Epilogue:
"Πρόσεχε!" I screamed as I watched in horror as Xander and Sophie got on the cable lift. (Be careful!)
"Relax, vita mia. Xander knows what he's doing. He'll keep Sophie safe." Edward told me as he pulled me back.
"I don't like this, Edward. Xander and Sophie may be sixteen now, but I don't want them getting hurt." I told him as I squeezed his hand.
He chuckled, "What about Giovanni and Zuleyma?" He asked, amused.
I scoffed, "Those are our niece and nephews, that is different. By law of life, I must teach them to be chaotic." I replied flatly.
He gave me a disapproving look, "Oh? Do Kathy and Keith count?" He asks.
I gave him an impatient look as I watched the lift with my eyes slowly disappear. "Okay, so all the women in the HIVE? Their children are, by extent, my nieces and nephews. They all count. My children? That is Alexander, Sophia, Theodore, Nicolas, Natalia, and Vittoria? They do as well, but at a much more controlled pace. Which is why I am going to go check on them now. Keep an eye on Xander and Sophia." I told him.
It had been almost fifteen years since we took down Othonos and King.Their demise brought enemies and allies.
Surprisingly enough, what once was the Nest, joined forces with the men. Thus forming the HIVE. The men usually conduct the business while the women deal with the negotiations, along with scouting business.
The benefit to already having done thus as members of the Nest? We had allies which chose to stay as such, if we promised to keep the High Table from sniffing around. Conducting business worldwide was difficult, but for us? Well, let's just say that it was easier than settling into the life of a normal person.
Well, not completely normal, but you get the idea. Many of the ladies took up hobbies, and some started going to classes to learn new things outside of technology and hacking.
Rose began to study law, eventually graduating and becoming a lawyer in Carmen's husband's law firm. Carmen and Esme opened an interior decorating company, along with Theny, Didy, and Sul.Tia, Mags, and Lottie teamed up with Edward's guy, Jenks, and opened their own private investigation and security company. Peter, Garett, and Jasper joined them later.
While Kate and I teamed up to open a travel agency. It was rather easy to do so when we had pictures of scenic views and whatnot. The rest of the Nest decided to go live a life out of chaos, in different parts of the world. Varying from tropical places to small towns, with little to no contact with the outside world. Last I heard, many of them are happy and willing to help when needed.
Iiana and Stavros constantly visit, along with Tanya and her new boy toy. Things haven't quite mended between us, but I wouldn't shoot her on sight now. In all honesty, I would have preferred to disappear too, and if it wasn't for my kids, I probably would have a long time ago.
But life in the suburbs isn't all that bad, especially when you have a good partner with you.
"Amore? Hey, you doing okay?" Edward suddenly asked me as I rocked Vittoria in my arms, bringing me out of my thoughts.
"Yes, why?" I asked as I looked over at my four month old daughter.
She stared up at me, giving me a sleepy, gummy smile as she rubbed her chunky little hand.
"The famiglia is waiting for your return, amore. What is taking so long?" He asked as he peeked over my shoulder.
"She's teething." I sighed.
"Oh, oh, oh. La mia povera dolce bambina…" He cooed as she turned to look at him. (My poor little girl. )
He immediately pulled her out of my arms and held her to his chest, gently patting her chest and smiling as she whimpered in response. A small smile pulled at my lips as I stared at their interaction. My mind immediately went to how her base came about and how I spent the entirety of her pregnancy. Her seafoam colored eyes had long turned into an intense blue green shade, and the little peach fuzz on her otherwise bald head, turning from blonde to a bright red.
She reminded me so much of Vicky… when I first met her before she grew up and was tainted by the darkness of the world. The same world that extinguished the bright light that she was. I fought for months to keep it together after I found out I was pregnant this last time. I was too affected by everything that we had uncovered shortly after we took down Siobhan and Liam to fully enjoy it this time around. As it turned out, she had been stalking all of us. Planned everything to get us to join the Nest. I never truly forgave her for it, and I am glad she isn't tainting this world anymore.
When Edward found out everything, he tried to help me, but the more he tried, the more I shut down. This continued until Rose found me at the foot of the stairs one day.I don't remember the details of what happened or how I ended up there when I knew I had just taken the kids to school.
But when I woke up, after having undergone an emergency C-section, I was horrified.
