The Villainous Children Retire

Chapter 10

Every year there is a certain time period that is especially hard for the twin's grandfather to endure.

When summer is at its peak and the nights start to get a little colder, Robert Reece is constantly reminded of his wife, who left the world all too soon.

The twins never got to know their grandmother. By the time they were even able to crawl, their grandmother was already gone.

They sometimes wondered if they could have had some memories of her if they had regained the memories of their previous lives sooner.

* * *

The morning came slow in the house; the twins got dressed in their best and darkest attire.

Everyone was moving around quickly; their grandfather was struggling to pack up the last of their supplies in the basket and find a blanket.

Eli was rushing around to find the food everyone had decided on the night before. "Esther!" he shouted as he ran out of the kitchen and into the living room. "Where is the other container of cupcakes at?"

Esther, who was coming down the stairs as he asked that, had other things on her mind. She wondered where her black dress shoes were.

"Esther!" Eli called again with more force.

"I don't know," she answered. When she got to the bottom of the stairs, she looked over at the door where the piles of shoes were. She couldn't see her dress shoes anywhere over there. "Where are my shoes?" she asked.

"Grandpa has them," Eli answered. "Now, where are the cupcakes?"

"I don't know," Esther answered again.

For some reason, the tension was high between them.

Esther eyed Eli's untied tie at his neck. "Come here," she said to him. Despite their bickering, Eli did as he was told. Esther took the tie in her hands and slowly began to tie it. "Why do you never learn how to do it properly?" she asked.

Once she finished fixing it, she slowly lowered her hands away from the tie and looked at her brother. They both got a flash from their past. Irene would often have to tie Ezra's ties for him. Repeating the same words Esther had whenever she did it.

Esther and Eli's expressions dulled as they slowly moved away from each other and went in opposite directions. Eli went down the hall to find the cupcakes, and Esther went to the kitchen to find her grandfather, hopefully with her shoes.

Esther entered just as he was finishing packing their things. "Grandpa, do you have my shoes?"

"Yes," he answered, looking up at her. "They're right here." He turned around and grabbed two little black formal shoes. "I didn't want them to get dirty since we just bought them."

Esther looked at the shoes before thanking him and putting them on. She walked back into the living room, looking for her brother.

"Eli," she called. "Where are you? It's almost time to go."

She turned her head to look in the direction of the television, sofa, and chairs. She saw the container of cupcakes sitting underneath the nightstand.

She wondered how they had ended up there as she went over to get them, but then remembered who the one was that liked to sit on the couch and eat snacks while watching television late at night when their grandfather went to bed.

Esther picked up the container, walked over to the hallway, and said loudly, "The cupcakes are in here!"

Eli soon came up the hallway after hearing that. He immediately looked down at the container in her arms. "Oh," he said quietly. He took the container from Esther and said awkwardly, "Thanks."

They looked at each other for a moment before Eli went back into the kitchen to put the cupcakes with the rest of their things.

While he did that, Esther went over to the mirror by the door and looked at herself.

She examined her appearance carefully.

A black dress, black tights, and black dress shoes. Just like everyone else in the house, she was dressed ready for a funeral, but it wasn't a funeral they were going to; it was to the cemetery to visit a special grave.

Soon, Eli came over beside her, and their grandfather came behind them. He had on a large backpack that was loaded with their supplies.

He put his arms around the twins' shoulders. "You two both look nice," he complimented. He chuckled as he said, "We look ready for a family picture."

They looked at their reflections in the mirror. They all knew that their family only consisted of the ones who were being reflected in it.

The twins eyed each other. They felt a little guilty for being so distant from one another earlier. It was what happened whenever death was mentioned. They would become stiff and awkward around one another, but that didn't affect their grandfather, who was surely more distraught than they were.

"Okay," he called. "Are we ready?"

"Yes," they both answered.

The twins slowly followed behind the old man. They were worried about him carrying all their things and had insisted earlier that he should let them be the ones to carry the stuff, but he refused.

It seemed to be a ritual that he wanted to continue to keep unchanged.

"I wish he'd let us help him," said Eli. "I'm worried he might fall and hurt himself."

"I'm sure he'll be fine," Esther replied. She was surprised that Eli had thought about such things. "He seems to have been doing this for a while now."

Eli didn't respond, which coaxed Esther to add, "But we're going to be watching him closely in case something does happen."

Fortunately, nothing happened, and they all made it to the cemetery without incident.

The twins silently watched their grandfather as he stood near the grave. His mind seemed to be elsewhere as he stood fixated on it.

They hadn't wanted to interrupt him, and soon, their minds went elsewhere as well. While they pondered all the what-ifs even deeper than before. A voice suddenly said loudly, interrupting their silence and thoughts, "Ah, if it isn't Robert!"

Everyone turned to look at the woman. Esther and Robert recognized her instantly; only Eli was left out of the loop.

