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  "I'm sorry. We have strict protocol. You must have a staff member escort you in."

  "You're staff!" Alyssa slammed her hand on the desk, causing the receptionist to jump. She looked at her name tag. "Look, Lynette. I don't know if you have children, but not knowing where your child is, that's the worst feeling in the world. It gets even harder the more time passes. When they're little and run out of your sight at the mall for a minute, sheer terror runs through you. Ever been there? If they hide somewhere, making that terror go for another five minutes, that's hell. I've been there once when my son was little. Can you imagine those five minutes turning into almost half a year? There isn't a word to describe that!"

  Lynette was visibly shaken. "I—I'm really sorry for everything you've been through. I don't have kids, but my niece, one time she ran off when I was taking care of her. I kind of understand what you're saying. I wish I could do something for you."

  "Let me in! Take me to my daughter…please." More tears fell to her cheeks.

  Alyssa felt hands on her shoulders. "Let's go wait with the officers, Lyss."

  "Take me in there," Alyssa begged.

  Lynette shook. "I'm really sorry. I don't have the key card to get in."

  "Damn you people!" Alyssa shook her shoulder to get past Chad and ran to the big, metal door. She banged on it. "I'm coming, baby! I'll be there as soon as I can." Her fists hurt as she pounded, but she didn't care.

  Hands pulled her away. They dragged her back to the waiting area. "Stop! I need to get to Macy." She pushed against Chad, who held her even tighter. "Let go of me."

  Fleshman appeared in front of her. "Mrs. Mercer, you need to get control of yourself now. Do you understand me? We brought you with us because we thought you would be able to help us. If you keep acting like this, we're going to have no choice except to take you into custody."

  She stopped struggling. "You would arrest me?"

  "That's the last thing I want to do after everything you've been through. Your daughter may very well be on the other side of those doors, but we need your cooperation. It will be a lot easier if you stay calm. The big question is: do you want to be with your husband when he identifies the girl as either your daughter or not?"

  "Of course I do."

  "It won't be much longer. You've waited this long. Can you wait another few minutes until someone comes for us?"

  "Fine." Alyssa pushed against Chad, who let go of her. She sat down on a chair near the window and stared out. How dare they think they could arrest her? After everything she'd been through? The two of them, they knew. They had been working closely with her and Chad. They had been in daily contact for a while.

  Chad sat on the floor in front of her, resting his hands on her knees. "I know how you feel, Lyss. Really, I do. I want to scream and break things, but it won't do any good. For the first time since she disappeared, we have real hope—real reason to believe that she's alive and safe. It's killing me that she could be in this very building, but we still can't get to her."

  "This is worse than torture. They have no clue what this is like."

  He shook his head. "We're so close, yet so far. But we have to hold it together—for Macy. She's been through more than we can imagine. If what Fleshman said is true, she been with a kidnapper all this time. Not only that, but she's going to get home and find out that she's going to be an aunt. We're going to have to hold it together, no matter how much we feel like falling apart."

  "I've been doing nothing other than holding myself together for all these long, terrifying months."

  "But this time, we'll have Macy with us. I hope to God that's the case, anyway."

  She nodded. "I'll be strong for her. That's what I've been doing all along."

  Chad grabbed her hands and slid his fingers between hers. They sat in silence for what felt like an eternity. Alyssa looked out the window for a little while, and then she looked back to Chad, who had his chin rested on her lap. Tears shone in his eyes and the pained expression on his face broke her already-crushed heart.

  "Oh, Chad."

  He looked up at her and the tears spilled to his cheeks. She let go of his hand and wiped the tears away. He sat up and stared into her eyes, more tears falling. She leaned forward and kissed his tears. He put his hands on her face and kissed her lips.

  Chad pulled back and stared at her. "Are we going to be okay, Lyss? Will you come back home to me?"

  "Yes."

  "Would you even if Macy wasn't coming home?"

  Alyssa paused. The pain on his face made her heart hurt. "I wouldn't go anywhere else. I need you."

  He pulled her into another kiss. "And I need you. I've never been surer of that than at this moment."

  Someone cleared their throat behind them. "They're ready for us."

  Alyssa turned around to see Detective Fleshman and Officer Anderson standing with a man in a white lab coat. She stood, but her legs wouldn't support her weight. She fell toward the ground, but Chad caught her.

  "Lean against me."

  She put all her weight against him. He kept his arms around her and somehow she managed to walk. "Are we really about to see Macy?" Alyssa whispered.

  "I hope so." Though he held her with strong arms, Alyssa could feel him shaking. He was just as scared as she was.

  Alyssa didn't know what scared her more, finding out that the girl wasn't Macy or hearing about what her daughter had gone through all the time she was missing. Had she been abused? They said the abductor had been trying to replace his daughter. Was there a chance that he had treated her well?

  The large, metal door opened slowly. Alyssa's heart sank as she saw another heavy door. How long would it take to get to Macy? What would she do if the girl wasn't Macy? What would she if the girl was?

  Doors

  Chad's throat closed up as the final metal door shut behind them. He looked at the scene in front of him. It looked like a typical hospital with another reception area and doors with numbers.

  The doctor—what had he said his name was?—stopped and said something to the receptionist. He turned back to them. "I sure hope you will be able to offer some insight. We're still trying to figure out how this happened. Sure, we get kids trying to sneak out, but never in. This is a first."

  "Where is she?" Alyssa asked, her voice strained.

  Chad gave her shoulders a squeeze.

  "They're in Heather's room and they're both sticking to the same story since we discovered the two of them."

  "Lead the way," Fleshman said.

  Chad looked at the doctor's tag. Dr. Jones, that was right. He focused on the door numbers as they walked down the hall. He couldn't bear to think about seeing Macy, or worse, not seeing her. What if neither of those girls were her? Could this be the practical joke of a sick girl who belonged in a mental hospital?

