Chapter 15

"Hope wanted me to ask you if you need another blanket." Chelsea said coming down the stairs. She looked over at Alicia who was propped up on the couch with several pillows and just as many throws covering her. "But I can see you probably don't." Chelsea laughed at the sight of her sister. "Hope can be a little over protective when it comes to her kids."

"Yeah I think I have enough blankets…Chelsea… is it?" Alicia asked her.

"Yeah. Um, last night when you came running in here, you asked me who I was and how I knew your name." Chelsea wondered if Alicia had lost her memory.

"I was a little out of it from the meds the doctors had me on. You kind of startled me when I came in. I wasn't expecting to see anyone here. I know we met a few days ago I haven't forgotten." Alicia explained.

"Good. I thought maybe you had lost some of your memory from getting knocked unconscious." Chelsea sat on the couch with Alicia.

"I wish I could've lost some memory." Alicia stated.

"Why?" Chelsea looked at her feeling puzzled by her comment. Why would she want to lose her memory?

"There are some things I wish I could forget about for good." Alicia looked away. "So how exactly are we related? We just share the same dad, but not the same mom?" Alicia asked changing the subject.

"Yeah. It's a long story, but I was adopted when I was little. I had these really wonderful parents whom I thought were my biological parents, but it turns out they weren't. They were killed in a car accident several years ago and that's when I found out I was adopted. My real biological mom, Billie, lives in Europe now. And Hope is more than just a step mom to me. I guess you could say we have a lot in common, you know not growing up with our real parents and all." Chelsea grabbed a cookie off a plate on the table in front of her. "These are really good! You want one?"

"No thanks. I'm sorry about your adopted parents. That must've been hard for you to find out they weren't your real parents." Alicia pulled her knees up wrapping her arms around them and rested her chin on top. "We don't exactly have the same upbringing." Alicia looked sadly over at Chelsea. They were brought up entirely different form one another. Chelsea had been raised by loving parents. She could tell by how she talked about them. Alicia had been raised in captivity. Nothing could compare to the hell she went through.

"I didn't mean that, exactly how it came out. I just meant that neither one of us was raised by our real parents." Chelsea could tell she struck a nerve with her comment. "I can't even begin to imagine what you must have gone through being raised by Stefano. Are those the memories you wish you could forget?" She asked her.

"Those and some others." Alicia breathed in deeply. "It wasn't all bad though. I did have my mom with me for four years. But, one day she just wasn't there anymore and Stefano lied to me saying she had drowned in the river. I was pretty shocked when I came to Salem and found her very much alive and living happily with a family that didn't include me." Alicia looked away as several tears fell out of the corner of her eye.

"From what I've been told, Hope had no memory of her past when they first found her. She didn't even remember dad at first, and he's the love of her life. It took years before she had all her memories back." Chelsea reached out her hand to Alicia.

"She didn't get all of them back." Alicia looked angrily at Chelsea. "I'm tired. I don't want to talk anymore." Alicia lay back against the couch closing her eyes in the hopes that Chelsea would leave her alone.

……

Hope was in the stairwell listening to the conversation Alicia was having with Chelsea. She knew Alicia had been bitter with her when they first met, but didn't know why. 'So Stefano told her I had drowned. She must have been so scared thinking I was never coming back to save her.' Hope walked over to the couch and felt Alicia's forehead making sure her fever wasn't returning. "Chels, would you mind giving us a few moments alone?"

"Sure. I have to be going now anyway." Chelsea grabbed her coat and left. "Bye Hope."

"Bye." Hope sat beside Alicia. "Sweetie, I know you're tired, but I'd like to talk to you." Hope played with the ends of Alicia's long chestnut brown hair. "Alicia?"

"I'm awake." Alicia opened her eyes and lifted herself up to a sitting position. "What do you want to talk about?" She asked gazing intently into her mother's eyes.

"I heard what you were saying to Chelsea. Stefano told you I had drowned?" Hope asked her.

Alicia nodded her head yes and looked away from her mother. She didn't want her mother to know how angry she was at her for leaving her when she did. She remembered her mother telling her she would always be there with her. Then she gave her the locket. It was the last time she ever saw her mother.

Hope took Alicia's hand in hers lightly squeezing it. "Alicia. Look at me sweetheart." Hope gently lifted Alicia's chin to face her. "It must have been really hard for you to think I had abandoned you. You must know, that I would've done everything in my power to find you if I had known you were out there." Hope could see how hurt Alicia was. "I know that Stefano brain washed me to think I was another persona; this Princess Gina.""I know. I was there. You came back and we were together for awhile, and then you started to forget things again." Alicia told her.

Hope was confused. "What do you mean, I came back?"

