Thank you all, so very much!

Chapter 18

Five and a Half Years Ago

"Mummy! Mummy!" Emmy called from her bed, as the bright lights of the morning light came through her window. She sat up, rubbing her eyes with the back of her hands. "Mummy!"

A moment later, her mother walked in with a bright smile. Emmy immediately smiled. She stood on her bed and reached up her arms for her mother to lift her up. Anna picked Emmy up into her arms and Emmy rested her head into the nook of her neck, sighing contently. She loved her mummy. Her mummy was her favorite person in the world, with her daddy as a close runner up.

Anna's hand ran up and down her back and she swayed lightly, while kissing the top of Emmy's head.

"Good morning, my sweet girl," Anna murmured against Emmy's cheek. "Do you want breakfast?"

At that Emmy sat up and smiled.

"Yes, please!" She exclaimed. Anna kissed Emmy's cheek and then walked the two of them downstairs where her daddy had already begun to make breakfast. The wonderful smell filled Emmy's nose and she made a sound of approval.

Once her daddy heard them downstairs, he turned and gave them a warm smile.

"My girls!" He happily said, placing the spatula down by the stove and walked to them, placing his hand on his wife's shoulder and bending down to give her a loving kiss. Then he kissed the top of Emmy's head. Emmy watched as her dad's eyes fell back to her mummy. They were full of love and it made Emmy feel warm and safe. She was pretty sure her parents were a princess and prince.

"Mummy sing!" Emmy then demanded. Anna giggled. She spun Emmy around and began to sing, while they waited for breakfast to be served.

"Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens; Bright copper kettles and warm woolen mittens; Brown paper packages tied up with strings; These are a few of my favorite things."

"More, more!" Emmy pleaded. John turned around, signaling it was time to sit down and eat breakfast.

"Mummy and Emmy and breakfast with sprinkles," John teased.

"Not the words!" Emmy playfully scolded.

"What!?" Her daddy jokingly replied. "Those are some of my favorite things!" Emmy rested her head back on her mummy's shoulder and happily sighed. They were some of her favorite things, too.

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

Now

Emmy quietly made her way down the stairs. She had woken up earlier than normal. All the books in her room had been read and so she was hoping to see if any of the other books her grandparents had brought from the library were still on the living room coffee table.

But as she stepped on the wooden floor, she heard humming coming from the kitchen. She tiptoed on her feet and then peeked her head around the corner. She saw her parents together, making pancakes. The two of them were light on their feet and her father's hand was on the small of her mother's back. Her mother looked up to her father and he bent over to kiss her on the lips. Emmy watched them intently. It was the first time the two of them seemed at ease with one another. And a familiarity with it began to bloom inside of Emmy.

Her mother continued to hum the song and Emmy closed her eyes. It was so familiar. She knew that song. As her eyes closed, she could see her mother's face close up. She was singing the song to her and then her father came up to them and kissed her mother. They were all so happy.

"These are a few of my favorite things," Emmy said, stepping out from her hiding space. Both of her parents turned. She watched as her father's hand rested on her mother's shoulder.

"What was that, my little darling?" John asked her.

"That's the song you're humming," Emmy replied. "I remember it. You used to sing it to me, Mummy."

Anna's face went through a myriad of emotions at Emmy calling her mummy, but she settled on a teary smile and a nod.

"I did, sweetheart. I did. All the time."

Emmy stepped forward.

"And we were happy."

"We were," John replied, smiling. "We are," he added.

Emmy's lips quirked up to one side and she took one of each of their hands within her own.

"And Daddy used to change the lyrics?" At that, Anna let out a giggle. Her hand came up to wipe the tear that was falling down her cheek.

"He did," Anna agreed. "How did you remember?"

"Just now, seeing you both happy and hearing the song. It's just one memory, but I remember it."

"That's wonderful," Anna said, bending down to Emmy's level. "I'm so glad you remembered us." Emmy then brought her arms around Anna's neck, holding her tight.

"I don't want to forget you again," Emmy whispered in her mother's ear.

"You won't," Anna promised her. Her own arms wrapped around Emmy. Then her father bent down with them and joined into the hug.

"It'll take a while to lose us," he teased.

They all chuckled, as they pulled out of their hug.

"Would you like some breakfast?" Her father asked her. Emmy nodded.

"Yes, please."

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

"Thank you," Casey said to the driver of the taxi. She handed him a tip and then waited until it pulled away to turn toward the house. John had said he would meet her at the hotel, but Casey insisted to come over to the house. It was probably best she got to know Emmy. She was the other important girl in John's life.

As Casey walked to the house, she heard laughter from the backyard. She changed her course to the back gate and opened it. Opening the gate, she saw Emmy in John's arms, as he spun her and Emmy giggled into his neck. Anna was beside them, nearly tackling them over. All three of them had bright smiles of happiness on their face. Casey stepped back. She watched as John placed Emmy down and she ran over to the corner of the yard to grab a ball. That was when Casey noticed the dog. He was making his way between their legs.

Casey's hand came over her chest and she sighed. Then she closed the gate and walked back over to the front door and rang the doorbell.

She was surprised, when only a moment later, the older gentleman, Mr. Carson, answered the door. He made a face, but then curled his lips up into a kind smile.

