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Josie let a small gasp escaped her lips. "Antonio."


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Josie was in shock. She hadn't been imagining things. Antonio Dawson had been there. She had heard his voice and he had held her hand.

Antonio took a couple steps into the room. "Hey… Jo."

Josie could feel tears building up in the corner of her eyes. "Antonio."

Dixie knew her daughter needed time to process everything. "I'm going to go get some food from the cafeteria… Kids, come with me."

"But…" Zoë looked around.

"Come on Zo…" Xavier took her hand. "Mama's fine and Mimi needs company… so you guys can tell me all about Paris."

Xavier and Zoë kissed their mother's cheek. "We'll be back in a bit."

Josie nodded. "Je t'aimes."

Antonio hugged the twins and nodded to Dixie. He waited for them to leave and closed the door behind them. He walked over and sat on the chair next to Josie's bed. "Josie."

"Antonio…" She sniffled. "How?"

"There's a lot to talk about… how are you feeling?"

"Sore… tired… even though I've been out of it for a little over a week."

"Being In a coma and sleeping… are two very different things, Jo."

"How did… did you find me?" Josie whispered.

Antonio gently took her hand, and was thankful that she didn't pull away. "Jules called me… she told me to run to the house next door… that someone was in danger… I was at my parents' picking… picking up my kids." The last part had barely been a whisper.

"It's okay, Antonio…" Josie sighed. "I know."

"Josie… When I saw you there… I almost died… I couldn't believe it when Xavier told me… who you really were."

"I don't know where to begin."

"I can start… I… I'm sorry." He said.

"For what?" Josie was perplexed.

"Not coming to look for you… for believing that you were actually dead." Antonio's voice cracked.

"Antonio… no one could know… it was last minute."

"How can you be so forgiving? How can you still be the same sweet girl I met 16 years ago?"

"Because I wasn't going to let myself fall to pieces… because I had to be strong for our babies…"

"Did you know?"

"Know what?"

"That we were having twins."

Josie nodded slowly. "I had found out at my last appointment… I was… was going to tell you that night."

"Josie… I… I was lost."

"Antonio… you don't have to justify anything. You got married, had a family… that's what life's about."

"My life… our life… was supposed to be together. We were supposed to have a family."

Josie instinctively put her good hand on the small bump of her abdomen. "Antonio, you have Laura and Eva and Diego."

Antonio blinked away the tears. "Laura's… Laura's gone."

Josie's eyes widened. "What?"

"I know Gaby, Mami, and Jules all tried to tell you… Laura… Laura died in February 2006…"

Josie gasped. "Antonio…"

"It's okay… I'm okay… I raised Eva and Diego on my own since then… with a lot of help from Rebecca, Tiago and my parents." Antonio squeezed her hand. "Gaby told me when you came back."

Josie looked away. She was ashamed of herself.

"Jo… baby…"

He still called her 'baby'. That alone started tearing down the wall she had built around herself. "Antonio… I did want you to know… As soon as I was cleared to… well Katrina made them fast track things."

"So… when we met in the bar… you weren't lying about spending most of your time in the South?"

Josie shook her head. "I was telling the truth. My cover was as close to who I really was as possibly. It's hard to have a cover and have your kids in on it… something I was against… but the Brass had other opinions."

Antonio cringed. "They shouldn't have taken you away in the first place."

"They didn't have a choice."

"Yes, they did… offer protective custody… or at least given me a heads up… so one day…"

"Antonio…" Josie took a deep breath. She hadn't talked about this in almost 16 years. She hadn't been able to relive the night her world was turned upside down. "I went home to get ready for Midnight Mass that night… when I got in the house, there was this really strong ammonia smell… I went to look and there was a bomb in the living room. I called Billy's phone… it wasn't getting picked up… so I called the emergency number he gave me… A…uh… Hank Voight came with his partner and got me out of the house… the bomb was on a timer… so they left it. They put me on a plane and left. I got to New Orleans… and I was livid. I wanted to come home but NOPD was there waiting to pick me up. They made sure I didn't get to talk to anyone… I legally changed my name and had the twins."

"When?"

"June 2, 1998… my 18 birthday."

"Josie… I…"

"Antonio… please don't… don't beat yourself up over this. It was out of your control." She took a deep breath. "I just… I don't know what to do from here."

"I could go back to the way we were in a heartbeat… but I know that's impossible… because as much as I want to think we haven't changed… we have."

Josie nodded. She wished she could turn back the clock and go back to that night and not have called for help. She wished she could go back and just run from the house back to Antonio's. "I don't know what to do." She sniffled. "We have two teenage children that haven't had a chance to know their father more than what I've told them… you have two children from your previous marriage and you've been doing the single dad thing for 8 years… and now… I'm pregnant again… at 33… and you're the only man that could be the father."

"Jo… how…" He paused. "Don't get pissed… but I gotta know… how can I be the only one?"

