Chapter 45
Epilogue
"Wow, that is something I never expected. I always thought you had met in school, and were together since. Well, that's what Uncle Garrett said at your wedding Anniversary party." Becky gasped, hugging her Grandma tight. "Grandma, I'm sorry. I never knew you lost your hearing because you were attacked. I thought you were born with hearing loss."
"That's all right, honey, it was such a long time ago," Bella replied, kissing Becky on the top of her head.
The room was quiet for a while as Becky hugged Bella.
"If the tattoo on your side is for your Grandparents and parents. Who are the other five roses representing?" Becky asked.
Chuckling Bella replied, "One is for Carlisle. He seemed such a sweet man. Up until the day he died, Peter would never say if he had anything to do with his death."
"Another is for Peter. Until today I still don't understand how your Grandma would want to remember that man," Edward grumbled.
Smiling Bella continued, "Peter married twice more, after Grandma Esme, Charlotte and Sammie. He never adopted Sammie's son—much to Sammie's displeasure. After Charlotte had emptied his bank account, he wizened up, and made all his wives sign a prenup. Peter's fourth wife, Sandra, somehow managed to clean his accounts, sold her jewelry, and all the art. He was once again left with no money, no practice and nowhere to live. He came to us for help. Your Grandpa wasn't happy when I let him stay in the pool house until he got himself focused again. I gave him some money to start over again."
"Really, even after he was so horrible to you?" Becky gasped.
"Yes, and I wasn't pleased. Grandma Esme was even less impressed." Edward groaned, squeezing Bella's hand.
"Peter went to New York and opened a practice in Manhattan. He married again, but it only lasted a few months. Several years later he was found in his penthouse dead. He died alone of a heart attack." Bella replied.
"That is so sad; being all on his own." Becky sniffed.
"He left his money to your Grandma, as she had always been kind to him—despite what he had done to her. We didn't want his money, so we invested it, bought a building and turned it into a free clinic. We named it Carlisle's Community Clinic," Edward added. "Of course, Alice tried to contest the will, but she never got a dime."
"The yellow rose with red tips is for my friend Rose. She was diagnosed, like her mother, with breast cancer. Even though she had chemotherapy, and a mastectomy, it never went. She sold her practice, and went back to New York to be with her family, where she died and was buried with her parents." Bella wiped her eyes.
Pulling Bella to him and kissing her softly on her head, Edward continued, "Emmett left New York not long after Rose died. He went back to Tennessee, where his family still lived. He became the physiotherapist for the Tennessee Titans. Then to the Dallas Cowboys. He never contacted us after Rose died."
"The white rose is for Alistair. A few years after Uncle Mathew was born there were times when Alistair would forget where he was going, or where he had put things. It didn't take us long before we realized he had Alzheimer's. Esme looked after him until he died, two years after he was diagnosed." Bella smiled.
Edward continued. "The dark pink rose was for my mom, Esme. She died in her sleep a few months after she lost Alistair. Everyone was devastated; she was the matriarch of the family."
"I didn't know that Uncle Garrett and Auntie Kate were adopted. I thought they were your children," Becky stated.
"We consider them as our children, and we never treat them any other way." Edward chuckled. "Garrett continued to insist that Rachel was just his friend. That was until junior high when he took her as his date for Homecoming. After, they became totally inseparable; until they went away to school. Garrett went to Yale Law School, and Rachel went to Lee University School of Law here in Washington. They dated other people but nothing serious. When they came home, they started dating again, and opened a family law office here, then married a few years later."
"Katie continued to sing and got a place at Julliard's in New York. We were worried about her being in New York. Our worries were justified when she got hurt during a robbery at the train station going back to her dorm. Ant, her Nonna, and Nonno made her move into the apartment I lived in when I was in New York. Ant, had an elderly friend called Salomao stay with her. He became Katie's constant companion, and she called him Uncle Sal. He would drive her everywhere she went, including any dates she had. That old guy would scare any guy away he thought wasn't a suitable date. Sal was so proud of her when she graduated, and she was with him when he died a few years later. When she graduated, she was in high demand as an opera singer. The first role was as Christine Daae in The Phantom of the opera. She met and married, Christian when she was playing Cosette in Les Misérables." Bella smiled.
"Edward Junior, or EJ, was a serious, socially awkward child; like Grandma and me he was a geek. When he was bullied at school we didn't sit back and do nothing. In fact, the principal and parents were sick of me, so he was left alone. He got a place in Harvard studying architecture. He met Susanna while he was there. She wasn't a geek; in fact, she was a popular student, very bubbly. We were surprised when he first brought her home for the holidays. He admitted that it was Susanna who asked him out on a date. She gave him confidence, and brought him out of his shell. After they both graduated he brought her back home, and they got married in the garden at the house. They opened their own architect business," Edward stated.
