Disclaimer:
I own nothing of what David Elliot and Paul Lovett had written. I do, however, own my very own character Ms. Olivia Friedman.
Summary:
After discovering the death of Evelyn Mercer, Detective Olivia Friedman of the NYPD comes back to her home town to pay her respects to the woman who made her childhood tolerable. But after events start to happen and an old flame starts to ignite, can she handle being back home? Secrets start to reveal, feelings start to come out, and the truth is all that can be heard.
EPILOGE
"Okay everyone, to the table!" Calling out for my family to get their asses in gear, I carried the large tray with the delicious turkey balanced on it. With a large smile and careful steps, I walked over to the dining room table as my family all began seating. Bobby was sitting at the head of the table (as usual) with Evelyn Marie to his left; my little family. Beside her I resided with Sofi to my left, Angel and their son, Darwin. Jerry and Camille next to them with both of their beautiful daughters. It was four years after the tragic deaths of Ma and Jackie, and though it does weigh on our family every day, day by day things have been getting a lot better.
Bobby and the brothers helped rebuild Ma's house after the big shoot-out; making the house look a lot more modern on both the exterior and the interior. With Evelyn gone, a lot of the children in the neighborhood believed her legacy would wither away – they were wrong. I continued making dinner for the children every Sunday evening for them, even adding dessert along with the course for them to go home happy. Not only was I recognized throughout the block because of this, but both Bobby and I were highly respected for it as well. Jerry and Angel stayed in Detroit with us; keeping the family together. Since the deaths, we siblings decided it would be better if we stuck together instead of going our separate ways in fear that something would happen like before.
I accepted the job as the Special Victims detective for the Detroit city, taking on more cases than New York than I thought I would. However, once my pregnancy progressed and my complications started, I was prescribed to bed-rest for the continuation of my pregnancy. It was a close call but my daughter finally joined the world on August 26, 2006. Naming her after the woman who saved my life was only fate. Evelyn Marie Mercer was one of the luckiest children in the world to be named after her beautiful grandmother and to have the tightest family she had.
Bobby became ten times protective after her birth. Anyone who drove the wrong way, walked the wrong way, spoke the wrong way, or even looked the wrong way around his darling first born was subjected to a beating one way or another. Of course it always came down to me to stop it – but it was always a turn on whenever my husband would come to our rescue.
Yes, husband. After Evelyn's birth, Bobby and I had a beautiful small ceremony in our old church were Ma used to take us. It wasn't long afterward when Bobby decided he wasn't meant to do simply nothing around the home while I worked from sun up to sun down; Bobby opened up his own auto-shop while Camille watched little Evelyn in the meantime. It seemed everything was starting to become exactly the life that I had always envisioned and more.
"Everyone bow your heads," I instructed after placing the turkey in the middle of the table and taking my seat. Holding hands, we all followed and listened intently while Bobby said grace like he had been doing for the last couple of years. As he spoke, my mind wandered off to Ma and Jackie – remembering how happy and peaceful they both were the last time I had visited them. Wishing so much they were down here with their family, I opened my eyes and whispered, amen.
"How the binuss treatin' ya Bobby?" Angel asked before stuffing a mouthful of turkey in his mouth. As the men began talking about business, I turned to look at Sofi, a smile on my face. Since our adventure, the Hispanic woman and I had grown a lot closer than I ever imagined could be. Lightly squeezing her hand, I averted my gaze over to my darling daughter. Evelyn was playing with her spoon, holding it in the air before swinging it down into her mashed potatoes.
"Honey, don't do that." Evelyn was a bit of a handful; I never realized how hyper children could actually be. Taking care of Bobby was a full-time job all on its own, another child in the house was a bit stressful. Nevertheless it was something I had gotten used to – the constantly repeating myself and the headaches were frequent. But I still loved my family … one that continued to grow. After handling my daughter, I clinked my butter knife against my water glass causing everyone to quiet down. "I would like to make an announcement," I spoke, raising to my feet. With all eyes on me, I connected gazes with my husband.
"The last couple of years have been hard, but a blessing as well and I know you all will agree with me." Bobby held out his hand, lacing his fingers in mine. "And as another year passes that our beloved family members are not here it is always a reminder that life is short and we need to cherish those who are in our lives now. With that being said, I would like to announce that there is going to be another member joining the Mercer family." All the adults looked up to me, confused while the children paid no mind to what I had to say. "I'm pregnant."
I would like to thank everyone so very much for reading this fanfiction! I know it was probably frustrating with my long absents but I always tried to make up for it with a good chapter. Please feel free to continue to review and/or message me at any time. Remember, I'm a reader just like you are and I would love to have some recommendations.
Julie Jay xo