"Biz is sterile… I know because I've checked his medical records… that and I hadn't had sex with him in the window that I could've conceived." She said. "It doesn't piss me off, by the way… you have every right to ask."

Antonio ran his hand through his hair. "Jo…" He let out a deep breath. "I never… never, ever stopped loving you… thinking about you…"

"I never did either… Not… I never married… never dated… I just raised the twins."

"Never?" Antonio was surprised. "I would've never been upset if you had."

"I couldn't…"

"She couldn't marry anyone else because she could never love them like she loved you." Zoë said from the doorway. "Sorry… I… uh… I had to come back… I haven't see Mama in almost 3 months… and I…"

"You can tell us." Antonio said. "It won't hurt my feelings."

"I wanted to get to know my dad… I've… I've always thought about… played it out in my mind…"

Josie felt the tears building up. She never thought she'd get to see this, their children finally meeting their father.

Antonio got up and hugged his daughter. "Zoë, I'm not going anywhere… we will figure this out."

Zoë just nodded and hugged her father tightly. "Um..." She cleared her throat. "Mimi wanted to know if either of you wanted something other than hospital food?"

"Sure." Josie smiled. "Just ask the nurse what I'm allowed."

"Surprise me." Antonio said.

"Okay." Zoë kissed Antonio on the cheek. "Um… We'll be back later." She turned and left to find a nurse.

Antonio went back to Josie's bedside. "You raised them strong and… they're just… wow."

"I had my mom's help."

"I'm pretty sure you had a lot to do with."

"Antonio… can… what… what happened to Laura?"

Antonio sighed. "Gaby said you never wanted to hear about it."

"That's because I was still hurt by what she told me… what she said about Xavier and Zoë… but I'm not one to speak poorly of the dead."

"Well… I'll make you a deal… I tell you what happened… you tell me what she told you. There's nothing bad that can come from being honest at this point."

"I can do that."

Antonio smiled. "Okay… um Laura and her sister were on their way back from Laura's baby shower in early January 2006… They got T-Boned on the passenger side by a tweaker who was being chased by CPD for grand theft auto. Gaby was one of the medics who responded… Laura was okay at first. They sent her for some tests and she began seizing… They did a scan and found out that she had a weakened vessel in her brain… it ruptured as an effect of the crash… she was brain dead. They came to me with two choices. Deliver the baby then, but risk him being super preemie… or keep Laura on life support until it was safer to deliver. Diego was due late March. Laura's body starting shutting down… that led them to having to do a C-section with him only being at 8 months gestation… February 24, I had my son but lost my wife… even though, I had really lost her earlier."

"Antonio, I'm so sorry."

"Josie… you don't need to… I had a couple months to come to terms with what happened… Eva, my daughter… she's been the one struggling with it… she has memories of her mother, but anything that has to do with girly stuff… I can't help her with."

"So you get your mom, Gaby or Rebecca to help her?"

"Yeah, but… it's not the same." Antonio sniffled. "Okay… so I told you… now… I'd like to know what happened when you came back."

"Katrina hit New Orleans in late August… Mama had packed me and the kids up and shipped me out of there as soon as the voluntary evacs started. She was collecting as much as humanly possible to bring with her. She got out about 8 hours before the storm made landfall… we stayed in Texas for a while with one of Mama's friends… but we couldn't stay. It was then that she contacted a friend of Billy's about the house… since he was taking care of it for us. By Halloween, we were starting the very slow and long drive from Galveston to Chicago."

"Jesus… Jo…"

"I know… the kids wouldn't stop asking questions… they swore we were coming to see you… it was hard. Anyhow, we got here right after Veteran's Day. We moved in and tried to settle into a routine, but it was hard. It was then that I went next door to see if your parents still lived there… Rebecca answered the door… and well, I had a lot of explaining to do. Gaby was called… anyhow, she told me you lived across the street. So one day, while the kids were at school, I went to your house, hoping you'd be home… Laura answered the door." Josie paused. "I didn't even get a chance to introduce myself."


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November 2005…

Josie didn't know what she was going to say… considering that Antonio thought she'd been dead for the last 7, almost 8, years. She rang the doorbell and waited. She knew that Antonio was married now and had a daughter and another child on the way. She wasn't here to be a home wrecker. She just wanted him to know the truth.

The door swung open. "Yes?" The woman at the door must be Antonio's wife. She was definitely pregnant.

"Um, hi… I'm looking for Antonio." Josie said softly.

Laura looked at her from head to toe. "And you are?"

"Someone from his past."

Laura's eyes bulged. "No… No way… you died!"

Josie took a step back. "How… how do you know who I am?"

"Because I've been living in your shadow for the last 6 years." Laura snapped. "No… you're not seeing Antonio."

"I'm not here to try and ruin your marriage… or come between you guys… I just… Antonio deserves to know the truth about what happened that night… he deserves to know his children."