"Kim was our biggest challenge, and she challenged us almost every day throughout her teen years. At fourteen years old she started sneaking about, dating, drinking, smoking, and skipping school. We would ground her, but she would sneak out of the house at night. Sometimes not coming home at all. But we never stopped loving her, and trying to show her. When she was sixteen, she came to tell us she was pregnant. After what had happened to Grandma there wasn't going to be any lies told, or dumping Grace on us. We met with Stephen's parents, and they promised they would support them both. Grandma looked after Grace while they were at school, and Kim and Stephen looked after her after school, and at the weekend. They both had to work to help provide for her. Stephen went away to school on a football scholarship. He was signed up with the Miami Dolphins, and never really came home. Kim got a letter from a lawyer saying Stephen wanted to sign over his parental rights, with a fat check to keep quiet. She took it and invested it for Grace. Kim did a few courses online until Grace went to Kindergarten, then attended Clover Park Technical College. She became a nurse, then later trained to be a renal dialysis nurse. She met Joe at the college; he was an older student studying heating and air conditioning, and newly divorced with two small sons his ex-wife left with him. They married a few years later combining both their families." Edward smiled.
Mathew was a quiet child. He was like a perfect mixture of me and Grandma. He got a place at John Hopkins and studied pediatrics. Mathew did his residency at the John Hopkins children hospital. That's where he met Sarah, a newly qualified neonatal nurse. He bumped into her rushing out of the elevator, and Sarah spilled her coffee all over his shirt. He married Sarah when he finished his residency. They came back to Lakewood, and Sarah got a job at the hospital. Mathew came to work with me," Edward proudly said.
"Siobhan, your mom, was a loving girl; a real home bird. She was our mother hen, looking so much like me. Your mom decided to be a school guidance counselor. Siobhan never went far to school. She attended Seattle University, and in her second year she met your dad, Brandon, and they married the next year. As you know, he's a police officer and had worked his way up and is now a detective," Bella carried on.
"Jared was also the spitting image of me; although, he was not a geek. He was just an ordinary kid. He had a few friends, and dated a couple of girls in his senior year. He never caused us any trouble and loved all his siblings. Jared went to MIT to study Business Management. He asked us for a small loan to start a business. He found a niche in the market of buying out companies who were failing, turning them around and making a profit when he sold them. Jared is now a multi-millionaire in Seattle; a CEO of his own company. He lives in The Kennedy building in a penthouse. He has been named the top ten most eligible bachelors in Seattle. He dated a girl for a few years, and was about to ask her to marry him when he found her with another man. He now has a problem with commitment when it comes to women. I can't see him ever getting married." Edward chuckled. "Nothing like me."
"Hope was our little miracle. She came much too early, and Grandma almost died. She was born by an emergency cesarean section. Grandma bleed badly and the only way to stop it was by her having a hysterectomy. I said yes straight away. Your Grandma is my life, she is my soul-mate; I couldn't lose her. Hope was in NICU for two months. Hope has always been small, but she was a fighter. Even though we were worried about her—she still has problems with breathing issues. Hope attended Harvard to study Psychology. She works at our practice, and married Elliot, who is a Psychiatrist from our office," Edward continued.
"We adopted Mia; she was your mom's friend. Her parents were killed in a car crash when she was ten. She had no other family. She came first as a foster child, and we soon petitioned for adoption, and was granted it. She had always wanted to be a teacher, so she attended Stanford University, and she became an English teacher in Northwest high school. Mia married Daniel, a biology teacher. They live in Seattle."
"We fostered Anastasia after Grandma Esme had to look after Alistair; it was too much for her to do both. She was Alice's daughter, as you know she has some medical issues. Anna has Asperger's Syndrome, attention deficit disorder, and dyspraxia. Alice didn't want her because she wasn't perfect like her twin sister. Anna went to the community college, and became an accountant. She now works at the clinic as the assistant manager, working alongside with Corie, who also took over from Esme running the community clinic. We built Anna a small cottage at the edge of the property; Anna loves her cottage, and her independence. She's not too far away if there is a problem." Bella beamed.
"I didn't know Auntie Anna wasn't my mom's sister. What happened to your sister Alice and Auntie Anna's sister?" Becky asked.
