Chapter 11- Mac's Support

Molly rocked a wailing Scarlett in her arms. TJ couldn't get out of his shift that evening and it seemed Molly couldn't get Scarlett to calm down.

"It's okay, sweetie. I know you've had it rough, but I hope you'll get used to us."

Molly carried her across the living room when there was a knock on the door.

"Oh, Mom, thank goodness," Molly said. "I've tried everything, but I can't get her to sleep."

Alexis smiled and rubbed the baby's back. "This must be Scarlett. She's beautiful. What have you tried so far?"

"I've rocked her, sang to her, fed her."

"How's her diaper?"

"I changed her too," Molly said.

"Sometimes a bath before bed helps. Water makes them sleepy."

"Okay, I could try that. But I never bathed Danny or Scout. How do you do it when they're this small?"

"Well, we should by her an actual baby bath and soap and shampoo, but for tonight we can wash her in the sink with just water."

"Okay, can you try holding her?" Molly asked.

"I'd love to." Alexis took Scarlett in her arms and she stopped crying within seconds.

Molly gaped at her. "How did you do that?"

"Sometimes they pick up on our emotions. She might sense that you're nervous."

Molly sighed. "How did you know that I'm nervous?"

"Every new mother is nervous. It's perfectly normal."

"But shouldn't a mother be able to calm her baby?" Molly asked. "What if it's not just my emotions but she's not wanting me?"

Alexis shook her head. "She will adore you, Mol. She's very lucky to have you."

GHGHGH

"Hi Maxie," Felicia said nervously into the phone.

"Hi Mom."

"Listen, I'm sorry I didn't return your phone calls the past two days. I've just been very pre-occupied with something."

"It's okay. I guess I overreacted. It just took me by surprise and this weird thing… whatever it is with Esme Prince. It was just a weird experience in the woods today. But we have reason to celebrate. Cody is Mac's son! I kind of feel like I have a sibling again. Not that anyone could ever replace Georgie…."

"No, of course not. No one can replace Georgie, ever. But we can always make room in our hearts to expand our family. And I say the more siblings the better."

"I agree. I think we should do a dinner Friday night. You, me, Mac, and Cody. Welcome Cody to the family."

"That would be lovely," Felicia said. "But Maxie, I do want to talk to you before that about something very important. But I don't want to do it over the phone. Can I come by tomorrow while the kids are at school?"

There was a pause. "It sounds serious."

"It is, but I think it's a good thing."

"Okay, you can come by in the morning. I don't have to go to the office until the afternoon."

Felicia smiled. "The morning sounds great. I love you, Maxie."

"I love you too, Mom."

Felicia tucked her phone away and leaned back on the couch. Maybe Maxie would be okay with it after all since she's embracing Cody so well.

A few minutes later, Mac walked in. "Hi darling."

Felicia got up and kissed him. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, just a stressful day. What about you? You look exhausted."

She nodded. "I was up all night."

"I was surprised when you said you'd be working last night."

"I want to talk to you about that," she said, leading him to the couch. "But before that, why was your day stressful?"

He sat beside her and sighed. "Dante was assigned to an incident in the woods, while I had to investigate an escape from Pentonville."

"Oh? I hope it wasn't anyone dangerous."

"Very dangerous. It was Heather Webber."

Her mouth dropped slightly and her face paled.

"When I got back to the PCPD, Dante and I discussed it and we think these two incidents could be connected," he continued. "I mean, look at Heather's history. She's always been obsessed with being a mother and not in a good way. She thought Danny Morgan was her son, so why wouldn't she kidnap a random baby? And then there's Esme Prince, her actual daughter. Of course, one of her first contacts out of prison would be her. But the only thing is—"

Felicia gritted her teeth. "Esme is NOT her daughter."

Mac scrunched his face. "What?"

"Do Esme and Ace have enough protection?" Felicia asked. "I know Esme has a guard at the hospital since she was wrongly arrested."

"How did you know about that? She doesn't anymore. Dante concluded she wasn't responsible—"

"Wh-what? Heather's on the loose and Esme doesn't have any protection?"

Mac raised an eyebrow but continued. "Our men are searching for Heather. But we don't know for sure if she abducted Esme and the baby. Dante said Esme's answers were confusing and all over the place. And she wouldn't say who took her. It could be that she doesn't know since she was drugged, but Dante said she seemed scared. We think she could be covering for—"

"Of course, she's scared. She thinks this lunatic is her mother. Who else does she have? Kevin and Laura are good to her, but they're connected to Cameron and Spencer. How would anyone react if they believed they have no family other than psychopaths. The poor girl probably doesn't know up from down and doesn't know who to trust."