"Children? He told me you were having a baby."

"I had twins… a boy and a girl… they're 7 years old and they should be able to know their father."

"Fuck no." Laura crossed her arms. "No… no fucking way! You died… you… you and those brats, you stay dead! Don't you come near MY husband or our family ever again." She slammed the door in Josie's face.

Josie stumbled back in shock. She wasn't going to make a scene. She turned on her heel and ran home.

Gaby was waiting for her in the kitchen. "How'd it go?"

"He wasn't there… and… well… Laura… told me that the kids and I should stay dead and slammed the door in my face."

Gaby groaned. "I love Eva… I will love that baby… but seriously… Antonio should've never married that bitch."

"Why not?" Josie grabbed a bottle of wine and poured herself a glass. "He deserves to be happy and have a family."

"That bitch just wanted to be a cop's wife… she didn't care whose. She's out for the attention… she doesn't love Antonio."

"Then how do they have two kids?"

Gaby shrugged. "Sex is sex… it doesn't necessarily mean they loved each other."

Josie thought back to when she and Antonio had talked about the difference between making love and sexual lust. Gaby had a point. There was a glaring difference between the two. She knew what loving Antonio was like, so it was obvious that Laura didn't. Or, at least, that's what she was getting from Gaby's story. "Well, she won't let me near him. I can't force that."

Gaby sighed. "Maybe… go to the district?"

"NO!" Josie took a deep breath. "No. I'm going to just… not tell him. I'm not here to ruin any marriages… or keep kids away from their dad."

"Isn't that what you're doing with Xavier and Zoë?"

"They've known about Antonio their whole lives… I'll tell them what happened. If they choose to find him once their 18, I can't stop them. For now, I have to do what's best for my children… I know they need their father… but he moved on because no one let him in on the lie."

"Jo, I can't tell you what to do… but he'll need to know… he'll find out… you live across the street from him."

"Gaby, I'll deal with it."

"Okay… what do you planning to do for work?"

"I had two different jobs back in NOLA… I can do either one here."

"Well, what did you do back there?"

"I did nursing school, worked in a clinic for a few months, then the hours weren't enough to pay the bills, so I moved back in with my mom and joined the police force… I made it up the ranks… I was a detective in Homicide."

"Damn!" Gaby exclaimed. "So, what are you doing here?"

"I have a meeting at the Ivory Tower to talk options here."

"Don't you want to go back to nursing? A lot of the hospitals need nurses."

"Yeah… well… I may have to do that." Josie sighed. "I don't want to run into Antonio and have him recognize me."

"I can help with that… if you really wanna go the cop route."

"Would you?" Josie asked.

Gaby nodded.


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"And that's what happened." Josie finished. "Gaby helped me dye my hair, got me contacts… then again, I didn't ask to see what you looked like… if you had changed… surprisingly, in the last 7 years, we never ran into each other."

Antonio leaned back in the chair. "Josie… I truly am sorry I wasn't home… I…"

"There's no need to apologize. We… we just have to figure out where we go from here."

Antonio didn't know where they were going or what they were going to be doing. "I don't know either." He sighed. "Josie… Jo… I want… would like to go back to the way things we were…"

"Antonio, we can't pick up where we left off in 1997." Josie whispered. "We've changed… a lot."

"Then…"

There was a knock at the door. "Antonio." A gruff voice came from the doorway.

Antonio spun to face the doorway. "Sergeant." He stood up.

The man nodded. "You can sit." He stepped into the light. "Hi, Josie… It's been a while."

Josie stared at him. "We know each other?"

"You didn't like me much when we met back in December of 1997."

"Wait." Josie squinted. "You're Detective Voight… you've… you've changed."

"Yeah. Prison will do that to a person." Antonio muttered.

Hank Voight ignored him and walked over to the other side of the bed. "It's actually Sergeant now." He smiled. "How you feeling?"

"Sore… umm… why are you here?" Josie asked.

"Well, Antonio hasn't left your side and I wanted to speak to him… Detective Willhite told me I'd be able to find him here… though, while I'm here, I can get your formal statement for the file against Biz and his crew."

"Sarge…" Antonio intervened. "She just woke up."

"I know." Voight turned to face Josie. "If you're up to it."

"Um, I guess." Josie whispered. She wasn't sure how much she trusted him. She had hated him for ripping her away from Antonio and the life that they had planned. Then there were the rumours of him being a dirty cop and she knew Antonio had locked him away for going after a firefighter in Gaby's house.

"May I?" He pointed to the seat that was available on the other side of the bed.

Josie nodded. Antonio squeezed her hand.

"You can go Antonio… no one's gonna come after her with me here." Voight said.

Antonio shook his head. "Uh uh… no way. Sorry, Sarge… I'm not about to let her out of my sight again."

"Antonio…" Voight's tone changed.

