling evenly. The anguish that had consumed her when he first found her in Melanie’s room had all but disappeared. Now, she was finally resting, able to keep her worries and fears at bay, if only for a minute.
Moretti would lose his mind if he knew they were both in here, but that was the least of Alexander’s concerns at the moment. Olivia needed this. She had held her head high all day, showing great strength. But everyone had their breaking point, and she had reached hers.
“Do you remember our first night in this house?”
Her voice cut through the silence. Alexander looked down to see her studying his face. He wondered how long she had been awake.
Kissing the top of her forehead, he tightened his hold on her as they sat on the floor, Alexander’s back against the wall. “I do.” A nostalgic smile crossed his face. “There was a mix-up with our furniture delivery. Instead of staying at Ma’s for the night, Melanie convinced us to camp out here, so we put sleeping bags in front of the fireplace.”
She nodded. “We roasted marshmallows and told scary stories.”
“And you told her your idea of ‘roughing it’ was a hotel with no room service.”
“Now every time we stay in a hotel, she asks if we’re ‘roughing it’.” She let out a small laugh as they recalled some of the happy times they’d spent in this house.
All married couples hoped the good times outnumbered the bad, and Olivia and Alexander had been blessed for that to be the case. Just like everybody else, they’d hit a few bumps in the road along the way, but those had been few and insignificant in the grand scheme of things. They’d been fortunate enough to be happy, healthy, and safe…until now.
From the very beginning, Alexander knew both his current position and his status as a discharged SEAL could potentially put all their lives in danger. He had considered walking away from everything the day Melanie was born, but he liked knowing he had a purpose, that people needed him. It didn’t occur to him his family needed him more than his employees ever would.