"You were with me at Maison Blanche and you started acting funny to me. You talked differently and you didn't always remember that I was your daughter. Then one day, you were gone. I didn't see you for months. And then you came back. You were the mother that I remembered again. Then Stefano started doing things to you to make you forget things again. There was this one night, the last one we were together, you gave me a locket and told me you would always be in my heart. You said I would always be in your heart; that Stefano could never take that away from us. I remember Vito coming to take me away. I didn't want to leave you. I just wanted my mommy." Alicia started crying. This was much harder than she thought it would be. She reached her hand up to her eyes to try to stop the tears. "That night I had a bad dream and I wanted to be with you. I tried to go find you, but Vito chased after me. He wouldn't let me see you. I was scared! I was just a little kid." Alicia was sobbing openly now.

Hope reached out and pulled her into her embrace gently stroking her hair trying to soothe her. "I remember hearing you crying for me. I tried to go find you, but Vito stopped me and then I saw you…" Hope bit back on her lip the tears welling up in her eyes. "I saw you fall down the stairs. I saw you lying at the bottom of the stairs and you weren't moving. I thought you were dead." Hope was crying just as much as Alicia. "I think I somehow managed to get away from Vito and I ran to you." Hope held onto Alicia tightening her grip on her. "My little girl. I'm so sorry I wasn't there when you woke up." Hope was too choked up to go on. She just continued to hold a sobbing Alicia in her arms. The two of them sat together like that for a long time.

It was the first time Alicia had ever truly let herself feel the pain of losing her mother. She cried until there were no more tears to cry. She had her mother now. Stefano hadn't won after all.

"Baby." Hope pulled back to face Alicia. "Stefano took away my memories. I didn't remember anyone or anything. I had no idea you were even out there. I should've known in my heart something was missing." Hope wiped away the lingering tears from Alicia's face. "I would have moved heaven and earth to find you." She brushed strands of hair out of her face. "I don't know what to say to make it up to you. I, I don't know what to do. Tell me what I can do to make up leaving you there with that…that vile man." Hope couldn't even come up with words to describe what a despicable man Stefano is. She was so angry with him for keeping her from her daughter for all these years.

"All I ever wanted was to find the family you always told me about. And now I have. And you're here and you remember me." A few tears trickled down Alicia's cheek. "I didn't think I'd ever get to see you again. I love you Mom. I never stopped loving you." Alicia wrapped her arms around her mother. She finally felt like she was home.

"I love you too." Hope kissed her daughter's cheek.

……

Hope was doing the dishes when Bo came bustling in the kitchen with Ciara on his back. Ciara was giggling enjoying her piggy back ride. "Giddy up Daddy." Her voice pealed with laughter.

"Whoa!" Bo came to a halt in front of Hope. "Ciara and I would like to know if you'd care to join us for an ice cream sundae?"

Hope laughed at the sight the two of them made. "I'd love to have a sundae with you." She lovingly touched the side of Ciara's face. "I suppose you'd like me to get all the ingredients?" She asked Bo before kissing him.

"Ah that would probably be best seeing how there's a little monkey on my back." He laughed.

"I'm not a monkey." Ciara squealed with glee as Bo started to "gallop" around the kitchen.

"What would you like on your sundae? Chocolate syrup? Nuts? Cherries?" Hope ran off a list of toppings laughing at the two of them jumping around the tight corners.

"I want sprinkles please!" Ciara grinned from ear to ear.

"Sprinkles it is." Hope reached into the cupboard for some bowls and scooped rocky road ice cream into each dish. She added the toppings and set the bowls on the table. The three of them sat down to eat their desert. "Did Roman fill you in on whatever it was he had to tell you?" Hope asked making light conversation.

"The IA moved up Higley's hearing to tomorrow." Bo told her. "I want to question him myself before then."

"Question him?" Hope arched an eyebrow. "Are you sure that's all you'll be doing?"

Bo laughed sarcastically. "Cute. I'll be a good boy scout. As long as he cooperates." Bo added.

"Brady!" Hope nodded her head knowing he planned to do more than just question Higley. "Just don't do anything stupid."

"Who me?" He smirked at her.

"Daddy?" Ciara climbed out of her chair and onto Bo's lap. "I ate all my ice cream. Can we go play now?"

"I'll clean up here." Hope said. "Go spend some time with Ciara before you have to go back to the office." Hope rose and started clearing away the dishes.

Bo came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. He breathed in the sweet scent of her hair before running kisses along her neck.

"What are you up to, Brady?" She asked him.

"Nothing." He turned her around to face him so he could plant a kiss on her lips. Ciara started giggling at the sight of her parents kissing. Bo chuckled as he reached down to pick the little girl up tossing her high up in the air before catching her in his strong arms. "Come on my little sugar bear. Let's go make a mess for Mommy to clean up." Bo laughed as he ducked away from the dish rag Hope threw at him.

"Would you like to sleep on the sofa tonight?" She jokingly asked. Hope smiled to herself as Bo and their youngest daughter left the room.

……

Bo came from putting Ciara down for a nap. Alicia was sitting up on the couch staring off into space. "Hey Alicia."