"Sergeant… I'd like him to stay… please?" Josie pleaded.

Voight sighed. "Okay, but Antonio, she's talking… not you."

"I got it."

Voight took out his note pad and began to take down Josie's statement. She explained how she had gotten into Vice and how she'd been assigned to go undercover to put Biz out of business. "He bought me the Escalade that I've been driving, which I guess is now CPD property. However, I still think there's a mole in the CPD."

"What makes you say that?" Voight asked.

"He told me I could do whatever I wanted and no cop would ever touch me. I asked him how he knew that and he just told me he had an inside track as to what happened in the CPD."

Voight jotted this down. "Did he hint at who?"

Josie shook her head. "No, and I didn't want to push it. Pushing it too much could have made him suspicious."

Voight nodded. "That's smart. Okay, then what?"

Josie went through the rest of it right up until she met Antonio while he was undercover. Voight looked over to Antonio. Antonio interpreted the look as 'you and me are gonna have a long talk'. Antonio just shrugged. He wasn't about to make things harder for Josie than they already were.

"So, did Biz know your real address?" Voight asked.

"No, sir." Josie answered. "I used a cover address… but my son had to be with me… so that was a part of the risk that I wasn't necessarily a fan of."

"We normally don't let families be part of covers." Voight noted.

"If my mother had been here, it would've been fine, but she took my daughter to Paris for a special scholarship program. They only came back because of what happened. In reality, they should be going back there so Zoë doesn't fall too far behind." Josie paused. "Look, the only thing I can think of is him having a tracker on the Escalade. He gave it to me, so who knows. He insisted on me taking it and keeping it."

Voight jotted this all down. "We'll have that Escalade towed to be examined. Is there anything in there that belongs to you and has nothing to do with the case?"

"No, sir. I never left anything personal in there."

"Okay, so tell me about what led up to the initial attack."

"After… after Antonio had been shot, I knew my cover was next. I told Jules, Detective Willhite that she needed to get me out. She told me it would take some time. So, we came up with the plan that I would end it with Biz because I'd been approached by cops and that my job was on the line. So I ended it, gave him everything back… tried to give him the SUV back, but he told me he had no use for it. So, I parked it at home until he was caught… then it would be brought in… If I brought it in before, and he had a tracker on it… it would've been that much worse. Any how… I was making supper while my son, Xavier was at baseball."

Antonio tuned out this part. He knew it. Whenever she spoke of their children, it stung to hear her say, 'her son' or 'her daughter'. He knew he didn't really have any claim to them. They may be his children, but for the last 15 years, they were raised by their mother and her alone. Antonio tuned back in when they were discussing his own cover as Mike Diaz.

"I knew who Mike really was… I was one of the nurses that treated him when Gaby brought him into the ER… I also knew that I couldn't stay under… because I'm pregnant."

Voight's eyes widened. "Is Biz the father?"

"Hell no!" Josie exclaimed. "Biz can't have kids… and in the time frame during which I could've gotten pregnant… I never had any relations with him."

"May I ask, who exactly is the father?"

"Voight." Antonio stepped in.

"Antonio, you get to be quiet… unless you've suddenly become Josie."

"Antonio, it's okay." Josie whispered. "Um… this is part of where the complicated part comes in… Under my cover as Johanna, … I… we…"

"I'm the father." Antonio blurted out.

Voight dropped his notepad and pen. "I beg your pardon?"

"I am the father." Antonio sounded out each word clearly.

Voight looked between Josie and Antonio. "My understanding was that Antonio didn't know you were alive."

"He didn't… and I didn't know it was him. Physically, Antonio's changed in the last 16 years. I didn't recognize him and well… it was a heat of the moment thing… now I'm pregnant and Antonio and I are trying to figure all this out."

"Okay, well… I think I've got everything I need for the case file." Voight shut the notebook. "I have news from the District. For what you've done, you can pick your next assignment."

"I thought that was strictly for taking a bullet on the job." Josie inquired.

Voight shrugged. "I guess bringing down a crew like his as well as taking the beating you took… they deemed it worthy."

"Wow." Josie was in shock. "Umm… I don't know what to say."

"Well, take your time. I understand that this is a hard choice… especially with two teens and another baby on the way, but I'd personally love to have you in Intelligence."

"Thank you, Sergeant." Josie smiled. "I have time to think it over, discuss it with the kids?"

Hank nodded. "Of course. Take as long as you like… considering your recovery time and eventual Mat Leave… the spot will always be open to you." He got up to leave. "Get better, and I look forward to hearing from you in the future."

"Thank you, Sir."

Hank smiled and nodded. "Antonio."

"Sarge."

Voight turned to leave but froze in his tracks. Dixie, Xavier and Zoë were standing there.

"Sergeant… I don't know if you remember… that's my mama…"

"Dixie… you haven't changed."

