"Mommy, Daddy! Wake up! I have kindergarten today" said Bridget and Andrew's four-year old daughter Elizabeth running and jumping into their bed.
"Calm down Lizzie" said Andrew pulling the little girl into his arms.
"Why don't you go get dressed sweetie?" Bridget asked. "Daddy and I will be ready soon"
"Yay!" Elizabeth exclaimed wriggling out of her fathers arms and jumping off the bed.
Bridget leaned over and kissed Andrew on lips. "Finally a moment of privacy.."
"Siobhan, can you get your daughter to shut up? She's so loud!" Juliet complained as she stood outside their door. "Oh wait, were you guys just about to do it? Yuck." Juliet stormed off into the living room to try and get her sister to be quiet.
"We weren't were we?" Bridget asked with a smile.
"Only if you wanted too"
Bridget leaned in and gently kissed him on the lips. She opened her eyes and stared into his chocolate brown eyes, she ran her hand down his chest and then stopped just as she reached the bottom of his stomach. "Later" she whispered in his ear and climbed out of bed.
She walked into her closet and picked out a pair of black skinny jeans and and a light pink blouse. She'd promised Elizabeth that she would take her to kindergarten this morning Andrew wanted to come but had to a meeting to go to. "Siobhan, can you help me with my tie? I can't seem to get it right this morning." Bridget got up and fixed his tie up her fingers moved slowly savoring the closeness and the warmth that flooded her whenever she was near him. She knew that one day everything might change. Andrew could find out who she really was and her whole world would be taken away from her. It might have been more easier to tell him when she had first become Siobhan but now that she had a child with him . Their adorable little Elizabeth who had every speck of Andrew's personality and looked exactly like her. No, she couldn't do that to the people she loved. Besides, being Siobhan was much better than Bridget. She would have been dead if Siobhan hadn't killed herself.
"Shiv, are you OK?" Andrew asked "I'm sure Elizabeth can miss one more week of kindergarten if you want to keep her home with you."
"No, she's so excited about it and hasn't stopped talking about it for a month. I can't do that to her."
"I worry about you sometimes Shiv. You're here by yourself all day anything could happen" he said the last part in a whisper and she knew that he was thinking about the time Catherine had drugged her and tried to drown her in their bathtub. "Just be careful OK?"
"I promise" she said with a smile. "I have to go take Lizzie to kindergarten and you have a meeting to get to mister!"
"Do I have to?" he asked with a playful look.
"Yes! I really have to get ready" she said pushing him out of the closet with a joking shove. She emerged ten minutes later completely ready. She walked into the living room to find Andrew was braiding Elizabeth's hair and tying red ribbons in them.
"Ouch, Daddy you're pulling too hard!"
"Sorry princess"
"Someone looks beautiful" said Bridget
"Mommy, Daddy is hurting me"
"I'm finished now Lizzie"
Elizabeth jumped off the couch and raced to the elevator. "Can we leave now? Please!"
"We're coming sweetie, I just need to say goodbye to Daddy."
"Are you sure you're safe at home?"
"Andrew I'll be fine! I'm running errands most of the day anyway" Bridget leaned in and kissed him. "Have fun at your meeting"
Elizabeth grabbed her hand and dragged her toward the elevator. "Mommy, we have to go I don't want to be late!"
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Driving down to the school she suddenly felt really uneasy like something was going to happen she had felt this way when Gemma had gone missing. What was going to happen? She hoped that something bad wouldn't happen to Andrew or Juliet. The school loomed closer and closer as they drove along and Elizabeth was practically jumping up and down in her car seat. "Careful sweetie, you might choke yourself on the seatbelt."
"I'm so excited! We get to draw and paint. I love it!"
Pulling up to the school she noticed that there was a strange man lurking around pacing back and forth. Bridget started to worry that something might happen to Elizabeth. Like a crazy gunman bursting into her classroom or a poisonous gas could be released in the school by terrorists.
"C'mon baby, is it alright if Mommy walks you to your classroom?"
"Of course! You have to meet my teacher and stay until I make a friend"
Bridget stepped out of the car and opened the back doors and helped Elizabeth out of her car seat. She reached out for her daughter's hand and gently gave it a reassuring
squeeze more for herself though than Elizabeth's. She couldn't shake that fear that gripped her and just wanted to go back to car with her daughter, lock the doors and drive home at least then Bridget would know that she was safe and sound. She continued walking, while Elizabeth dragged her along desperate to go to school and mainly to draw butterflies and princesses. They reached her classroom, it was a small brick building with white trim on the window sills. There was a concrete undercover area with chalkboards and a vegetable garden. "It's so pretty!" Elizabeth gushed. "Can we get a house like this?"
"You'd have to ask Daddy and don't you think we have enough houses?"
"None of them are as pretty as this one"
Elizabeth skipped up the ramp till she reached the door with Bridget still holding her hand. Bridget opened the door for her daughter and Elizabeth immediately ran over to the coloring table and she went over to find the teacher. She was a petite woman, her long brown hair was pulled into a fishtail plait and she was wearing a pretty floral dress with brown ballet flats. "I'm Lily Moore" she said holding out her hand.
"Siobhan Martin, my daughter is Elizabeth but she likes getting called Lizzie"
"Thanks for letting me know, I can see she likes coloring"
"How could you tell which one she was?"
"She looks exactly like you" A woman wearing a professional black black blazer and heels interrupted them "Excuse me Miss Moore.."
"It was nice meeting you Mrs. Martin" said Lily and she walked away to talk to "the professional woman".
Bridget walked over to the coloring table to say goodbye to Elizabeth. "Goodbye, sweetie I'll come and get you this afternoon"
"Bye Mommy" said Elizabeth and returned to her princess coloring in.
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Bridget paused as she passed a shoe store there was a beautiful pair of black heels. Andrew had asked her only the other day why she hadn't been buying new things. She knew that he would soon start getting suspicious so the heels wouldn't be too much of a problem. As she was at the register with the heels, a bracelet and new scarf her phone started to ring. Bridget placed the items on the counter and fished her phone out of her bag. It was a blocked number she knew no one that had a blocked number, cautious she answered: "Hello?" All she could hear were the sounds of sobs and tiny whimpers, sounds that she recognized.
"Mommy?" came a frantic voice.
"Elizabeth! What's wrong?"
There was a muffled cry on the other end of line and a man's voice yelled "Be quiet!".
"Hello Siobhan" said a male voice.
"What have you done to my daughter? Where is she?
"She's safe for now.. but you have to do exactly as I say or I'll kill your precious little girl"
"Who are you?"
"Bodaway Macawi"