"Don't worry," Glenn told them. "I know where to find her. We've been here before and she has a favorite spot she likes to hide."

"Can you show us where it is?" Amanda asked.

The boy shook his head. "It's better if I talk to her first. If you invade her space, she'll just run again. Can I...uh..." He gestured to the paperwork in her hand. "Can I borrow that for a second? I think it might help if I can show it to her."

Amanda nodded in agreement as she handed him the court order. "Go get her then." While Glenn took off after his older sister, she reached down to take Ivy's hand and said in sweet, soothing voice, "How would you like to come and live with us forever?"

"Will you be my new mommy?"

"I sure will," Amanda promised. "I know I can't replace your old mommy, but I can be a good mommy to you if you let me."

"Will you read me more stories?"

"Sure, anytime you want, Kiddo." She lightly stroked the girl's hair and planted a kiss on the top of her head. She just hoped that Glenn was able to reach their older sister so they'd all be together.

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Glenn found his sister exactly where he'd expected to, hiding out in the uppermost part of an old wooden jungle gym that looked like a castle's turret. Because it was far away from the rest of the playground equipment, most of the other kids didn't bother with it and the few times they did, Sunny had always chased them off. He carefully climbed up the rickety wooden ladder and joined her. "Hey, Sunny," he greeted her. "You're being a big jerk, you know."

"Well, they were jerks first," she retorted. "I told her we'd get in trouble if she reported those people who hurt Ivy and she didn't listen. Grownups never listen."

"Now, you're just being stupid because you don't know the whole story. You don't know what they just went through so they could keep us."

"Pfftt!" she snorted. "Oh, right. They really tried to keep us. That's why we're right back here."

"But we're not," he argued. "They didn't come here to bring me here. They came here to get you and Ivy and take you home. Look." He showed her the court documents. When she stubbornly turned away from him, he followed and shoved the papers in her face. "Look!" he repeated more forcefully. "The judge signed it so we could all go home with them and have a real family again."

"No way," she responded in surprise.

"Yes, way. They really did what they said they were going to do. They really want to keep us...all of us."

"So, I guess I was kind of a jerk, huh?"

"Not just kind of. You were a huge jerk and they didn't deserve it when they were only trying to help us." He grinned broadly. "And you know what's even better? Those people who hurt Ivy got arrested."

"But...but I saw the cops arrest Amanda," she argued.

"Yeah, but they admitted they were wrong. See? Some grownups can be trusted. I mean, if even the cops can admit they made a mistake."

"I guess," she shrugged.

"Oh, come on, Sunny! Stop being so stubborn. Don't you want to have a real home again instead of places like this? You know, some place you don't have to run away from?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I do. It's just...it just seemed too good to be true, you know? Like maybe they were just being nice for awhile, but just like everyone else does...they'd...I don't know...get tired of us and send us back. They still might, you know."

"Maybe...but maybe not, especially if you stop giving them such a hard time. Whaddya' say? You wanna' give them a chance?"

"I don't know...maybe."

"Well, come on, Sunny, it's not like you really have a choice." He waved the papers in her face. "This is from a judge...all legal and everything. They can make you go if they have to."

"I'll just run away again," she retorted, still unsure that she could fully trust in them.

"If you do, I'll...I'll tell," he threatened. "I know better than anyone all the places you go to hide."

"You wouldn't!"

"Yes, I would if you decide to ruin a good thing for all of us. Why can't you just once believe in someone besides yourself?"

"Because Mom let us down, okay? You weren't there because you were already outside! You didn't see what she did. She got herself killed because she was too busy trying to save Dad to think about us and how much we needed her!"

"Well, maybe she was thinking about us too when she tried to save Dad. Did you ever think of that, huh? Maybe she thought we needed both of them. You don't know what she was thinking."

"Well, you don't either," she responded.

"And we'll never know, but she's gone and so is Dad, but we have a new mom and dad right inside waiting for us to go home with them. And I know it's not the same, but it's the best we've got. Why can't you just be happy about that?"

"Because I'm scared," she finally confessed. "What if we go home with them and they decide down the road that they don't want us after all?" She absently stroked her scarred arm.

"They won't," he assured her.

"You don't know that for sure."

"I believe it and if you had been there to see how hard they fought for us in that courtroom, you'd believe it too. Even Phillip and Jamie did. It was incredible. They wouldna' done that if they didn't really want us." He reached for her hand. "Come on, Sunny. Please? Let's go home."

Finally, she nodded. "Yeah, okay," she relented.

They walked hand in hand through the grounds and when they re-entered the room, Sunny released her brother's hand and apologetically said, "I'm sorry I yelled at you."

Amanda just hugged her tightly in response. "It's okay. It's all going to be okay from now on." She pulled back just long enough to meet the girl's eyes and asked, "Are you ready to come home with us now?"

"Yeah." Sunny nodded. "Let's go home."

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On the drive back, with the four older kids squished together in the backseat and Ivy carefully seat-belted into the front passenger seat with Amanda, a new worry arose. "You know, we can't keep doing this when we have to transport all the kids someplace," Amanda commented. "I think we're going to have to upgrade the Jeep to a minivan and soon.

"Yeah. You're right. I never thought of that," Lee agreed. "And it's for sure, the 'vette isn't big enough." A thought struck him then. "Maybe we should trade it in instead," he suggested.

"No, Lee, you love that car."