Mac looked at her closely. "Felicia? What's going on? Why are you so passionate about this?"

Felicia took a deep breath. "That's what I need to talk to you about. You're not the only one with a long-lost child. Mac… Esme Prince is my daughter."

Mac stared at her. "What?"

"I just found out yesterday." Felicia started crying. "But I met her two years ago and I didn't even recognize her."

Mac wrapped his arm around her. "I didn't know you had another child."

"I'm so sorry I didn't tell you, Mac. I've just felt so ashamed."

"Ashamed of what? Esme?"

"What? No. Never. I loved my baby. I'm ashamed that I ruined our family and I couldn't protect Frankie."

"Maxie, Georgie, and Frankie," Mac said. "That makes sense."

"I though it had a nice ring to it."

"But wait… how old is Esme?"

"Twenty."

"You left twenty years ago."

"I was trying to protect her. I wanted to protect all of you. I thought the girls would be safer with you and that if I took Frankie to Texas where he couldn't find us. But the plan was only short-term until he was caught again. I wanted more than anything for us to return to you and the girls."

"Until who was caught?" Mac asked.

Felicia swallowed hard. "Ryan. He escaped from the DVX and he… he ra ped me."

Mac balled his hand into a fist. "That monster has done enough to this family. Felicia, I'm so sorry." He held her close. "So, Esme is your daughter with Ryan?"

"Biologically only. That man does not deserve to be anyone's father. But no wonder Esme is so troubled. She found him before she found me. Although I should've found her sooner. Remember when he tried to get into my head and twist it? Now imagine a young girl who only wants her father to love her. How vulnerable she must've been."

"Well, we don't know what Esme was like before Ryan," Mac said. "In fact, we don't know her much at all."

"And then there's Heather," Felicia added. "She thinks Ryan Chamberlain and Heather Webber are her parents. That's a sick combination. No wonder she's scared and confused. She needs to know the truth." She sighed. "But I understand Kevin's perspective. I can't be hasty either and I need to look at Esme's timeline, not mine. Do what's best for her. Something I'm trying to figure out. But Kevin's helping me."

"Kevin knows?"

Felicia nodded. "I'm sorry I went to him before you. But he's Esme's uncle and knows her more than us."

"It's okay, I'm glad you had him to confide in. It makes sense you would talk to him about it. So, what happened when you took her to Texas?"

"We stayed with Grandmother," Felicia said. "I raised Frankie until she was 9 months old. But one day when I went out, I returned to find Grandmother knocked out and Frankie was gone."

"Do you think Ryan took her?" Ryan asked.

"I still don't know to this day. But when Ryan was caught again, we couldn't find a trace of Frankie."

"We?"

Felicia sighed. "I went to Frisco for help."

Mac rubbed his chin and stared at the ceiling. "Frisco…."

"I should've gone to you. But I thought if I involved you and the girls that you would be targeted. I had almost given up the search many times and kept coming home, but then Frisco kept getting leads. But I've hurt all of you. You, Maxie, Georgie, and Frankie."

He turned to her. "What? Felicia, none of this was your fault. I do wish you came to me right away, but I understand why you didn't. I can't imagine how scared and conflicted you must've been. Not to mention the trauma Ryan put you through. If anything, this is my fault."

She gaped at him. "How is any of this your fault?"

"I knew something was up when you abruptly left the girls with me," Mac said. "And you were acting strange. Yes, the girls were older and while we both made mistakes in our first marriage, you were always devoted to Maxie and Georgie. Sure, they were teenagers, but it wasn't like you to leave them. But I didn't question you on it. I think I was still a bit resentful about Luke, but I never stopped loving you. I should've fought for you and maybe you would've felt you could come to me."

"Mac, you took care of Maxie and Georgie when I couldn't. I will forever be grateful for that."

"Felicia, I'm sorry you've had to deal with this all these years. I have to admit, I'm a bit hesitant about Esme because of her past. But you've been very supportive with Cody, so I'll give her a chance and support you in any way that I can."

She smiled and hugged him. "Thank you, Mac. For starters, can you ensure that Esme and Ace have protection until Heather is caught?"

He nodded. "Of course. Does Maxie know yet?"

She shook her head. "I'm going to tell her tomorrow. I'm nervous about it. But I'm hoping since she's so welcoming to Cody that she'll be the same way with Esme."

"Maxie is a tricky one. She might feel differently about this than with Cody. Just be prepared, she might not react well. But I'm sure with time she'll come to understand the decisions you made. And hopefully it'll bring her peace too. She thought you left her just to go on adventures with Frisco, but it's much deeper than that."