The baby was okay, thankfully. She's a fighter. I knew she was. But when I saw her in the plastic box, incubated, I knew immediately what her name was going to be. That's why we chose to name her Vittoria.
"She's asleep now." He whispered to me as he slowly set her down in her crib.
I smiled in relief as he turned back to me."You doing okay? Is your back hurting again?" He asked me, eyeing me in concern.
I shook my head, "I'm okay." I told him.
He sighed and nodded as he tapped on the baby monitor before leading me out of the room.
"Where are the kids?" I asked.
"Maddie and Gio wanted to go to the ice rink. Xander convinced everyone else to go, so I suppose they're all there." He told me.
I nodded as we made our way to the living room, where everyone was gathered.
As we walked in, Alice immediately made her way over to us, a large smile on her face as she made her way towards me.
She was practically glowing as she held the bundle in her arms. I couldn't help but smile as she finally got to where I stood.
"Is this him?" I asked as I peeked at the little bundle in her arms.
She nodded excitedly.
"Aw. He's adorable. What's his name?" I asked.
"Thatcher." She immediately announced.
I smiled in response as she offered him to me, a small coo coming from the blanket.
Alice and Jasper had decided to hold off on having children and travel. They disappeared for a while, until one day she called me crying. She and Jasper had been in an accident, which resulted in Jasper being unable to have children.
Though she was distraught, she threw herself in the rehabilitation of Jasper. Once he was able to walk normally, they began to travel again. Then, one day, I received another call. Alice and Jasper had quietly applied for adoption, and they received a call about a baby boy who had been born in Italy. It was a closed adoption, and they flew over to get him.That happened two weeks ago, and they had both decided to keep the name to themselves until today.
Thatcher is a beautiful baby with cheruby little cheeks, a set of full lips, and a cute button nose. He had jet black hair and sapphire blue eyes, which looked exactly like Alice's.
"He looks just like you." I whispered.
"I know… it's amazing. I never thought I'd want this until I saw and held him." She whispered.
I smiled, "I know what you mean." I told her amused as all the kids walked in.
"We also decided to adopt an older boy. His name is Gregorio. He was abandoned by his parents. Never found them. We met him while we waited to see if Thatcher's adoption was going to work out… Jasper said he felt a connection to him, and I agreed. Greg is twelve." She told me as we turned to see all the kids walk in.
Theo and Nico were walking with the boy and Jasper.
"Looks like he fits in perfectly." I told her amused.
She smiled and nodded in response as Rose walked over with her daughter, Paisley. She, too, had adopted when it was discovered that she couldn't have kids. She and Emmett have adopted three kids so far. Their oldest, Giovanni, has blonde hair and green eyes and is the same again as Xander and Sophie. Madeline, who happens to have dark red hair and striking green eyes, is the same age as Natalie and Nico. And Paisley, who is a year old and looks like Elizabeth's miniature. Whenever we came together, all the men usually banded together to rent out a few cabins in the resort so the kids could be safe when the kids were younger.Now? They decided it was better to buy a few houses within town and build their own private resort.
"So, what do you think?" Alice asked me, causing me to blink.
"I'm sorry, what?" I asked.
"She said that she wants all the ladies to go shopping and leave the men with the kids." Rose supplies as Paisley tries to pull on her earring. "No, Pais." She sternly tells her.
I shook my head immediately. "You think that is a good idea? Need I remind you of the Thanksgiving Fiasco of '09?" I asked her.
She winced. "Okay, but in their defense… they were left unsupervised." She replied defensively.
Alice choked on her laughter.
"Let's not do that." I heard Esme call.
"Do what?" Edward suddenly asked, suddenly appearing with all the men around him, causing us all to jump.
The ladies jumped in the air, gasping in response to their sudden appearance.
"What is going on?" Jasper asked, raising a brow as he slowly made his way towards Alice.
"Oh, we were just wondering what to do…" Rose told them as she bounced Paisley on her hip.
"What were you ladies thinking?" Emmett asked curiously.
We shared a look and shrugged.
"Well, first, we thought about shopping until Bella, here, pointed out the '09 fiasco. then Alice suggested something else… Now we are all debating." Rose informed them.
All the guys winced, yet looked intrigued.
"We could go skiing." Emmett suggested.
I shook my head, "Absolutely not. We can do something here." I told her.
"Movie night for the kids? Jacuzzi night for the adults?" Alice suggested.