"I told you before, Amanda, you don't love a car. This..." He gestured around the car to his family. "This is what you love. Besides, if we trade the 'Vette instead of the Jeep, then we'd still have this one around so we'd have two larger vehicles for those times when the kids have to be different places at the same time. We've already run into that a couple of times with Phillip and Jamie being at different schools this year."

"Or maybe we keep both of them," Amanda offered a compromise. "Then we can just buy a third vehicle. The new house we're buying would have plenty of space for three cars. Plus, Mother could use whichever one we're not when she needs it and Phillip's going to start driving in a couple of years, and then Sunny a year later, so it wouldn't hurt to have a third one around for that too."

"Dibs on the "vette!" Phillip called from the backseat with a grin at Sunny.

Sunny smiled at being included in the conversation about their future plans. Maybe that was a sign that things would work out after all. "No way. Girls are way better drivers than boys," she retorted.

"Over my dead body, Kid," Lee fired back. "Both of you. You pass Driver's Ed and get your license, then maybe we'll talk about it."

They stopped on the way back to pick up pizzas for dinner since it was getting rather late for cooking and then once it was eaten and cleaned up, the task of decorating the tree began.

"Okay, so we never did get all those lights untangled," Lee began and gestured to the boys to help him.

"While they're doing that, you girls can help me make the popcorn garlands."

"Ooh, I know how to do that," Sunny replied excitedly. "We used to do that with our mom."

"Good, then I won't have to show you how. I have the stuff all ready to go. We just need to string them."

"But can Ivy really help? Isn't she too little?"

"Sure, she can help." Amanda smiled brightly. "We may not want her doing the actual stringing because she might poke herself with the needle, but she can help by handing us the popcorn and cranberries."

"Hey, we need some Christmas carols," Jamie piped up and went to tune the radio into a station that was playing them and smiled as the second chorus of "Deck the Halls" was starting. "That's better."

"Hey, Lee, I was thinking..." Amanda began.

"Again?" he quipped. "What's on your mind now?"

"Well, what I was thinking is that with everything that happened today, I never did get to do my shopping and since it's probably better that I do it without the kids anyway, maybe you could do something with the kids while I shop."

"They do have some great places around here for sledding," Lee suggested. "What do you guys think?" When the response was a chorus of cheers from all sides, he laughed. "I guess that's decided then."

"Good."

The merriment continued as the group worked together to decorate the tree and sang along with the songs on the radio. "Okay, we're almost done," Amanda sang. "Last step is putting the topper on and that honor always goes to the youngest." She held up the star adorned with lights.

"Me, me, me!" Ivy cheered.

"I knew there was a downside to all this," Jamie teased.

"Okay, little one," Lee began as he hoisted her in the air. "Let me give you a boost."

Once Ivy was perched on Lee's shoulders, Amanda handed off the tree-topper. "Okay, Ivy, it goes right on the top."

With a little help from Lee, Ivy perched the star atop the tree and he plugged it in to the topmost string of lights and then set Ivy back on her feet.

"Again! Again!" the girl pleaded.

"Oh, no, we only do this once a year," Amanda informed her. "Besides, don't you wanna' see what it looks like all lit up?"

"Yes!" she nodded eagerly.

"Glenn, why don't you do the honors since you were so helpful in untangling the lights?" Truth be told, she wanted to include the orphaned children as much as she could in the festivities to help them feel like part of the family.

"Sure!" Glenn readily agreed.

The whole family 'oohed' and 'ahhed' over the fully-decorated, lighted tree.

Lee slipped his arms around his wife as he watched the children watching the dancing lights. "It's beautiful."

"Yeah, the best tree we've ever had."

"I wasn't talking about the tree," he gestured to the family gathered around the tree. "I meant this...all of this. It's incredible."

Later that night after sending the kids to bed, Lee and Amanda were preparing for bed themselves. "What a day," Lee groaned as he crawled under the covers.

"You're telling me," Amanda agreed as she slid in beside him and cuddled up next to him. "I spent part of it in a jail cell and listening to that horrible woman calling me a liar."

"I'm just glad that all got worked out as easily as it did, not like the last two times you were arrested," he teased.

She rolled her eyes. "Don't remind me. Why am I always the one getting arrested for stuff I didn't do? You're much more reckless than I am."

"Oh, I don't know. I think it was pretty reckless of you to date your brand-new boss," he quipped.

"Really? This again? I told you I wasn't dating him. It was dinner...just dinner."

"Never stopped the gossip hounds at the office from talking about me any time I had dinner with a woman. I could never just go out with a female friend without it coming back to bite me in the ass."

"Well, let's be fair, Lee, you did have four black books at one time," she reminded him.

"Yeah, but that was more about just having people to hang out with and not be alone."

"But without having to risk getting too attached," she added.

"I'm definitely attached now," he reminded her.

"I know you are."

She patted his chest and leaned toward him for a kiss, but they were interrupted by a frightened Ivy running into the room. "Can I sleep in your bed?" she whimpered in a pleading tone.

"Yeah. Come on," Lee patted the bed, remembering just what it felt like to be a scared kid having nightmares and wishing his uncle would have been understanding enough to let him curl up with him when he was scared, but all he'd gotten from his stern guardian was, "boys don't cry."

He let out an "oof" when the girl barreled right into the middle of the bed between them.

"Tell me a story," Ivy demanded.

"Another one?" he questioned. "We just told you one when we put you to bed."

"Welcome to fatherhood," Amanda teased.

"Okay, here goes nothing. So, Scarecrow and Glinda...they finally helped the munchkins find a new home..."