Mistakes We've Made Can Be Brighter

Episode 15: "Battle For Custody"

A few days later, Friday, May 12th, 2028

Maci is now 16 weeks pregnant, she's three months pregnant with twins. Kayleigh is 16 weeks pregnant as well, she's having triplets. Karina and Merci are 28 weeks pregnant, they are now seven months pregnant.

Maya and her daughter, Merci with the help of Bailey and her daughters, Kayleigh and Karina took a break from planning her baby shower, knowing that Maci had to rest and take it easy for the next few weeks. But Merci was terrified for her babies. She didn't want Ryder to take her babies away from her. She and her father Zack were looking for a good lawyer. Zack was annoyed with Cole but he knew he would do anything for his daughter Maci. He knew it would take him a very long time to trust Cole again.

Shawn was there at the mansion, taking Merci's hand. "Mercs, baby, what's wrong?" He got there soon after he heard what happened along with Anna, James and their daughter, Janna. He wrapped his arms around her and held her as she sobbed. "Honey, you're scaring me..."

Merci sobbed. "Ryder's gonna take the twins away from me..."

Shawn's eyes widened. "What?"

Anna's eyes widened. "Are you kidding me?!"

Zack sighed. "Anna, I'm doing it as best as I can." He shook his head. "Merci needs to rest and also needs to take it easy..."

Merci frowned. "Yeah, but how can I take it easy when the minute the twins were born Ryder takes them away from me?! How, Dad?! It's easy for you to say that, but it's not easy for me!"

Maya shook her head. "This will never happen sweetie. You and Mace need to take it easy..."

Merci sighed. "But, Mom! It's. Not. Your. Problem. It's. Mine."

Maya shook her head. "No, buts, Merci."

James snapped his fingers. "I've got it." He smiled. "How about if Merci lays low for a while and then hide the twins after they were born? That way Ryder won't even take the twins away from her or something?"

Anna looked at her sister and agreed with her boyfriend. "I still think you should fight for custody Mercs after they're born. I mean Ryder did not want the twins but you do. So better safe than sorry." She looked at her parents and then at her sister. "I think our parents agree..."

Zack sighed. "Sweetheart, I agree with you on that one but one thing for sure, I know I'm looking for a good lawyer for Merci, but she and Mace are also sixteen and are pregnant like you were..." He shook his head. "I'm not saying that like it's a bad thing, it's just I don't want him meaning, Ryder to torture any of us more like Merce and Mace." He frowned. "I never liked that kid..."

Dylan frowned. "Time out!" He made a time out motion with his hands as he looked at his older sister Merci. "You and Mace dated him at the same time?"

Merci sighed and nodded as she looked at her younger brother who looked pissed off. "Well, little do we know he was cheating on us both at the same time. But still, I took him back, but broke up with him due to all of us discovering his cheating, so anyways I started dating Shawn and exposed all Ryder's lies with the help of our sister, Mack and cousins Kay and Rina along with Shawn's sister Emily."

Bentley tried to reason with him. "Hey bro. I know what he did was bad but this is worse."

Dylan was glaring. "I want to find him and kill him!" He jumped up but Mackenzie, Meghan and Bentley pushed him down. "Let me go. Do you honestly think that guy could get away with it and take my nephew and niece from me? He better think again!"

Maya looked at her husband who looked proud. "He's a lot like you..."

Zack smirked looking proud. "And, I'm very flattered." He sighed. "Okay, now we need to make sure Merci takes it easy."

Merci shook her head. "I'm done. Just leave me the hell alone. He doesn't give a fuck about me! He never told me he'd fight! We haven't spoken in months!" She got up and rushed to the front door. "I'll end this shit myself!"

Zack sighed. "No, Merci! Come back..." He ran after her. "I can't lose my baby all because of Ryder..."

Merci shook her head. "No, Dad. It's between me and Ryder. You may need to call auntie London, though. I may need her lawyers..."

Zack sighed but nodded as he pulled out his phone to call London. "Okay baby but be careful please." He dialled London's number. "Hello London."

London picked up. "Hello Zack. Everything okay?"

Zack sighed. "Actually, London. I need one or two of your best lawyers. Merci needs them. Her baby's father threatened to get the twins after their birth…"

London nodded. "I'm right on it. I'll call you back."

Zack nodded. "Thanks, London."

London smiled. "No problem." She hung up, called her father and started her plans.

Cole and Maci's home

Maci was getting ready to meet Mae, Cole's ex girlfriend, who is the mother of Anna and Ania. She just had gotten out of the shower, had changed, and saw her fiancé, Cole walking into their bedroom. "Hey, Mace."

