Epilogue
Six months later:
“I’ve got news,” Enrique said, walking into his brother’s office unannounced.
“Well, hello to you too,” Fernando quipped, looking up from the papers he was reading on his desk. “Should I call for Sophie, or is this for my ears only?”
“No, Soph should know,” Enrique answered, getting comfortable in the armchair across from his brother’s desk.
No sooner had he said this than Sophie entered the room. “I heard my name. Oh, hello, Enrique. What brings you to us from the other side of the country? Decide to give some of our beaches a try?” she teased, walking around the desk to perch on Fernando’s lap.
Laying a sealed manilla envelope on Fernando’s desk, he said, “Nope. I had some frequent flyer miles to burn and thought I should deliver this news in person. Sophie asked me to investigate your biological mother last summer. I put a team on it, not that it wasn’t important, but… last year was kind of crazy, if you’ll recall. We finally found a lead, and after months of tugging on loose threads, we found one that turned out to be something useful. Do you want to read the report or for me to summarize the findings?”
“The summary is good,” Fernando said, his voice reflecting his emotion. The death grip on Sophie’s hand told her how much this information meant to him.
“We found her. I went out and collected her DNA sample myself. It’s a definitive match. She has been married twice and now has eight children, most of whom are grown or at least teenagers. There’s a handful of grandkids now, too. She lives a migrant life following the crops. Her brother runs the crew, and they are doing as well as can be expected with the way the economy is treating farmers. It turns out she was sexually assaulted on her way home from school by a gangbanger completing his initiation. She had just turned thirteen when she had you. She had no idea what was happening to her body, and one day, she went into labor and stayed home from school as a result of the pain. She delivered you that night, waking her brother with her screams. He didn’t know what to do, so after cleaning her up and making her as comfortable as possible, he dropped you off at the firehouse down the road, where Colin McKenzie eventually found you. The sweatshirt with Santos on the back and the bracelet with Fernando were all his. His sister wanted to name you Fernando after him as they are very close, so he placed that in your wrapping. He never graduated, so that is why we couldn’t find anything in yearbooks. He was afraid his very strict catholic parents would disown his baby sister for having a child out of wedlock, and she would wind up on the streets, so they never told anyone. The only way they managed to keep it a secret was because both of their parents worked the night shift and weren’t home. They never looked for you because they didn’t have the knowledge or the means to do so. I told them you were alive and doing well, and they both cried. His cell number is in the file if you decide you want to reach out at some point. I have one request: if you decide to make that call or visit them, let’s talk about logistics first. The family has grown a lot over the past year. And even though your danger is minimal right now, Julio’s is not. Until this situation with Maria is cleared up, we all need to be extra vigilant. I have a meeting but will be in town for a few days. Talk all this over, and then call me if you want to have dinner.”
Sophie stood, and Fernando walked around the desk to embrace his brother. “Thank you for this. You know how much knowing my story means to me.”
“I know. Love you, man,” Enrique said, hugging him tight before walking out as quickly as he came.
“I’ll clear your afternoon. Let’s just go home so you can process this,” Sophie suggested.
“That is probably a good idea. This changes everything while changing nothing. I have no idea what to do with this. My head is spinning,” Fernando admitted, running his hand through his hair.
Wrapping her arms around his waist, she offered as much comfort and support as she could. “I know. It’s a lot. Whatever you decide to do, know that I’m all in. You don’t have to make any decisions right now or in the immediate future.” Reaching up to cup his face, Sophie gazed into his dark brown eyes. “I have learned not to ask why when God’s plan doesn’t make sense to me. What I know at this moment is that there was a terrible event, and a wonderful life was brought out of that darkness. Your life mattered from the moment of conception. Your uncle Fernando didn’t throw you in the trash or leave you to die in an alley somewhere. He took you to the only place he knew, a Safe Place, and God used a young firefighter named Colin McKenzie to save you and, later, your brothers. So many wonderful and amazing things have happened in your life. ”
Fernando smiled, feeling a wave of gratitude wash over him. “You’re right, Soph. No matter how I got here, I have a life full of love and family. And now, we have the chance to add another chapter to that story. I don’t know when or how I’ll reach out to them, but knowing where I come from and having the option to connect is a gift. Thank you for encouraging this search.”
Sophie smiled back at him, “We’ll figure it out together, one step at a time. For now, let’s go home, enjoy some time with our family, and take things as they come.”
As they walked out of the office, hand in hand, Fernando felt a sense of peace. The journey to discover his past had been long and winding, but now he could face the future with a fuller understanding of his roots and a heart full of love and gratitude.
He was truly blessed. With Sophie by his side, he knew he could handle anything life threw at him. In the midst of the chaos and uncertainty that had once clouded their lives and blurred their future, they had found something extraordinary—they had found true love in the clouds.
The End.