"Hank." Dixie met him in the room and gave him a cordial hug. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to take Josie's formal statement… Antonio and Jules were too close to the case and to Josie." Voight answered. "I'll… I'll uh, let you be with your family." He reached into his pocket and discreetly handed Dixie his card. "It was nice to see you again." He left the room.

The kids and Dixie came, bringing food and stories.


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Two days later, Antonio was pacing the hall. Josie had asked him to wait outside while she talked to the twins for a little bit. He wished he knew what they were talking about. He was anxious. Josie was set to be released in two days' time, and the doctors had said she would be needing help at home. Antonio knew that Josie didn't want her mother and Zoë staying because Zoë still had school and Xavier had missed enough school as it was. He offered to have her stay with him, or he could stay with her. Then they had had the discussion concerning Eva and Diego. He still had to tell them about all this. So far, Gaby and his mom had kept them in the dark, but eventually, they'd start putting two and two together. He still hadn't had a lot of time to process all this. The last two days, Voight had him and Jules on a surveillance job. He had finally gotten time off and he flew to the hospital. He and Josie had talked a little more and they had come to the conclusion that they would take this one day at a time.

Someone cleared their throat behind him. "Uh… Da… Antonio?" Xavier said.

Antonio had told the kids that they could call him Antonio or Dad, whatever they were comfortable with. Right now, they were sticking to Antonio, but he hoped that, one day that would change to dad. He turned around. "Yeah?"

"Mama, she'd like to talk to you."

"Uh, okay." Antonio took a deep breath, ran his fingers through his hair and followed Xavier into Josie's room. "Hey, Jo." He smiled.

"Hey, yourself." She smiled. "Come, have a seat. The kids and I have had a long talk… and well… we, as a family, have something that we would like to propose to you."

Antonio sat next to the bed. Zoë was sitting on the bed while Xavier was on the other side. "Okay."

"I have to go back to Paris… to finish out the term, anyhow." Zoë started. "Xavier can't miss much more school either."

Antonio nodded. "Okay."

"Mama's gonna need help, and to be kept safe." Xavier stepped in. "Look, we know that you have a hard job… the same one as she does… and that you have another family… but we… both of us, want to get to know you… as our father."

"And, if we can…" Zoë said. "We'd like to get to know our half siblings."

Antonio smiled. "I'd like that. And… I would love for you to get know Eva and Diego. I… work hasn't let me have the chance to talk to them about all this, but I am… tonight."

"How do you think they'll react?" Josie asked.

Antonio shrugged. "I don't know. I hope they'll be understanding, but Eva is almost 13 and Diego is 7."

"Well, if we can help… let us know." Xavier said. "We also know, that… you and Mama obviously have a connection… We know… that you love her… and that she never stopped loving you."

Antonio wasn't exactly sure where this was headed, but he let them continue.

"Mama said that you guys were trying to figure out what to do now… because you obviously have a lot to catch up on and you can't go back to the way it was… we thought…"

"What our darling children are stumbling over is they think we should date… again… and see where this goes." Josie laughed. "We have two children already… another on the way… I don't… it wouldn't be fair to not have you in all their lives. I'm willing to try and, make this work…"

Antonio took her hand. "I'm… I'm speechless."

"Just, promise us…" Zoë said. "Take care of her… and our little brother or sister."

"I will… it'll be a lot of work… but, I will do anything… everything to make it up to all of you." Antonio promised. "Thank you."

There was a knock on the door. "Hey all." Dr. Travers poked her head in. She was Josie's OB. "I was just wondering if you guys wanted to have a look at the baby, since Josie can actually go home tomorrow night."

"Not in two days?"

Dr. Travers smiled. "Nope. She's been cleared. Tomorrow night after she meets with her rehab therapist for her shoulder."

"Cool." Xavier smiled. "I'd love to see my little brother or sister."

"Ditto." Zoë exclaimed. "Sorry…" She lowered her voice. "Yes, please."

"I never got to see them that way…" Antonio looked to Josie.

She nodded. "Sure… just, I don't want to know if it's a boy or a girl."

"Mama…" Zoë whined. "I wanna know if it's a brother or a sister."

"As long as it's healthy, that's all that matters to me." Josie answered.

Dr. Travers smiled. "We'll make sure baby is healthy. If Josie doesn't want to know the sex, then… we don't tell… but don't worry… that baby is going to be here soon… you'll find out then. I'll be right back, just have to grab an ultrasound." She left and quickly returned with the ultrasound. "Okay, so, how 'bout you kids stand by your dad… and I'll position myself on this side." She set up the machine and lifted Josie's gown modestly and began the scan. "Okay… So… right there…" She pointed to the screen is the baby's…" She froze. She moved the wand around. "Um… hang on a sec." She put the wand back on the ultrasound cart and left the room.

Josie was beginning to panic. It was never a good thing to have the OB take off in the middle of a scan. "Antonio…"

"I know."