"Alice broke contact with everyone, including Grandma Esme after she abandoned Anna. Peter would see her in New York sometimes. She was still hopping from one relationship to another, dragging Celestina with her. Alice became a fashion designer, and designed for some A-list celebrities. She moved to France, and we never heard from her, or about her, again." Edward sniffed.
"We don't know what happened to Celestina. Last, we heard she was still living in Paris. She had gone with Alice when she was a teenager. We saw her a couple of times in the gossip columns with some celebrity, with drugs and alcohol. We believe she went to jail for a DUI, and never heard anything about her after that." Bella shook her head.
"So, Becky, tell us about Brad?" Edward smiled.
"What do you want to know?" Becky whispered.
"Where did you meet him? Does he go to your school? How old is he? That kind of thing." Bella smiled.
"That's the problem… I've made a terrible mistake… I've done something… Mom and dad are going to hate me… I'm too embarrassed to tell you," Becky cried.
"Honey, there isn't anything in this world you could do to make me hate you, or be disappointed. Do you want to go down and we can talk about it with your mom and dad? I can call Auntie Kim and ask her to take Clark and Todd to her house, so it's just us. What do you say?" Edward asked pulling Becky close to his chest.
Nodding her head, Bella took her hand to lead Becky downstairs, as Edward called Kim to ask her to come and pick up the boys.
"Seb, can you call Brandon and ask him to get home. You two guys, your Auntie Kim is on her way over to pick you guys up. Go get ready; Grandpa is buying you a pizza," Bella instructed.
"Mom, is this so terrible?" Siobhan whispered.
"I'm not sure. She hasn't told us yet. Dad just thought it might be best to rip the band-aid off, and get it all out in the open. She will only have to tell us once," Bella replied.
"I've got the pizza. Where are my girls?" Brandon yelled into the house.
"We're all in the den!" Siobhan called back.
Brandon first kissed Siobhan, then Bella, followed by Becky. Giving Edward a hug.
"Where are the boys?" Brandon asked.
"They've gone over to Auntie Kim's. I need to talk to you all, and Grandpa thought it would be better if they weren't here," Becky replied.
"Becky, as we said upstairs, it doesn't matter what you have done. We love you, we all do, and nothing will ever change that. What happened sweetheart?" Edward questioned.
"You know what chat rooms are?" Becky asked Bella and Edward.
"Yes, honey." Bella smiled.
"There is a chat room where all the cheerleaders talk about tournaments, games, costumes—those kinds of things. Not just from my school, but schools all over the state. We know a few from when we have been to tournaments. I started to talk to a girl named Pixie; she was from Montana but moved to Tacoma. She said it was too late to join the squad, but was hoping to try out in the new school year. She was going to attend Stadium High. I knew a couple of the girls, and said I would put a word in for her. I know now it was a stupid choice, but Pixie messaged me, and we started talking on private message," Becky paused blowing out air.
"Well, that doesn't seem so bad, honey, but how does Brad come into this? Is he her brother?" Siobhan asked.
"There's more, Mom," Becky mumbled.
"Okay, Becky, what happened next?" Brandon probed, sounding like he was conducting an interview.
"We chatted all the time. I gave Pixie my cell number, and we started to text all the time. Pixie told me to show her some of our routines as she wanted to use some in her audition. But whenever we Face-Timed, I couldn't see her face properly, but she said she could see me. She asked me to do some routines with Brandy and Caroline. We did, but she wanted us to kind of grind against each other, and we became uncomfortable. Although Brandy said a girl over in Spanaway was asking her to do things like that." Becky snuffled.
"When did you find out that Pixie was actually Brad?" Edward whispered, realizing what has happened.
"About six or seven weeks ago. Pixie asked me to meet her at the Mall in Tacoma. She wanted to buy some summer clothes. Her summers were a lot different than ours. When I got there, I couldn't find her. This guy walked up to me, and said he was Pixie's brother and that she had just gone to the bathroom. I walked with him over towards the bathroom. He pulled on my arm, and told me if I made a fuss he would hurt me." Becky sobbed.
Bella and Siobhan had tears running down their faces.
Rushing to her side, Brandon pulled her into his lap, holding her tight to his chest.
"Brad made me get into his car, then told me he was Pixie who I had been speaking to in the chat room. He recorded me doing a routine with Brandy and Caroline. He said I had to go to a party, and dance in front of his buddies. But Brad's not a teenager; he is a man. I think someone said he was twenty-eight, but he looks younger. I just don't know what to do," Becky wept into Brandon's chest.