Maci smiled. "Hey." She looked at him. "Are you comfortable with me meeting Mae?"

Cole nodded. "Yes, I'm comfortable. Are you?"

Maci nodded her head. "Yeah. I am, Cole. If she's your children's mother, I need to get to know her for Vanessa's sake. Anna and Ania are her half sisters…"

Cole understood that. They are going to be half siblings. He knew he didn't want to keep Vanessa from knowing Anna and Ania.

Cole nodded his head. "Yeah, I do want them and Vanessa to have a relationship. I don't want them to be upset with me if we wait 15 years..."

Maci nodded her head and smiled. "I agree with you."

Cole walked over to her, wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek. "Mace...I don't want you to end up hating me over the years, or when you and I get into a fight and you mention that I didn't tell you about Anna and Ania. I still feel like a complete ass. I didn't tell you, I made you feel like you can't trust me anymore..."

Maci sighed wrapping her arms around his neck. "Oh yeah but at least you told me about them. I mean I would still be upset but I would also understood if you told me about them sooner but no so it's fine..."

Cole sighed. "I love you, Mace." He leaned in and kissed her as Vanessa ran into the room.

Maci laughed. "Did you get out of your crib by yourself little lady?"

Vanessa nodded her head. "Yes, I did, Momma..."

Maci laughed as she picked her up, placing her on her hip. "Oh my gosh, you're heavy for Mommy now." She sighed.

Vanessa frowned and rested her head on her mom's shoulder. "Really, Momma?"

Maci sighed. "I'm carrying twins, baby. It's not easy for me to carry or hold you now." She kissed her head as she handed her to Cole. "You get to hang with daddy today. Mommy has to do something."

Vanessa began crying. "But Momma!"

Cole smiled and kissed Vanessa's head. "You don't like hanging with Daddy, Vans?" He looked at Maci. "Looks like she's getting separation anxiety..."

Maci nodded. "She cries when you leave too. She is one. I read about separation anxiety. It's not easy to overcome. We might have to talk to her for a while about it." She smiled. "She loves you. Trust me. She's probably gonna be like this for a while."

Cole nodded his head. "Oh...I feel so bad..."

Maci kissed her daughter's head and then kissed Cole. "I'll be back later. I love you." She grabbed her car keys and put her coat on and grabbed her purse. She opened the door and then shut the door behind her.

As Maci was getting into her car, she saw Ryder walking over to her.

"What the hell do you want? Whatever it is, I don't have time for."

Ryder sighed. "Maci, I need your help."

Maci got into her car. "With?"

Ryder smiled. "I need help winning custody of the twins..."

Maci began laughing. "Haha! You think I'll help you take my niece and nephew away from my sister? Haha! Very funny. I'd rather bang my head against a wall then help your worthless ass..."

Ryder sighed. "Why won't you help me out?"

Maci sighed. "Why don't you go bother your new girlfriend?"

Ryder sighed. "She won't return my calls..."

Maci laughed. "Oh, that's too bad...Karma is the best, isn't it?" She looked at her phone as it beeped. "Now, excuse me, I have somewhere to be." She glared at him. "Do you know Marianna Tipton St. Mark?"

Ryder shook his head. "No..."

Maci laughed. "She's the daughter of London Tipton. My parents and aunt and uncle have known her for years. Your chances of taking my niece and nephew is very slim to none. You're welcome." She smiled. "You might want to drop out."

Ryder shook his head. "No I won't..." He sighed. "Merci won't let me see them when they're born..."

Maci laughed. "Whose fault is that? She hates you. I hate you. Hate is a strong word. But, we hate you." She smiled. "You might want to. London's father can make people disappear in a matter of an hour..."

Ryder gulped. "I'm not scared."

Maci laughed. "You should be. Bye, Ryder." She turned on her car and began backing out of the driveway and headed to the restaurant. As she was driving, she called London. "Hey Aunt London. Can you do me a favor?"

London nodded her head. "Oh of course. What's up, Mace?"

Maci began explaining what just happened. "I know it might be cheating, but I don't want my niece or nephew to be taken away from my sister. He has been stalking me forever. I'm kinda sick of it."

London nodded. "Oh okay so do you want a security to make sure Ryder won't get near you and your family members?"

Maci smiled. "No. I need your dad to make him just go somewhere no one will find him. I just don't want my sister to be stressed out...or me having him follow me everywhere..." She parked into the parking spot.

London nodded. "Okay. I'll see what I can do..."

