Epilogue

The Next Summer

"Mum! Dad!" Nine year old Emmy called, stepping down the narrow hallway of her grandparent's house. She made it to the guest room door and knocked. "Mama? Dad?"

There were sounds of moving about and then her father answered the door with his bathing suit and a towel over his shoulder. His chest was rising and falling, as if he was out of breath. Emmy narrowed her eyes at him.

"Were you running?"

'Yes, from the bathroom," John quickly told her. "What's the matter?"

"I'm all ready to go!" Emmy said, pointing at her bathing suit and sandals. "What's taking you both so long?"

"We're not," John replied.

"You were. Abbey and Butler are already outside with Gran and Grandpapa," Emmy said, placing her hands on her hips.

"You can go on down to the beach with them. We'll meet you down there shortly."

"But I want to go with you!"

They had been at the beach house for two weeks now. Every morning, they had gone down to the beach and stayed until lunchtime. When they would come back for lunch, they would all shower and then play games out back. Dinner was either at the house or they would go out for the evening. It had been a lot of fun and they planned on staying two more weeks.

Because of the reporters and media, Anna had homeschooled Emmy for the rest of the school year. In the fall, Emmy would start traditional school for the first time. While they were a little anxious about the change, they knew it would be the best thing for her.

"We will be down there very soon, Emmy," John promised her. "Your mother is just still getting dressed."

"Alright, alright," Emmy bemoaned. "I'll go on down with Gran and Grandpapa. Don't take long!"

"We won't," John promised. He watched as his daughter went back down the hallway and then stepped out the back door. He could hear her speaking with Elsie and Charlie and then heard them walking away. He turned and closed the door behind him, finding Anna still laying on the bed, with a grin on her face.

"That was close," he told her, as he crawled back on the bed and began to kiss up her neck.

"It was," she agreed. She tugged on the edge of his bathing suit. "Now, Mr. Bates, I need you to finish what you started."

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

That night Charlie decided to grill outside for dinner. It was a lovely evening. The sky was full of stars. Emmy chased the two dogs around the backyard. There was now a fence that Charlie and Elsie had installed after they moved back to Skegness. They realized they would need it with Butler.

"The food smells divine," Elsie said, taking in a deep breath.

"It does," Anna agreed. She walked up behind her mother and placed her hands on her shoulders, giving them a loving squeeze. "This has been the best vacation."

"Yes," Elsie winked. "I would say our Emmy is having a wonderful time."

"She is," John stated, stepping outside with the next set of meat to be placed on the grill. He placed it down next to Charlie and then walked back over to his wife. He pulled her close, bringing her into his arms, so he could kiss the top of her head. Anna's eyes closed and she moaned, happily. For a brief moment, she remembered where they were a year ago to the day and was reminded just how lucky they all were to be here now, together.

Anna's eyes fluttered back opened when they heard a loud sound.

"Mummy! Daddy! Come look! Gran! Grandpapa!" Emmy called after them all. She was standing at the edge of the fence. The four adults went over to see what Emmy was seeing, as more blasts could be heard. It was then that they saw the fireworks in the sky.

"Wow," Elsie declared.

"Won't you look at that," Charlie stated.

"It's beautiful," Anna murmured.

"Why are their fireworks?" Emmy asked, her eyes not leaving the sky.

"I don't know, Emmy, but it's fun to watch, isn't it?"

"Yes!"

While they watched the fireworks lighting up the sky, Charlie had to leave for a moment to take the food off the grill. Anna and John met eyes, smiling brightly. Their hands on Emmy's shoulders. In that moment, they knew they were thinking the same thing: they were so thankful to have back what they once lost, what once was gone. They were so grateful to be complete again.

THE END

Again, thank you all for your kindness and generosity! I hope you enjoyed this journey as much as I did writing it. I hope to finish my other unfinished stories over the next two weeks and then I'm taking a small hiatus until after the New Year. Many new stories to come then. Thank you again!