"Mama… what's going on?" Zoë asked.

"I… I don't know." Josie's voice was quivering.

"Hi, again." Dr. Travers came in. "This is Dr. Aiken. She's the head of OB here at Med. I just want her to confirm something before I go to far."

"Is something wrong?" Josie asked panicking.

Dr. Aiken took her hand and patted it gently. "No, nothing's wrong. Just double checking something." Josie laid back against the pillows and squeezed Antonio's hand. Dr. Aiken took the ultrasound wand and began the scan. She hit a couple of buttons. She turned back and smiled. "The baby is fine. Actually… both of them are."

Antonio's jaw dropped, as did the kids. "Both… of… them?"

Dr. Aiken smiled. "Yep… looks like you're having twins again… and I'm guessing… identical."

"Oh god." Josie gasped. "Twins… a… again?"

Dr. Aiken nodded. She handed the wand to Dr. Travers to finish the scan. "Given your genetic pre-disposition and your age… twins is a lot more likely."

"Genetic pre-disposition?" Antonio asked.

"Um… I was told that Josie's father had twins in his family… as did her mother?" Dr. Aiken grabbed Josie's chart.

"My mama did… but I… I don't know who my real father is."

"Oh… well… still… both twins are healthy and growing good. I'd say we're looking around an October due date."

"Oh boy." Josie groaned.

"What is it, Mama?" Xavier asked.

"You guys were due in June… and you were born on my birthday… your father's birthday…"

"Is in October." Antonio finished.


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After a little more time spent discussing what was going to happen once Josie left the hospital the next day, Antonio headed to his parents to pick up Eva and Diego. He knew he had to tell them now. It was a now or never situation. He parked his car in his driveway and headed over to Tiago and Rebecca's. He was happy that his brother and sister-in-law had stepped up to help their aging parents. He was even happier that they were all going to be there tonight to help break this news to Eva and Diego. He took a deep breath and rang the bell.

"Antonio." Tiago greeted him.

"Hey, Tiago." Antonio hugged his brother. "How's it going?"

"The kids are antsy… they know we're hiding something." Tiago replied.

Antonio sighed. "Let's get this over with."

"You sure you want us all there?"

"I was thinking, you guys stay close by, but I'll tell them myself in the kitchen."

Tiago nodded. "Sure thing. They're waiting for you."

Antonio took another breath and went to meet his children. "Hey, Eva… Diego." He hugged them. "How was school today?"

"It's almost the end of the year… teachers are basically trying to keep us from climbing the walls." Eva answered, not lifting her eyes from her novel.

"Our classes were in this classroom competition… we did a whole bunch of different activities… I won the science part." Diego showed him his ribbon proudly.

"That's awesome!" Antonio exclaimed. "I'm proud of you guys… very proud… so…" He didn't know how this whole thing was supposed to go down, but he knew it had to be said. "I've got some stuff to talk to you guys about… and it's really serious."

Eva closed her book. "That's never a good thing."

"Are you going undercover again, Daddy?" Diego asked.

"No… no." Antonio sighed. He walked over to the kitchen table. "Come on… sit down… this isn't easy for me… especially… just…" He patted the chairs on either side of him.

The kids joined him and were very attentive.

"Okay… so… understand… this isn't easy for me… especially since I just found out everything in the last week or so… okay?"

"Dad, you're scaring me." Eva said.

"This isn't something scary… just new." Antonio said. "A long time ago, before I knew your mom… before I was a detective… I was in love with our neighbor…"

"Tia Gaby talked about her once… her name was Josie… or something?" Diego said.

"Yeah… and… something bad happened." Eva added.

Antonio nodded. "Yeah. Her name was Josie… we were in love, and we were going to have a baby… Christmas Eve, 1997… I was going to ask Josie to marry me… and we'd be a family… except, her house was blown up. I was told she… she didn't survive."

"Oooookay." Eva was lost. "Why… does this matter now? Like, 16 years later?"

"It matters because Josie… she didn't really die… the CPD… her dad was a detective working with Sergeant Voight back when he was in the Gang unit… the gang they were chasin'… well they found out that her dad was a cop… and they had to get her away from Chicago… so they made it look like she died."

"So… she's alive?" Diego wanted to make sure he was understanding this right.

Antonio nodded slowly. "She is… and she's been living across the street from us for the last almost 8 years…"

"Did you know?" Eva asked. She didn't know how to feel about this.

"No. Not until last week… when Jules called me to go next door…"

"Is she the reason why you haven't been home?" Eva's voice was rising.

"Eva… Between my job… and being at the hospital… that's where I've been."

"So, what… we're just going to stop living because your old girlfriend actually is alive?" Eva was furious. "What about Mom?"

"Eva, your mother's gone."

"Yeah… I know… I never got more than a few memories of her."

"Dad…" Diego interrupted his sister. "What about the baby?"