Maci nodded as she hung up and headed into the restaurant. She met Mae in the booth. "Hey, are you Mae?"

Mae nodded. "Yes. Maci, right?"

Maci nodded as she sat down. "Yeah."

Mae smiled. "It's nice to meet you..." She paused. "So what do you want to talk about?"

Maci sighed. "Well, as you know Vanessa is my daughter, that means Anna and Ania are her half sisters, I figured I'd want to get to know the mother of my fiance's daughters. You are now moving to Boston?"

Mae nodded her head. "Yes I am..." She looked at her. "So how many siblings do you have?"

Maci smiled. "I have 10. I'm the oldest. My twin sister, Merci is 2 minutes younger than me." She sighed. "I just met her a few months ago."

Mae smiled. "Wow, it must be fun growing up together with so many of you in the house. What's it like?"

Maci smiled. "Well, I don't live there anymore. But it was always loud, crazy and lots of fights." She laughed.

Mae nodded, smiling. "Wow..."

Maci smiled. "What about you?"

Mae smiled. "I'm the oldest of three. My brother is 14 and my sister is 9." She smiled again. "I'm expecting a baby with my boyfriend."

Maci smiled. "Congratulations. I have a question for you. You had twins already, and I'm having twins now. What was it like?"

Mae sighed. "Oh, I was miserable. All the time. If it wasn't my feet, it was my back, every pregnancy is different, but I was just so scared. Do you know what you are having?"

Maci shook her head. "No, not yet. I'm only a few more weeks before I'll know."

Mae nodded. "Oh okay."

Maci sighed. "I admit you seem like you know how to handle everything."

Mae smiled. "Awww. Thank you." She sighed. "Before Cole was forced to move to Boston, I never expected he'd fall in love with someone. I have to admit when I found out, I was a little bit jealous. But I'm really excited for you both."

Maci smiled. "Thank you."

Mae smiled. "So, what held you up so long?"

Maci laughed. "I have a crazy fucking ex boyfriend. He's my sister's twins father. He was 'trying' to get me to be on his side about the whole cusody of my niece and nephew."

Mae's eyes went wide. "Shut up! Are you for real?"

Maci nodded her head. "Yes I am unfortunately." She shook her head. "Apparently my sister and I dated him at the exact same time yet we didn't know that he was dating us both..."

Mae's eyes went wide. "Wow! That's crazy!" She looked at Maci's engagement ring. "Oh my God. I love your ring!"

Maci smiled. "Thanks you..."

Mae was going to say something when her phone rang. "Oh shoot. Anna has gotten sick. I hate to cut our lunch early. But I gotta see if she's alright." She wrote down her number. "Call me anytime. We can get the girls together sometime."

Maci nodded her head. "Of course..." She looked at her. "I hope Anna feels better..."

Mae smiled. "Thank you. Bye, Maci." She headed out to her car.

Meanwhile, Zack and Maya's home

Merci was pacing back and forth.

Maya sighed. "Merci, you need to relax, honey."

Merci looked at her mother. "I wish I could relax, Mom. I can't. The fact that my son and daughter could be taken away from me is making me sick...Ryder knows NOTHING about babies or hasn't been to any of my appointments! I don't want him to be there anyway..."

Maya nodded her head. "I know I agree with you but please you need to relax and take it easy..."

Shawn rubbed her shoulders. "Babe, sit down." He helped her sit down.

Maci walked into the house. "Hey Mom..." She hugged her.

Maya hugged her daughter. "Mace, aren't you supposed to be on bed rest?"

Maci sniled. "I called my doctor and she said that I can still go out but I have to be easy. So, I'm going to make this quick." She went over to her sister and hugged her. "I'm sorry, Merci."

Merci looked up at her sister, she held onto her. "I'm sorry too, Mace. You deserve to be with Cole. He's a great dad. I'm sorry I said all of those things to you. I was just angry."

Maci nodded her head. "I know. We will make sure Ryder doesn't win the twins over you. I promise you."

Merci looked at her sister. "How?"

Maci smiled slightly. "Aunt London's father…"

Merci's eyes went wide. "He can make people like disappear?"

Zack laughed. "That's just a myth. I don't really believe it…"

Maya looked at her husband. "What if it's real?"

Zack paused. "Maya, I'd know about it…" Zack's phone rang. "Hey London."

