Pulling out my phone, I checked my messages to see if I had missed anything and noticed a photo had been sent to me via encrypted text.The photo was of a family of four.A tall man with dark brown hair stood behind a small blond woman, each of them holding their four-year-old twin boys with the Cinderella Castle from Disney World standing in the background.The happiness in the photo was palpable, their smiles of excitement for their next adventure warming my heart immediately.
Even though things hadn’t worked out with Romero, I’d still never been so happy for Kayla.Years after the heat died down, Kayla returned to the US and reunited with her family.Unfortunately, being with Romero had kept her trauma alive and she just couldn’t heal the way her mind needed to.She needed to see normal again, but having a boyfriend that engaged in hunting for human traffickers made it difficult.The guilt of wanting to leave a literal hero so she could find her inner peace ate away at her until I finally convinced her to let him go.As hard as it was on Romero, he understood.
Kayla eventually met her husband, Calvin, in group therapy, and 2 years later, they moved in together.The twins came as a complete surprise, but they were both over the moon with joy and excitement.When Kayla went back, we made sure she was financially secure with some of the money from Darren’s vaults so she didn’t have to worry about working while she recovered from all of her trauma as well.Apparently, Calvin also came from a well-off family, so he could take care of her.I did my due diligence in researching the guy to make sure he checked out okay.Otherwise, he would have ended up as another missing statistic.
The money also allowed Kayla to finish her degree in child psychology, and she was now working her dream job at an elementary school back in Grand Rapids, Michigan.She was truly regaining her life back, and I was so damn proud of her for all of the accomplishments she had made.
As for Katherine, Ella, and Sloane, I never saw them again.And I almost hoped I never did.I wanted to believe that Sloane had taken care of them, gotten them to safety, and stayed with them for as long as time would allow.So that was what I chose to believe.I never did find out what Sloane’s real name was, but it was a mystery I was happy to live with.
After landing in Germany, we cleaned ourselves up and changed into civilian clothes, then drove our separate ways, intending to meet up to plan the next extraction in two weeks.We all needed breaks after this heavy shit.
Jason and I drove home together in contented silence, not needing to fill the void with constant conversation while Camaro snored in the back seat.We were both too exhausted as it was, but even with zero energy left, I was still eager to get home.
I looked down at our joined hands.Jason’s finger absentmindedly ran across my wedding band, the one that matched his glistening in the early sunlight as he gripped the steering wheel.We married three and a half years ago in a private ceremony in our backyard.After years of learning and growing together, we decided we were finally in a good place to reinforce our bond with something more.And it had been a beautiful ceremony.
But despite our happy reunion, we still had our relationship ups and downs, especially when it came to sex.I had to learn how to reclaim my own body, how to love myself unconditionally without the threat of disloyalty hanging over my head.I had to unlearn much of Darren’s conditioning and find a way to let Jason back in.It was tough to maintain consistency, with some days wanting it rough and punishing while others desired soft and passionate.My therapist claimed it could be a number of things, including even my DID, and I suspected she was probably right.
Jason never complained.He was only too happy to give me what I needed whenever I needed it—just relieved to be able to touch me again.And it was just another reminder of why I didn’t deserve him.
An hour later, Jason pulled onto the private dirt road that led through a clearing of trees, taking us deep into the privacy of the woods surrounding our home.
After securing our new identities, I pawned my wedding rings a second time in Amsterdam, and was able to collect a much more substantial amount than Kayla had for them now that we had the time to wait for a proper appraisal.And it allowed us the means to purchase our own little patch of paradise hidden off the beaten path.We also made some smart investments that had proven very profitable over the past couple of years, so neither of us had to have day jobs anymore.
A sense of relief washed over me as we pulled up to what had once been an eighteenth-century barn that had been restructured into a very cozy but modernized farmhouse.Judging by the adorable look of it, you would never know that it was reinforced with the most sophisticated security systems on the planet.We took every precaution when it came to the safety of our home, but thankfully, the only intruders we’d ever encountered were the raccoons and occasional foxes.
Walking through the front door, I was met with the smell of fresh coffee and cinnamon.Camaro headed straight for the kitchen to her water bowl while the TV playing in the living room caught my attention.I rounded the corner, and the picture that came to view was just as beautiful as I had left it only a few days ago before our mission.
My mom sat on the floor with my three-year-old daughter, Marie, and the two of them were playing with a colorful set of building blocks.When the wood floor creaked from our footsteps, Marie turned her head and smiled.
“Momma!”she mumbled excitedly, standing from her spot on the floor.
My heart burst with so much deep-seated love as I watched her rise up on her little feet and rush over to me.Reaching down, I lifted her into my arms just as Jason entered the room behind me and rested his hand on my shoulder.
“Hi, baby girl,” I cooed at her, smoothing down the strawberry-blond locks that curled at her shoulders.
“Hey, peanut!Did you miss us?”Jason asked her as he leaned in to kiss her forehead.
“Yeah,” she replied shyly, sticking her long tongue out like she’d always done as a baby.
When I held her in my arms like this, it was difficult not to get emotional.After all the trauma, I wasn’t sure I’d actually be able to have kids, let alone want one, but when I discovered I was pregnant, a new light flicked on inside my head.At first, I had been terrified, thinking I would be a terrible mother, but thankfully, her father wasn’t some murderous psychopath, so having Jason here to help raise her gave me the assurance I needed to give her the life she deserved.He was an amazing father and a dependable partner I could trust with my deepest and darkest fears.
The more I thought about it, the more desperately I had wanted her.Her existence lit another path I could choose to walk down and redirect my life in a way that would bring me to a new world of hope and possibilities.Suddenly, I had a new calling—to make myself better for her.To make the world better for her.
The pregnancy itself wasn’t easy, and I had to make a lot of modifications to my medication plan, but seeing her now, it was worth it.
“Everything go as planned?”my mom asked as she rose from the floor.
I nodded as I smiled down at Marie.“Mission accomplished,” I answered.
My mom was not a fan of the idea when I first told her I would join the team with Jason.She worried for our safety, that we now had a baby to take care of, and that we owed the world nothing.And in a way, she was right.But Marie was one of the reasons I had decided to join.
Eliminating as many threats on this planet as I could seemed like a pretty good way to keep her safe.Plus, I was not built to be a stay-at-home mom.I had spent enough of my life locked away inside a house.I needed to do more, not just for her, but for myself and all the other victims just waiting to be freed from their suffering.It was my new given purpose.
My mom sighed with obvious relief.“Well, that’s good.I always worry when you go on those crazy missions, but I understand why,” she said, sympathy lingering in her voice.She understood the need and eventually grew to accept what her daughter had become.“Oh, and I already spoke with your brothers, by the way.They’ll be here for dinner as planned.”
I smiled at the reminder.My younger brothers had co-founded a nonprofit human trafficking charity that specialized in technological advancements to help track down rings and infiltrate their infrastructures using the internet.Their work was incredible and had given us a huge advantage in the field.
My dad would have been just as proud as I was.