"That's the other thing… the baby… she had it… and it was actually twins."

"So we have half-brothers or half-sisters?" Diego asked.

"You have an older half-brother, Xavier and an older half-sister Zoë… they just turned 15, this past weekend."

Eva bolted up from her seat. "So, not only are you telling us that there's this other woman… who you loved more than our MOM! We have two half-siblings… and no one bothered to show up until NOW?!"

"Eva!" Antonio stood up. "Calmate."

"No, no way, Dad…" Eva crossed her arms. "How could you?! What about Mom?! HUH?! DID YOU EVER LOVE HER?!"

Antonio tried to put his arms around her, but she pushed him away. "Eva… yes… I loved your mother."

"But not as much as her… right!?" Eva stepped back.

"Eva… this is why it's so complicated…"

"There's more isn't there?" Eva's eyes were filled with tears.

"Yes… I met Josie again, while we were both undercover… and we didn't know each other's real identities… Josie's pregnant… and I'm the babies' father."

"Baby's or babies, more than one?" Diego asked.

"Twins." Antonio replied. "Identical twins."

Eva screamed and flew into a rage-filled fit. She ran at her father and pounded his chest with her fists. "HOW COULD YOU?! HOW COULD YOU JUST THROW US AWAY BECAUSE OF HER?!" She collapsed on the floor and wept. "So, now… we're just garbage… we won't… won't be impor…" She got up and ran out of the room.

Antonio could hear Gaby and his mother calling after her as she flew to the guest room upstairs. Antonio leaned against the counter and cried. He knew this was going to be hard, but he didn't think it would be this hard. He turned around when Diego took his hand. "Yeah, buddy?"

"You wouldn't really give us away, would you?"

Antonio knelt in front of his youngest son. "No, Diego. I love you and Eva. I always will. This doesn't change that love… it just means; I have to have more love in my life for all my kids… I won't be playing favourites. For the last 7 years, little man, it's just been the three of us… and I'm not just going to change things overnight… Josie, Xavier and Zoë have been living their lives a certain way. It's going to be a big adjustment for everyone."

"Do… do they want to get to know us? Our brother and sister?"

Antonio nodded. "Yeah, they do. They know that this is going to be hard… and it's going to be harder for you and Eva because none of us knew the truth… but Josie told them about us… that we were in Chicago and that hopefully, one day… we'd all be a part of each other's lives."

"If they didn't live here, where were they?" Diego was taking this much better than his older sister.

"They lived in New Orleans for the longest time… that's where they were born."

"And where do they live now."

"They live next door to this house… and Zoë is in a special school for cooking… she and Josie's grandmother will be going back there after the weekend. Xavier goes to Holy Trinity… like Tia Gaby and I did… where Tia Rebecca worked."

"Cool." Diego said. "Don't worry about what Eva said… I think it's that time of the month."

Antonio couldn't do anything but laugh at that comment. "Oh, Diego."


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Eva was in the guest room sobbing. "How could he?"

Gaby knocked on the door. "Eva."

"Go away."

"Eva, I can't do that."

"I don't… I don't want talk."

"Eva, you have to… you can't keep this all bottled up."

"Why?" She wept. "Dad hid this from us… now all of a sudden we're supposed to be one big happy family."

"Eva, we're not asking you to just forget your mom… that's not it… we're just asking you to realize that this is a big change… and we just want your dad to be happy."

"What about us? Our happiness?"

Gaby pushed the door open. "Eva, he wants your happiness too… can we please talk?"

Eva looked up from the pillow she holding. "Why didn't he tell us anything?"

"Because, sweetheart, no one was allowed to tell him. He just found out himself. We wanted to tell him back then."

"You knew?"

Gaby nodded slowly. "I did… when Josie came back… she came here and she wanted to tell your dad… I sent her to your house to talk to him… but he wasn't home that day and your mom… told Josie to not contact your dad ever again."

"Why would she do that?"

"Eva, I think she was scared your dad would leave you guys."

"Well, isn't he?"

"Why would he leave you?" Gaby sat on the bed next to her.

"Because he loves them more." Her breathing was shaky from all the crying.

"No, Eva." Gaby rubbed her back. "He doesn't love any one of his children more than the other. He just wants to be able to get to know them… he wants you to get to know them."

"Well… what about their mom?"

Gaby sighed. "Eva, I get that this is hard… you don't want a new mom… I know that. Josie is a great person, kind and loving." Gaby pushed Eva's hair out her eyes. "She isn't going to try and change you… or make you forget your mom… but she and your dad do want to try and make something work out for everyone."

"But what if she doesn't like me?"

"Eva?" Antonio knocked on the bedroom door. "Eva, can I please come in?"

Eva turned to Gaby. Gaby nodded and whispered. "Just listen… give this a chance… okay? No matter what, you are just as important as they are and you will never, ever lose your family."

Eva nodded. "Yeah, Dad… you can come in."