"Honey, you're safe now, but you need to tell us if he did anything sexual with you in any way," Edward probed, trying to hold back his tears.
"I don't think so. I wouldn't drink the alcohol he wanted me to drink, but he gave me some cola. It didn't taste right, and I felt so dizzy and sick. When I pushed him away is when he first hit me. He started to meet me after school, and made me go with him instead of going to practice. Brad shook me until I got a headache and was sick because I wouldn't wear the clothes he wanted me to wear when he took me to the house he stays at. Then he started telling me he was watching me and I had to do as he said. That's when he began to take me everywhere I went," Becky cried. "Sophie from next door goes to these parties, with her friend Crissy. They drink and take the drugs they have at the house. I think it's them who are telling him what I'm doing."
"Honey, you should have told us as soon as you realized he was a grown man. As soon as he hit you, or stopped you doing things," Brandon told her. "Dad, is it going to be okay if Becky comes to your house for a few days. He can't get onto your property."
"That's not a problem." Edward smiled.
"I'm going to take your phone and laptop, not as a punishment, but we can get information from them. We can trace his call if he call's you," Brandon continued. "I'm going to get Gerry to come to your Grandparents house to see if you can identify him, or if not draw a picture. But I have an idea who he is."
"Of course, go pack a bag, Becky. Let your mom help you," Edward instructed her.
Becky went up with Siobhan.
"I don't want you to think I'm controlling, but to make an arrest stick, and keep Becky safe, the only people she can see or speak to has to be verified with myself. I'll call you first." Brandon sighed.
"No, we don't think that at all. This guy has to be stopped before he hurts someone," Bella reassured him.
"If you tell the school, she'll need her work sent home. We can arrange for her to have her end of year exams somewhere away from other pupils; that shouldn't compromise any investigation. Are you sure this isn't going to be inconvenient for you both?" Brandon asked.
"Our children, grandchildren or great-grandchildren are never an inconvenience. Any of them can come to us for help. We love you all," Bella answered as she hugged Brandon.
Bella
The next six weeks were difficult for Becky. She never complained. Brandy and Caroline came to stay with us a few weeks into the investigation. Brandon didn't want them to compromise in the investigation. They knew both Edward and me as they had been our patients since they were newborns. They had been checked by a gynecologist, and thankfully they hadn't been sexually assaulted. They had begun to have counselling to help them recover from this ordeal.
It became clearer to all the law enforcement that this group has been grooming many teenager girls over the past several months. They also believed they could be responsible for the disappearance of at least two girls.
Brandon had never been so pleased that Becky decided to trust them, and tell them what she had innocently done. The thought of what could have happened to her and caused him to melt down at home one night.
He was not allowed to be involved in the case. The FBI, and special Victim's unit didn't want these guys getting away on a technicality; especially, knowing it was personal to Brandon. But with Becky, Brandy and Caroline's phones and computers they got all the evidence they had been praying for.
Just as school was about to close for the summer, the FBI and state police arrested everyone in the pedophile ring. It was the biggest sting ever to take place in Washington State. Everyone was relieved when it was over.
A month into the summer break, we went to the cabin for the week as a family. All our children, their husbands/wives; our grandchildren and their boyfriends/ girlfriends; and our two great-grandchildren. Even Jared came; leaving his work phone behind.
It always took us a couple of weeks to organize these holidays, but we loved being together.
As usual when the Cullens have a family vacation at the cabin there are tents pitched, SUVs parked, and air mattresses all over the cabin, but I wouldn't have it any other way.
As I sat on the porch sipping my coffee, I watched everyone having fun. I watched as Edward ran along the jetty jumping into the water along with all the kids.
I couldn't believe how lucky I was to have met and married such a wonderful, caring man. Now aged closer to his seventies than his sixties he was still as good looking as when I met him. Even though his bronze hair was gray, and his tattoo has faded over the years, he was still my perfect bear, my geek from the corner table of the library.
Thank you for reading my first story. This is something I can now tick off my bucket list. It also proved to myself that someone with dyslexia can write a story.
I would sincerely like to thank Tiffany L Cullen for editing the first fourteen chapters. For Sue Gilreath for the great banner.
A big thank you to Mr.G and Me (Lyndal) this story could have never been completed without you. Lyndal stepped in as my beta from chapter 15. She is a wonderful lady that not only believed in me, but has helped me believe in myself, and made me realize my worth in life. I owe a lot to you saying thank you will never be enough.
For Klcivinski (Kellie) for taking over as my pre-reader from chapter 15. You have been one of my biggest cheerleader through my illness and encouraged me not to give up.