"Come on in. They're out back."

"I'll stay right here. Will you get John for me, please?" She nicely asked. Mr. Carson nodded. He kept the door opened.

Casey remained in the doorway. She no longer felt at ease entering the house.

A few moments later, John came to the door. His brow was sweaty from playing hard and he was leaning more than normal on his cane. She was sure because he had overworked his knee. She frowned slightly, before forcing a smile upon her lips.

"Can we talk?" Casey questioned him. "Outside?"

John wiped his brow, before stepping forward and closing the door behind them. Casey stepped to the side of the porch and glanced out over the front yard, placing her hands on the bannister.

"This is a lovely little neighborhood," Casey began. "Nice place to raise a family."

"Casey, why don't you let me take you to lunch," John offered. Casey shook her head and turned back to face him.

"I don't think that's necessary, John," she told him. "What you lost has come back to you and I am the one thing standing in the way of that."

"Casey…"

"It's alright," she assured him. "I saw you just now, the three of you," she clarified. "And it was the happiest I had ever seen you, John. You deserve happiness. You deserve to have your wife and daughter back."

John sighed, but nodded.

"I'm sorry it had to end like this, Casey. I was hoping to…."

"You have always been a gentleman," Casey said. "I don't doubt it would have been the nicest break-up meal I've ever had. But I must go and pack my bags and head to Vienna where I belong."

She walked up to John and placed a chaste kiss upon his cheek.

"Auf weidershen, darling. Enjoy your life."

John opened his mouth to speak, but she shook her head. She walked off the porch and made her way down their little street, making sure to be out of his eyesight, before calling for another taxi.

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

That night, John was back in his bedroom. It was the first time in over four years since he had slept in this bed. Anna was sitting on the edge of the bed, putting lotion on her arms. He scooted over closer to her, placing a kiss between her shoulder blades. Anna let out a pleased sound and turned her head toward him.

"I missed you," she murmured. John brushed his nose against her cheek and he inhaled her scent.

"My darling, words cannot express how much I have missed you. Let us never be apart again."

"Absolutely," Anna agreed. She lifted her legs up onto the bed so that she could completely face him. She had brought her sleeves down over her arms and John noticed she was wearing longer pants to cover her legs, despite the fact that it was warm in their room.

"You don't have to hide your scars from me," he assured her. Anna bit down on her lip and began to ring her hands nervously in her lap. "You know I think you're the most beautiful woman in the world."

"I do," Anna whispered, her eyes still down. "Most of them are faint and can be easily covered up with shorts and a t-shirt, but they are a reminder of the dark time in my life."

John furrowed his brows. Then he asked an uncomfortable question, "Did you stop after Mary found you? Did you get help?"

Anna inhaled sharply, shaking her head. "Well, Mary and my parents insisted I go see a therapist or they said they would put me in an impatient center. I did do well, for a while. But every once in a while, on my darkest days, I went back to it. Once, my mother caught me. She was so upset and worried. My dad…" Anna covered her face.

"Hey," John soothed, rubbing her arm with his hand. "It's alright, my darling."

"I haven't done it in several months," Anna then said. "I…I have found better ways to cope, my therapist has helped. And now, well, now things are better."

"They are," John agreed, with a smile. "But will you do something for me?"

"What's that?" Anna asked, bringing her eyes up to meet John's.

"If you do slide back down that path, will you come to me first?"

"I don't think…."

"If," he stated again. Anna nodded.

"I will."

John pressed a kiss on Anna's forehead and allowed his lips to linger against her skin. He then slowly sat back and curled his lips up into a smile.

"I had a thought."

Anna now smiled too and chuckled, "That sounds dangerous, Mr. Bates."

"Well, Mrs. Bates," he played the name on his tongue, thinking about how much he missed saying it. "What if we went on a holiday together to Edinburg, while I closed up my work there? That way, I wouldn't have to leave you behind. With you homeschooling Emmy for now, we could make a whole trip of it. Maybe go to Scotland and close up and then we could head to London for the trial."

"Well, the Scotland part sounds wonderful. I am not, however, looking forward to the trial. I want her to rot, but I just want that part of our lives behind us."

"Me too," John agreed, combing his hand through her blonde locks. "But that will be the end of it."

Anna twisted her lips and John narrowed his eyes.

"What?" He questioned her, being able to read her like a book.

"I was thinking about going to talk to her."

"Anna, I'm not sure that's a good idea," John warned. He didn't know what any of them could get from speaking to the woman that took Emmy.

"I need to speak to her, John. I need to understand her way of thinking." John wasn't happy about this, but he knew he couldn't deny her of it.

"Alright, we'll go and talk to her."

"No," Anna said. "I'm going to speak with her alone. I need to."

John let out a low sigh. "Alright, my darling, if that's what you need."

Anna inched forward so that her legs came over his and she was sitting on his lap. She wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed her forehead against his.

"But right now, I need you," she said to him, winking. John's lips curled up.

"Well, my darling, if that's what you need, then I shall give you whatever you want."

To be continued...

Ah, Casey actually left quite easily. She realized there was no space for her between Anna and John. ;). And Emmy had a memory! Now, we have the big meeting with Maggie coming up in a bit. Thank you for reading! This story has 5 more chapters to go. :)