Epilogue Sky
Three Years Later
Time flies when you’re having fun—wasn’t that how the saying went?
The last few years were almost a blur of sleepless nights and dirty diapers; of colicky cries and baby giggles.
Of a blonde-haired toddler jumping on the bed, and running through the yard with our golden retriever puppy Bucky, and scuffing her knees up, then wailing for Papa Fletcher to “kiss it and make it all better.”
Which, of course, he did. Every time, the sap that he was.
I had to admit, though, Sunshine was very charismatic and charming for a three-year-old. She got that from Adam, for sure.
Since mating with our other halves, River and I had coexisted peacefully with no issues, and our families spent plenty of time together.
Canyon and Sunshine were best-friends-forever, cousins who were practically inseparable.
We scheduled dinner and playdates together every weekend, whether it was at our house or River and Xan’s new place.
Adam and Fletcher had proposed to me shortly after Sunshine was born. I wore two rings, one for each of them, and while we weren’t legally married, we did a hand-tying ceremony and said our vows. That was good enough for me. I wore their marks, and they wore mine.
I was loved. I was accepted. And, for once in my entire life, I felt whole. I loved my family with everything that I was.
Speaking of family, however…
“You ready for this?” River asked, looking over at me, and I frowned. Ready? Not by a long shot.
Two weeks ago, our mother had reached out to us, begging us to hear her out. River had immediately shut it down, ranting and raving about how we didn’t need that bitch in our lives and that we were doing just fine without her.
“But River, she’s our kids’ grandmother. Don’t you think we should at least let her speak her peace? At least put it to rest, once and for all, so we can move on from the past.”
“Fuck that.”
“I’m going with or without you,” I’d said, surprising us both, because I wasn’t normally so ballsy, but I really did just want to lay the past to rest. To say goodbye to the Sky I used to be, so I could embrace my future.
“Fine, fine. I’ll go. But if she starts in on us…”
“We’ll come prepared.”
And we had. We’d gathered evidence behind what we’d gone through—articles and interviews and case studies that were released after the facility had been shut down for good, and the other Alpha-Omega twins were rescued.
We’d agreed to meet our mother today over coffee, simple and public, but neither of us knew what was going to happen when we finally saw her.
I stared at River, my stomach knotting with anxiety, the bravado I’d once felt shrinking to leave me shaking and cold. I was afraid, and I wasn’t even sure what I was afraid of.
We stood there, outside the coffee shop, staring at the door whose bell dinged every time a patron entered or left the shop.
To my surprise, River reached for my hand.
“Hey. No matter what happens today? Everything’ll be okay.
This changes nothing. We’ve survived without her for nearly twelve years, and we’ll continue living the rest of our lives without her.
This was her choice. She made her bed, and now it’s up to her.
Her actions will decide whether we want to keep her in our lives or not. ”
I nodded slowly. “You’re right. We owe her nothing.”
“Exactly. We have each other, and we have our families. That’s the only thing that matters.”
Truer words had never been spoken. I smiled at my brother, the one whose temper used to get the best of him, who now stood amongst a crowded sidewalk with an easy posture and a calm smile.
“Thank you,” I said.
River grinned back, shoulder-checking me lightly. “No problem. Now, what do you say we get this shit over with so we can go home and cuddle our kids?”
I laughed. “That sounds great. I miss my little munchkin already.”
Taking a deep breath, I bolstered my courage, and together we walked through the cafe door to the jingle of bells.