Chapter One:
February 2000

She wonders if this is what hell feels like; that deep, throbbing pain that scorches every inch of your body; the kind of pain that leaves you gasping for air; And she can almost feel the way her body seems to scream for an end to the nightmare she hears in her head.

The people down the hall are whispering about her and yet she can hear them so clearly; They seem so loud it almost makes her head spin. For a moment she thinks she's back in that house where dreams were lost and found; But dreams didn't exist for her anymore-only nightmares.

"Nora," he calls, and she tries to muster up the strength to figure out if he's real. She has a hard time figuring out what's really there anymore. But the voice continues and she ultimately forces her eyes to open. He still has that look in his eyes; the broken, shattered look of betrayal.

"It's almost time for your arraignment. I thought you might want to have a few minutes to prepare."

Of Course, she remembered…the trial. He was only standing in front of her because she was about to face judgment day; he wasn't her husband anymore; not in any way that mattered.

"I'm sorry," she said, but he didn't say anything. She supposed they were all talked out.

FLASHBACK

"I don't even know who you are anymore Nora; what kind of woman steals a baby? This used to be the kind of thing that you would prosecute…now you're the one being prosecuted."

"I never wanted to hurt anyone Bo; But when I saw her wrapped in that pink blanket, I thought it was a gift from God. How was I supposed to know that her parents were alive? I thought they had abandoned her."

"But you lied…you took that child and you made me think she was mine…you made me fall in love with her…how…how could you do that to me?"

"I wanted to give you a child Bo…I've already lost three children…when Noah was stillborn I thought it was the worst thing that could ever happen to me and it was…I can still feel his cold, lifeless body in my arms when I held him…one time Bo…I got to hold him one time…but then I found out I had lost another child…two children…twins…a boy and a girl…both gone…"

"You had…you had a miscarriage…"

Tears were falling from her face as she looked at him now…broken just as he was. "I didn't even know I was pregnant at first. I hoped I was. I prayed that I was. I only got to feel the happiness for a few months… then one day I woke up feeling this intense pain…I could barely walk Bo…and then there was the blood. There was so much blood. I went to the doctors and they did an ultrasound… there was no heartbeat…I wanted to die so bad…Do you understand that? In that moment I thought it would be better for ME to die than my children? I didn't want to keep giving you false hope…I didn't want to give MYSELF false hope…"

"Why didn't you just tell me?"

"I tried…I did…but the words just didn't come out…and then…Bo, I didn't think I was stealing a child…I thought I was saving her…I thought she could save ME."

"You didn't do anything but destroy a family; destroy our marriage. And now…now I have to arrest my own wife for kidnapping."

"Doesn't it even matter what I've lost; what WE'VE lost."

"I'm sorry Nora; I can't help you anymore; the lies have gone too far."

END OF FLASHBACK

She remembered the sound of the sirens ringing in her ear after she had been placed in the back of his squad car; she watched from the window as her precious Ellie Victoria was led out to another car. She was going back to her old life; one she wasn't a part of. For two years she had been that child's mother; now they were strangers again.

"You can hate me Bo; If you can really look me in the eyes and tell me that everything we were is just null and void; because now I'm just as bad as the criminals you prosecute… then…then hate me."

He looked at her then…she looked so frail and worn…he almost wished he could lie to her…but there would be no more lies…there had already been a dozen too many.

"I wish I could hate you…but that's the problem… I never could. I love you too much."

He walked away from her and she was left with only the memories that would become a tapestry on her broken heart…and even when she cried until the tears were all dry, she didn't feel anything anymore. You couldn't break a broken heart.