Chapter 7
579 Words
Aunt Matilda a took her to pay at the counter.
Avril said, “I’ll go find Leo . He’s taking forever.”
Avril headed back to where she’d last seen Leo , but he wasn’t there.
Panic rushed through her.
“Leo?”
She looked around wildly, unable to see him. Her heart pounded. She was about to call a security guard for help when she spotted Leo a short distance away holding a Spider-Man pencil case. He was talking to someone.
“Leo!” Avril said breathlessly, running up to him. Relief washed over her and tears nearly formed in her eyes.
“Thank God. Don’t run off like that. You scared me.”
She grabbed his hand, but he didn’t budge. Leo pointed at the person he’d been talking to. Avril followed his gaze and froze. Standing there was Fred. And he wasn’t alone — his mother was beside him.
Fred’s expression revealed shock at the sight of Avril and the boy. His mother let out an audible gasp.
“Oh my goodness,” his mother whispered to him. “That little boy is the spitting image of you at that age.”
Avril could only stand there speechless.
“Who, Mom?” Leo asked, suddenly turning to Avril.
Avril’s mind spun. It felt like the world paused on that question. The boy was obviously referring to her as Mom, but with that slip of words, he’d basically implied who Fred might be.
Before Avril could speak, another child’s voice cut through the air.
“Mom, I’m done.”
It was her daughter Ria, arriving hand in hand with Aunt Matilda . The second the girl saw Fred, she stopped and blinked.
Fred’s mother gasped again.
“The girl is like the female version of you, Fred.”
She grabbed Fred’s arm excitedly. Avril’s eyes shifted between the twins, his emotions jumbled into confusion and a sudden surge of realization.
Avril felt cornered. She quickly said, “Thank you for noticing. My child was wandering. We’ll be going now.”
She gently pulled Leo away from Fred and walked off, Ria close by, Aunt Matilda bringing up the rear. Avril never looked back.
Fred stood frozen in place, watching them leave.
His mother tugged on his sleeve.
“Son, that woman — she’s the one Alexandra attacked in the mall years ago, isn’t she? I was there. I couldn’t stop Alexandra when she lost control. And those kids… they look so much like you.”
Fred tightened his jaw.
“Did I get her pregnant? Did she hide my kids from me?”
His mother turned to him.
“I’m thinking the same thing.”
Avril’s frustration boiled over.
“Avril, not only did you leave me — you took my children as well,” he muttered under his breath.
His mother’s eyes went wide.
“So she’s the one you love. The one you refused to marry Alexandra for?”
“Yes,” Fred admitted. “We never had a formal label, but I was serious about her. She vanished because she thought I was engaged and that she was just some other woman in my life.”
“What are you waiting for?” his mother pressed. “Go after them. If they’re really your children, we can’t let them slip away.”
Fred’s chest felt tight.
“I’m not only taking back my children,” he said. “I’m taking her back too.”
- Writer