Antonio slowly opened the door. "Can we talk?"

"Yeah." She whispered.

Gaby kissed Eva's cheek and squeezed her shoulder. "It's going to be okay." She whispered. She got off the bed and went to leave, patting Antonio's shoulder as she left the room.

"Eva, I really am sorry." Antonio sat on the bed next to her. "If I had known, I would've told you… but I didn't know either."

"That's what Tia said." Eva whispered. "She said that… that Mom didn't want you to know about them."

"That's what I've been told too." He took her hand. "Eva, this isn't me trying to push you or Diego away… or getting a new family and forgetting about you guys. This is me, trying to figure out what we're supposed to do next. I want us to be one family… but that's going to take work… time, and patience."

"Do they… want to meet us?" Eva's voice was hoarse.

He nodded. "They do. They've known about you and Diego all this time… their mom, Josie… she told them about us hoping that one day, you could at least meet."

"Are they nice?"

"Yeah. Xavier and Zoë just turned 15… Xavier's into music, baseball and boxing… Zoë is in a special exchange program in France for cooking."

"Wow!" Eva said. "It sounds like Xavier has a lot in common with you."

"He does… but when you see them, you'll see that you guys all look a little bit alike."

"Really?"

"Yep… they all have the same dark hair as you guys… the darker skin… they definitely have the Dominican attitude."

Eva couldn't help but laugh. "You sure you want 4 of us running around with that?"

"Not like I have much of a choice… then there's the baby thing."

"And… it's definitely twins?" Eva's voice was shaky.

"It is… the doctor figures identical, but couldn't tell if they were boys or girls… and no, Eva… I won't love them more than you guys. You are all my children, and I will love you all equally."

"Okay." Eva sighed. "I'll meet them… but… I just don't want to forget my mom either."

"You won't." He pulled her in for a hug. "Josie doesn't want to replace your mom… she just wants us to all have a chance of being one family… no matter how complicated it is."

"So, you're dating her?"

"We're going to start there… we never lost that hope… or that connection we had way back when… but we can't just go back there either. We need to work on it. So for now, they'll still live across the street… and we'll do visits… Josie and I will go out… and we're going to take this one day at a time. Every day will be a new adventure, for all of us."

"So where are they?" Eva pulled back, sniffling.

Antonio reached for a tissue on her nightstand and handed it to her. "They're still at Chicago Med… that day, last week… when I left in a rush?"

"Yeah."

"It was because she'd been attacked at home and Jules told me to go help her. That's when all of this came to light."

"Oh." Eva felt a little bad. She had assumed that he had known and just kept everything a secret.

"She's okay… she's coming home tomorrow night. Now, her… the twins… This is going to take so much getting used to… because they're my kids too… the twins… have to keep up with school. Zoë has to go back to school and Xavier can't miss too much more. I've asked that Josie either come stay at our house, or we stay at hers, just until she's able to take care of herself on her own."

"Okay… so when can we meet them?"

"Well, Diego asked me that too… I said, that it's up to you guys… I know this is a huge adjustment and that it's a shock… and it's emotional and you're angry…"

"I… I just miss Mom."

"I know, Eva. I know." He sighed. "Let's go talk with Diego… and we'll figure this all out… just… can I ask one favour?"

"Sure, Dad."

"Give Josie a chance… she's not your mom, she can never replace your mom… but just give her a chance and maybe she can be someone you can talk to if you're not comfortable talking to me."

"I guess I can do that."

"Good." He got up. "Let's go talk to Diego."

"Uh, Dad… I forgot to ask… what exactly does Josie do for work?"

"Well, like I said, she and I met again while undercover… she's a detective… like me… She's in Vice now, but Sergeant Voight has offered her the chance to go into Intelligence, but she's also a nurse at Med… so she may leave the CPD and do that full time."

"Wow." Eva had to admit she was impressed with this woman. "Um… would you be okay with her being a cop… with new babies and everything?"

"I don't know… but ultimately… I can't tell her what to do." Antonio said. "She's a grown woman who's been a single mom for 15 years."

"You've been a single dad for 7."

"Yeah, but being a mom… is a lot harder than being a dad… I'll be the first one to admit it."

Eva got up and blew her nose. "Okay, we can go and talk about it. I'll be open minded."

Antonio hugged her. "Thank you. That's all I can ask for."


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A/N: I know a bunch of you may be offended that Eva was such a brat about this… but think about it… she's a teenager who knew nothing about this (that and it was my hubby's suggestion). More to come soon! Let me know what you think! The title is from the song, "He Still Calls Me Baby" by the Canadian country group, 'Hey Romeo'. Love, Nicole

ps… An update for "The Rose" is coming soon too. Just know, I started a new job and have some gardening to do… but please comment, tell me what you'd like to see or give your opinion. I love hearing them. Thanks to everyone who already has. It means a lot.