I shook my head, "What about the toddlers and babies?" I questioned.
She sighed. "Well, what do you suggest?" She finally asked.
I smirked, "Anyone up for Charades…?" I asked halfheartedly.
We all exchanged looks before nodding.
"Good. We'll play after the kids settle down." I said before giving Thatcher back to Alice and heading to the kitchen to pull out a few bottles of alcohol.
Let the games begin.
We ended up playing a total of three games until the men received a call and had to go attend business, leaving us ladies alone with the kids.
By this time, of course, the older kids had come back in to get some food before crashing in the movie room. The younger kids were already in bed, and we were sitting out on the back porch, drinking hot toddies and other drinks as we stared out at the nice view.
"Do you ever regret it?" Tia asked me quietly.
I blinked, turning to look at her with a sigh. "What?" I asked, confused.
"Walking away from our other lives." She replied.
I immediately shook my head at her in response. "No, I don't. Do you know why?" I asked her.
She jutted her chin, staring at me curiously.
"Because this is where we're meant to be. Happy. Safe. And there's nowhere else I want to be." I replied as I heard the baby monitor beep.
"Sounds like Sparrow's gotten soft." Lottie joked.
I scoffed, giving her a disbelieving look, before I scooped a handful of snow off the railing, forming it into a ball and throwing it at her without hesitation as I stood by the door.
She squeals in surprise as snow drips from her red hair. "You bitch!" She gasped.
"That was well deserved." Mags says, shaking her head.
"It was a joke." Lottie snapped.
"It was uncalled for, Lots." Alice told her, as she moved away.
"You forgot rule number 1." Rose simply says, shrugging.
"I did not." Lottie mumbled.
Alice sighed, "You did. You never challenge the Sparrow unless you are ready to face the consequences. Especially now. After she became the head of the HIVE. She can make you disappear within the blink of an eye." Alice snickered, as she gave me a wide grin.
I rolled my eyes at them, "Let's not go that far. I wouldn't do that… in front of witnesses." I deadpanned before disappearing into that house.
Later that night after I crawled into bed, I heard the door open as I was falling asleep.
"Mi dispiace di aver impiegato così tanto tempo." Edward whispers as he shrugs off this coat. (I'm sorry I took so long.)
"No worries." I mumbled, half asleep.
"Did you ladies have fun?" He asked as he finished pulling his clothes off, and slid into bed in nothing but his boxers.
"Yeah, I almost wrung someone's neck today. But that is miniscule compared to the fun we had." I mumbled, not bothering to open my eyes.
He immediately pulled me to his chest, and kissed bare my shoulder. "Glad you're learning to stay calm, amore." He says amused.
"Yeah, don't jump to conclusions. I ended up starting a snowball fight which ended with Lottie under a pile of snow." I sighed.
"Small victories are still to be celebrated, amore." He responded.
I scoffed as I opened my eyes to give him a dirty look. "You're patronizing me." I stated.
He immediately shook his head, "Never." He replies, teasingly.
I sigh, and shake my head, "You're unbelievable." I scoff as I turn onto my stomach and pull the pillow over my head.
"Oh, come on, amore. It was an accident. And Emmett said he was fine." He says as his hand runs up my back, pulling the pillow away.
"Edward, that is not the point, agApi mou." I sighed, as I looked over at him.
"Then what is it?" He asked as I sat up.
"I threw a knife, and hit his shoulder. You seem to be under the impression that I did it by accident. I heard the comments he was making about me and the girls. That was no accident. Keep a tighter leash on your men, or I will give my girls the signal tomorrow." I told him.
He swallowed, and nodded immediately.
"Good. Now, if you don't mind… I'm going to sleep now." I say, as I pull the pillow towards me, and hug it to my chest as I lay down.
"I'll talk to them as soon as I can. Goodnight, my love." He said as he kissed my shoulder once more.
"Goodnight, handsome." I mumbled, as I felt myself drift off.
So, this was what happiness was like. I think I kind of liked it.
Author's Note:
This marks yet another ending.
I hope you all liked Sparrow and Skip's journey to happiness. I know some of you may be disappointed with this, you may even call it crappy, so I'll say it now. I think they deserved to be happy, and to have some normality.
So, just enjoy it.
Anyways, I hope you all have an amazing Thanksgiving, holidays! Stay safe out there!