London smiled. "Well, Ryder's gone. Merci will get full custody. No worries about him anymore…"

Zack's eyes went wide. "Okay...I believe it now…"

London laughed. "Daddy made sure he'd go somewhere where no one will find him. Merci doesn't have to worry about her son and daughter's fate…"

Zack nodded. "Thank you, London. Bye." He hung up, looking at his daughter. "Well, Ryder's gone...forever…"

Merci smiled. "Oh, thank goddess…"

Maci smiled. "Awesome. I won't be stalked anymore…" She stood up and hugged her sister goodbye. "I gotta go. Bye." She headed to her car and headed home.

Cole and Maci's Apartment Complex

Maci parked into the driveway and headed into the apartment. She smiled at Cole. "Hey, babe."

Cole smiled back at her. "Hey, baby girl. How did it go with Mae?"

Maci smiled as she walked over to him. "Great. She's really cool. She and I talked for a bit and then she said Anna got sick."

Cole nodded. "Yeah, Anna has chrones disease. She gets sick very easily. She got diagnosed two years ago…" He sighed. "Mae and I talked about our custody agreement. She wants me to meet the twins before we decide on anything. She said she's moving here next month."

Maci nodded. "Sounds good. We have time to let Vanessa know…" She looked at him. "Speaking of Vanessa, how did she do today?"

Cole sighed. "She had two meltdowns. She's asleep in her crib…"

Maci frowned. "Oh, my poor baby girl…"

Cole hugged her. "It was horrible. I don't know how we will deal with her separation anxiety, Mace…"

Maci grabbed his hand. "We'll figure it out."

Cole smiled. "Good because seeing her cry, Mace, it actually made me cry…"

Maci nodded. "Awwww..."

Meanwhile Ethan and Mae's home

Mae still has feelings for Cole. She was feeling jealous that Cole loved Maci and not her. She never expected for Cole to fall for someone else. She was caring for her and Cole's daughter, Anna who was sick. She looked at her. "How are you feeling, baby?"

Anna coughed. "I don't know. My tummy hurts..." She looked at her mother. "What's wrong, Mommy?"

Mae shook her head. "There's nothing wrong baby. Why?" She looked at her daughter. "Why are you asking?"

Ethan, Mae's boyfriend, walked into Anna's room. "Hey Mae, can we talk?" He said, holding her phone. "Who's this? Why are you stalking some dude who obviously has a family? Maelia, what's going on with you?"

Mae shook her head. "Nothing's wrong with me. Why?" She looked at him. "I'm not stalking anybody..."

Ethan shook his head. "I don't believe that, Maelia. This dude is Anna and Ania's father isn't he? You obviously have feelings for this guy who has a fiance, a daughter and twins on the way...You don't realize how fucked up this is..."

Mae looked at him. "Why do you care? I mean I'm having your baby anyway, not his, and yet, I do know it's fuck up, but I can't help it okay...I don't have feelings for him..."

Ethan nodded his head. "I care because you and I are boyfriend and girlfriend! You are having my baby. I'm so shocked he hasn't figured it out yet...You are so deliberately denialing the fact that you have a problem!"

Mae shook her head. "I don't have a problem! I'm not denialing the fact that I have feelings for him. I don't really I just wanted to figure out the custody of our twins with him. That's it."

Ethan sighed. "You need to tell him everything then. Clear the air, Mae. He may get upset or whatever, but if I can stay right here then I'm sure he won't flip. If you don't, I will."

Mae sighed. "Fine, I'll tell him everything. He deserves to know..."

Ethan nodded. "Good."

Later that night, Cole and Maci's home

Cole's phone beeped and he picked up his phone, unlocked it and went to his messages. His eyes went wide. "What the actual fuck? Oh, she's really making me file for full custody of my girls now!"

Maci looked at him. "What's going on? Is everything okay?"

Cole looked at her. "Uh...Well, Mae texted me and she says she has feelings for me but that I shouldn't have to worry about it..." He sighed. "Oh, I'm worrying now. She knows we are getting married and have a daughter, and twins on the way..." He took a deep breath. "...Anna and Ania are the only two I am focusing on besides you, Vanessa and the babies."

Maci's eyes went wide in complete shock on what he had just said. "Oh my God...She's so in love with you still..."

Cole just grabbed her hands as they layed down in their bed together. "Baby, I'm sure I'll find out what's going on with her soon. I promise you."

Maci nodded. "Okay..." She layed her head down on his chest.

Cole leaned in and kissed her passionately. "I love you, baby."

Maci smiled as she kissed him back. "I love you too, babe." She yawned as she fell asleep, Cole turned on the TV, put it on low and began watching TV until he fell asleep.

To be continued…

AN: Finally back with this story. Thank you ZayaForever19951 for helping me. :)