Grace sighed and ran her finger along the soft cheek of her newborn baby daughter; Amara which was chosen because it means lovely forever and grace in Greek. She had wanted a child for so long, this child was everything that she had hoped for and more. The beautiful little girl lay in her white Moses Basket, with a soft foam mattress beneath her with a white sheet covering the mattress and a silk pink quilted cover over her with a white lace trim on three sides. The little girl wore a simple white all in one set with matching hat to keep her tiny head warm and scratch mittens on her hands.
"I love you Amara", she whispered to the sleeping infant in the basket beside her on the leather sofa. Grace was sat with her legs curled beneath her wearing black trousers and a blue blouse, her feet were covered in nude coloured stockings whilst her black high heels were forgotten on the floor.
She sighed to herself as she watched her newborn baby sleep, she felt a love in her heart so deep, a depth of love that she had never experienced before and that she did not previously think would be possible.
In the weeks before her baby's birth she had made a choice. A life changing choice but it had been her choice. Inevitable however.
She had discovered the truth about Trevor, she had repeatedly said that she wanted them both to go straight and live a life without crime for the baby's sake and yet he had lied to her.
She knew what it was like to be raised by a criminal and to have danger around every corner because of the actions of her father but she refused to let her daughter suffer from a repeat of history. She wanted her child to have everything that she had been denied; love, security, trust, safety, and freedom as well as simple pleasures such as sleepovers at friends' houses, having a parent read a bedtime story or even going out to the park.
Often Grace found herself wondering what it would have been like to have an ordinary childhood, to know what it was like to have friends and be able to do everything that the other children did. Her father however made all that impossible for her and her siblings.
Out of all the siblings though she was the one who was left out and ignored the most, she never understood why but it made her feel inadequate and worthless, in the end all she wanted was approval and for her father to be proud of her. That was something she would always ensure her daughter knew, she would never hesitate in telling the young girl that she loved her and that she was proud of her no matter what.
The choice had been huge for her, and for her child but even more so than the man who was supposed to love her and protect her as well as not lie to her!
She had found blood soaked clothing in the washing machine, it hadn't gone through the wash cycle because for some reason the door had not been closed properly which meant that the blood soaked clothing that Trevor had planned to hide from her had not been washed at all. Her heart sunk, she wasn't stupid and she knew what this meant. It was far too much blood for a fight. This was murder.
The soft pink lips of Grace Black were pursed as her blue eyes glistened with tears that were being held back, one single tear drop slipped from her eye and rolled down her soft rouge dusted cheeks, carrying with it a hint of mascara which caused a faint line to be drawn down her face and she could not hold it in any longer. She was furious with him, how could he break her trust? How could he go against her? What an earth did he think he was doing? Did he realise he was throwing his chances away with both her and their daughter?
She made a choice.
Instead of throwing the clothing back in the wash and cleaning them on a high temperature wash like she had done before for her father many times, she chose not to wash them.
She had been deciding whether to leave him for weeks now, she knew he was up to something and she knew he was not as 'clean' as he claimed he was. She knew that he was hiding things from her and she hated that feeling. The love she felt for him was melting little by little as it came closer to the due date of their baby girl, she needed and wanted to put that little girl first and would not let anyone get in her way. Not even him.
She had picked up a bag and stuffed the bloodied clothing into it, bagging it up again to stop any blood leaking from it and she made a choice in that moment. She made the choice to hand it to the police. She was 'grassing' up her own child's dad. She knew however that she had no option, she did not want to raise her child surrounded by crime and have any danger around her. She had realized that having him around their child put her in danger, the thought alone worried her and so the decision had been made.
Now she sat with her daughter on the sofa, whilst Trevor sat in a cell. She had taken her little girl out of the village, away from the past and towards the future. They were in a cottage that she had bought from the sale of the club and she had just gotten back from taking her little princess to the doctors for a routine check up.
She had started out life surrounded by crime and lies, and had been around it all her life but now she was giving her daughter a much better start in life than she had ever had the chance of having with her family. She was giving her a relaxed, crime free, truthful, happy, loving and country upbringing. The cottage in the countryside was perfect for them. It was relaxing and private but with a small village close by it was perfect for them.
There were no regrets about the choice she had made, nor were there any doubts about carrying out the acts. Right in front of her was the reason and the inspiration for the choice she had made. Her daughter needed safety and this is how she would provide it.
It was a hard choice. It was one that not many could have made. It was a choice that had an effect on lives. But it was Grace's choice.