'Who is that?' Eli asked his sister.

'Cheryl's grandmother,' answered Esther. 'She's Cheryl, too.'

The woman smiled and embraced Robert.

"If it isn't old Robert," she said again.

"Cheryl," he replied. "What brings you here?"

"The same as you," she replied sweetly. "I came to pay my respects to Georgia."

The twins listened as the two adults engaged in a long nostalgic conversation about their grandmother. They knew very little about her. For example, they knew she had gotten sick and passed away as a result, but they didn't know how she was loved and cherished by everyone in the town. She was an active member of the community and always helped her fellow neighbors. Everyone had been very grateful for the woman named Georgia Reece.

Once their conversation came to an end, Cheryl said, "Do you want to go get anything to eat?" She looked down at the twins. "We can go to an ice cream parlor. I'm sure the kids would love some ice cream."

"No," chuckled Robert. "Thank you for the kind offer, but we're okay!"

The woman's expression became tense. "Robert," she said in a scolding voice. "Don't tell me you don't plan on eating anything today of all days? What's worse is you're forcing the kids to go along with it!"

The twin's grandfather attempted to say something in response to the woman, but she wouldn't let him get a word in. She had completely convinced herself that he wasn't planning on eating along with the twins.

Although she meant well, she was starting to become a nuisance.

"Actually," Eli butted in. "We're going on a picnic." He pointed at his grandfather. "Can't you see the bag?"

"Oh," replied the woman surprised. "I see. You're going on a picnic, how sweet. The weather is nice for it."

Of course, they already knew that.

Before the woman could invite herself along, Eli began to urge his grandfather on, along with Esther.

They hiked up a small hill a little ways away from the cemetery and unpacked their bags. After setting everything out, they settled down and began to dine on sandwiches and sweet treats.

* * *

It had been a few months since the twins had come to live with their grandfather. Before that, they were living with their parents.

An accidental pregnancy left their mother unable to follow her dreams, or at least that was the excuse she always used when things didn't go her way. Everything bad that happened to her was because of the twins.

They were given the surname Reece by their mother since she never married their father.

A dead-beat father who abandoned them before they could turn four, and a drunkard mother who used them as an excuse for everything.

She would often leave them alone in the tiny apartment, sometimes for days on end. The twins would have to tiptoe around her often.

They liked it when she didn't acknowledge their existence. At least that way, they wouldn't get hit, screamed at, or punished for something she had done in her drunken state.

In some ways, they were saved by regaining the memories of their previous lives. They didn't know if they would have survived the harsh environment had they been ordinary children.

Esther was doing okay, but Eli wasn't. It was clear the abuse was taking a greater toll on his mental and physical state.

They hadn't been aware that they had any grandparents, especially, ones who knew about their terrible situation.

It had been clear to Robert and Georgia that their daughter wasn't going to be a good mother since the moment she knew she was pregnant. She didn't seem to have the capacity to take care of one child, let alone two.

Georgia wanted to prepare a room for the twins, but their house was small; all there was upstairs was an attic. She had been making the arrangements to convert the attic to a bedroom. It was nearing its final stage when she fell ill. After that, the twins were pushed aside, leaving more time for them to suffer at the hands of their mother.

Things eventually changed for them when Eli stopped talking and eating. Their mother was done with them after that. She made the twins get in her car and drove them a few hours away to their grandfather's house.

After finally deciding to take them in, he finished the final steps of getting their room ready and prepared to meet his grandchildren.

When his daughter arrived with her children, she only said enough to let him know they would be living with him before getting in her car and speeding off.

He couldn't even guess all the things that had happened to them during their time in her care, and there weren't enough words in the world for them to tell him and make him understand all of it.

Over time, Eli had started to improve, but he still wouldn't say much. The longest sentence he had ever spoken to his grandfather was the one he said on the boat during their bizarre fishing trip.

Robert wanted to make it up to his grandchildren for turning a blind eye to their abuse for such a long time, but he didn't think there was anything he could do for them that would make up for what he did.

He knew some part of him would always feel guilt and regret about it, even if the twins were to forgive him.

His world, like theirs, consisted only of himself and them.

* * *

"Hand me a cupcake," Esther said to Eli.

"Okay," Eli replied, handing her one.

They felt guilty about how they acted before. Even if they were particularly sensitive and tense.

They sat and talked and ate their fill; all the while, their grandfather watched them with a small smile on his face.

Eventually, they turned to him with smiles that matched his.

"Grandpa," they both called cheerfully.

Esther picked up the last cupcake. "Here," she said. "Do you want a cupcake?"

He smiled bigger as he answered, "That would be nice." After taking the cupcake, he momentarily looked down at it, recalling how the twins had joined him the night before so he wouldn't have to bake alone.

He knew that if the twins wanted to, he would let them sit outside all day and night.