"Hi…Dad? Oh, is it okay if I call you that?" Alicia asked her father.

"It's what I am." Bo sat down on the couch next to Alicia. "Look, I know we didn't exactly get off to a good start, but I'd really like it if we started over."

"I'd like that too." Alicia looked up to see if he really meant it. She could see the sincerity in his eyes. They had become closer over the past few days. He didn't seem to look at her judgmentally anymore. She felt at ease with him. She knew he still had a lot of questions for her, but she believed he would listen to her with an open heart. "Are you going to grill me now?" She asked lightheartedly.

"I do have a lot of questions for you. I'm not sure if you're up to answering all of them just yet. Right now, I'd like to learn more about you." Bo sat back on the couch getting comfortable.

"What would you like to know? There really isn't much to tell about me." Alicia eyed him curiously. "I basically spent my entire life locked up in a dungeon."

"You were locked in a dungeon?" Bo sat up straight. "I thought you were at Maison Blanche?" He asked her.

"I was for awhile. I think after Stefano told me mom drowned, he moved me to another one of his homes. I'm not exactly sure where it was. I think we were on an island." She told her father.

"You were on an island?" Alicia nodded yes. "Were you allowed to go outside?" He asked her.

"In the beginning I was allowed to walk around and just be a kid. I pretty much kept to myself. I felt very alone without my mom not being with me anymore. I was really depressed for awhile. Stefano brought in private tutors to teach me. Once I was old enough, he had teachers who taught me kick boxing and other stuff. I wasn't all that interested in it, but he forced me to go along with the lessons." Alicia took a deep breath before continuing. "If I didn't go along with the lessons, he locked me in the dungeon for hours on end. It was cold and damp and there were rats and spiders crawling around in there. I was afraid of them. I hated every second I had to spend there, but I didn't like what he was teaching me either. It didn't feel right."

"What was he teaching you?" Hope asked. She had just entered the living room to find Alicia and Bo deep in conversation. She could see her daughter was struggling to keep her emotions at bay.

Alicia bit at her lip wondering how much she should tell her parents. Would they understand and believe her or would they think she was lying? She decided the best thing to do was tell them the truth; tell them everything. "I was being trained to kill." Alicia glanced at her parents to see if they were shocked by what she said. They didn't seem to be, so she went on. "If I disobeyed Stefano, I was locked in the dungeon. Sometimes he kept me there for weeks on end with little or no food. I went weeks without seeing any sunlight. I was terrified the whole time I was kept in the dungeon. I didn't want to be there, but I didn't want to be taught how to kill either. Sometimes I gave in and acted as though I was going along with what he was teaching me, just so I wouldn't be locked away. He wasn't as mean when I obeyed him. But I always knew what he was teaching me was wrong."

Bo rose from the couch and walked to the front door without saying a word. He grabbed his jacket and opened the door.

Kayla stood there with her arm raised as she was about to knock on the door. "Bo. I was just coming to check on Alicia. How is she?" She asked her little brother.

"See for yourself. She's right there with Hope. I got to run. Take care Kay." He brushed past her and continued to his car before speeding off.

"What was that about?" Kayla asked coming in and shutting the door behind her. "Where is Bo off to in such a hurry?"

"I don't know for sure. He didn't say where he was going. He just got up and left." Hope told her.

"Is everything alright?" She asked looking inquisitively from Hope to Alicia .

"Um everything is fine." Hope told Kayla. "Can I get you anything?"

"No thank you. I just came by to check on my patient here." Kayla placed her hand on Alicia's shoulder.

"Mom? Is dad mad at me?" Alicia asked her mother.

"No. The only person he's angry with right now is Stefano. You did nothing wrong." Hope sat beside Alicia putting her arm around her.

"Alicia, I really think you should be in bed resting. You look a little pale." Kayla told her. "You really aren't well enough to be up and about just yet.""I was bored upstairs." Alicia said without looking up to meet Kayla's eyes. She was feeling overwhelmed with everything. "I didn't want to be alone."

"The best thing you can do for yourself right now is get plenty of rest. I must insist on you going back to bed, or I'll be forced to place you back in the hospital." Kayla helped Alicia stand up and she and Hope walked her back to her room. Alicia obeyed her aunt. She didn't want to be put back in the hospital. She was worried that her father was going after Stefano. She got into bed and lay quietly as Kayla examined her. "You have a slight fever. I want you to get some sleep if you can." Kayla gave Hope detailed instructions and told her to call immediately if there was any change before she left them.

Hope was worried about Alicia. She had been very quiet since Bo left and she looked on the verge of tears. "I'll stay right here with you until you fall asleep." Hope got into bed next to Alicia wrapping her arms around her hugging her close. "Just get some rest and we'll talk more when you're feeling better. I know you could never do the things that Stefano was training you to do." Alicia drifted off to sleep in her mother's embrace.