“Dr. Bailey? Mrs. Bailey? Could you step outside for a moment, please?” The woman in uniform looked so official. So serious.
Had something gone wrong? Why couldn’t the woman have just smiled? Lisabeth’s head went dizzy and she stumbled.
Aiden grabbed her elbow. “I’m here, Lisabeth. Whatever happens, I’m always going to be here for you…”
She wanted to stand right here in this spot, in the place where she still had a living son named Joshua. In a time where her sister-in-law still might call at any second, her dearest friend as well as family.
Aiden slipped his arm around her waist and guided her forward. And how strange was that? She was always the one who faced life head-on, while he lost himself in work or moody silences. But something had shifted between them when they’d made love in the van last night. Something amazing and beautiful. It seemed wrong that they found this closer connection only to have to use it to support each other through grief.
She followed the uniformed guard from their tent into a smaller one set up next to it. He pushed the flap back and she saw—
Her knees gave out, but luckily Aiden’s arm was still banded around her waist, even if he had gone pale.
Whole body trembling, she reached out to the precious, beautiful pair in front of her. “Joshua? Amelia? Oh my God, you’re both here, alive, okay.”
Her sister-in-law smiled, jostling the baby on her hip. Amelia was scraped and scruffy, wearing stained khakis and a loose shirt belted with a gun holster. She looked nothing like the poised attorney who wore power suits and pearls. A million questions raced through Lisabeth’s mind as she wondered what had happened to Amelia since the earthquake.
But all that could wait.
She let her eyes settle on her child. Her baby boy, born in her heart if not from her body. He smiled with all six teeth showing, jingling a pair of handcuffs in his fist.
And somehow, even though she couldn’t remember moving, they were all hugging, she and Amelia, with the baby between them and Aiden’s big strong arms around all of them. Their words jumbled together.
“Where were you—?”
“—and how did you escape?”
“The hospital said—”
“—thought you were dead.”
They stayed in the massive, amazing huddle for… she had no idea how long. The relief was so huge, so incredible, she felt like the collective hug held them all upright. Then the precious little guy between them started squirming in protest.
Laughing and crying at the same time, she pulled back enough to see him again. She kissed his forehead, stroked his hair, and studied every finger and toe as if he’d been newly born.
Dimly, she heard her husband talking beside her.
“Amelia, I don’t know how to thank you. We’ve only heard a little of what you’ve been through, but my God, what you’ve done to keep him safe through the earthquake and kidnapping… I’m just so glad you’re both alive and in one piece.”
“I can’t take all the credit,” Amelia said. “He’s a strong little boy with a fighting spirit beyond anything anyone could imagine. And even so, without Hugh—you’ll meet him soon—without the help of Hugh Franco, we never would have made it.”
Lisabeth saw a flash of something in Amelia’s eyes, as blue as Aiden’s. A flash of emotion deeper than her words suggested.
Aiden skimmed a hand over Joshua’s head. “I’m glad he could be there for you both. I look forward to thanking him in person. Is he around here?”
“I’m afraid not,” Amelia said, worry dripping from her words. “He’s out on a mission right now. I don’t know all the details. Just that he’s leading authorities to the place where we were held.”
The reality of all they had been through, of what her sister-in-law must have endured to keep Joshua safe, was almost too much to take in. Lisabeth let the tears keep streaking down her face. She didn’t even bother drying them, because there were plenty more that had been bottled up.
“Joshua.” She sighed her child’s name, which she’d chosen especially for him during the weeks she’d looked at his photo and dreamed of when she could bring him home. She slid her hands under his arms and—
He arched away. His tiny fists clamped onto Amelia’s shirt and clung to her.
Her throat clogged with more tears. Had he already forgotten her? They’d had so little time together, only a couple of days as the paperwork was being finalized. She and Aiden had been planning to spend this week in the familiar locale to acclimate him to the new relationship before heading home. Had he acclimated himself to his aunt instead?
Amelia patted his back. “We’ll take it slow. We don’t have to go all or nothing today. I’m here as long as you all need me.” A hint of panic slipped into Amelia’s tone.
Pure panic slid through Lisabeth. Had her sister-in-law bonded with him?