  Dr. Jones stopped in front of a door and used a key to open the door.

  Chad held his breath and exchanged and worried, nervous look with Alyssa. Her skin looked pale. He was sure his was too. Were they about to finally see Macy?

  The doctor held the door open and motioned for them to come in.

  Chad took Alyssa's hand and walked in with her. His heart pounded and felt as though it would jump out of his throat. He looked around the room, and his gaze settled on two girls. They looked exactly the same, and neither had Macy's dark hair, but they both had her beautiful face. He looked back and forth between them.

  The one on the right smiled. "Mom! Dad!" She ran into both of them, wrapping one arm around Chad and the other around Alyssa. She squeezed hard and then started sobbing.

  Chad was in shock and had to force himself to wrap his free arm around her. It was her, it was actually her. He had hugged her so many times, he would know her anywhere. He held her tighter, vaguely aware of Alyssa's sobs over Macy's. She kept saying Macy's name over and over again.

  It didn't feel real. He had believed she was alive somewhere, but now that she was there in his arms, he wasn't sure what was going
on. It was like he was afraid to believe it was real.

  He rested his face on top of her head. "Is it really you, Macy?" he whispered.

  "Daddy, I'm so sorry for everything. I'll never sneak out again. I swear."

  Tears filled his eyes and soaked her hair. "And there's so much I'm going to do differently, baby. So much. I'm sorry for not listening to you and not…." Chad couldn't find his voice. He kissed the top of her head.

  "I hate to break up this reunion, but we need to discuss some matters."

  Chad looked up at the officers and the doctor. "As long as we get to take her home, we can talk about whatever you want."

  Dr. Jones nodded. "Let's take this to my office. There's room for everyone to sit."

  They followed the doctor, neither Chad nor Alyssa letting go of Macy. He watched Alyssa stroke Macy's hair the whole way to the office. The three of them sat on a couch with Macy in the middle. She kept looking back and forth between them.

  "Are you okay?" Chad asked. "What have you been through?"

  "All I wanted was to get back to you guys." She pushed her face into Chad's chest. "I'm so sorry for everything."

  Fresh tears filled Chad's eyes. "You have nothing to be sorry about." He wrapped his arms around her, never wanting to let go. Alyssa leaned her head against Macy's, and Chad wrapped an arm around her too.

  They sat like that for a minute, before the doctor asked for their attention. Chad looked up and around the room.

  Dr. Jones looked at Chad. "So this girl, she's your daughter?"

  "You even have to ask?"

  "Officially, yes."

  "Yes, this is our Macy. I was there when she was born. I would know her anywhere."

  "Have you ever seen Heather before?"

  Chad looked over at the other girl. "No, but she looks so much like Macy. I don't understand."

  Macy sat up. "Chester—her dad—he found me online. He was looking for someone who looked just like Heather and he pretended to be a boy so I would meet with him. He wanted me to replace her since he lost custody of her."

  "He killed my mom," Heather said. "Do you believe me now? He's crazy enough to kidnap someone to replace me. He killed my mom." Tears fell down her face. "She's not in Paris. She's not."

  Dr. Jones frowned. "Your story is more believable now, Heather. We need to look into it, because we've talked with your mom."

  "He found someone to replace me. You think he couldn't have found someone to pretend to be Mom over the phone?"

  "Like I said, we'll look into it. Right now, we need to focus on one thing at a time. Once we get Macy's situation squared away, we'll figure out what's going on with you. Like I told you before, your dad is being questioned right now."

  "I hope they lock him up forever."

  "Me too," Macy said.

  Dr. Jones looked at Macy. "Once you identify him as your kidnapper, he'll be arrested. He should be put away for years for that alone. If it turns out that he also killed his wife, let's hope he'll be sentenced for life."

  Chad looked over at Fleshman and Anderson, who were both furiously taking notes.

  Fleshman looked at Macy. "I know this will be difficult, but we need you to tell us everything."

  "Wh…where do you want me to start?"

  "From the first time you came into contact with Chester Woodran."

  Macy shook and Chad pulled her close. "Mom and I are here, baby. I promise you won't get into trouble for a single thing. Tell them everything."

  Chad listened in disbelief as Macy told her entire story, starting from the boy who started chatting with her on social media, showing her attention that no one else had. His heart broke into more pieces than before as she described everything the madman had done to his daughter.

  Finally, he couldn't take it anymore. He glared at Fleshman. "Are you going to arrest that dirt bag yet or what?"

  "Chad, let her finish the story. We can't proceed until we've taken her full statement."

  "Go on, honey." Chad kissed the top of her head again.

  Macy continued her story, telling the story of being taken to a cult. Chad wanted to interrupt and ask questions, but he knew there would time for that later. He pulled her closer. How would he ever let her go again?

  "Wait," Fleshman said. "A cult? Where's it located?"

  "Yeah," Macy said. "It's in the mountains. I don't really know where."

  "That's fine. We'll talk to you more about that later. Maybe the body and the kidnapping are related."

  Macy stared at the officers. "There are other kidnapped kids there in the community. You guys have to get there and take them home, too." She went on to explain what life was like there and then she told the story of her escape attempt. Her eyes filled with tears as she talked about Luke and Dorcas. When she told of Chester shooting Dorcas, Macy dissolved into tears, pushing her face into Chad's chest once again. He held her tight as she soaked his shirt with tears.

  Heather stood up. "See? Dad killed a girl—just a kid! He didn't even think twice about it. He just did it. Why wouldn't he kill Mom? She probably wanted a divorce and he did away with her. He killed her. Will you listen to me now? Please!"

  Dr. Jones nodded. "Sit down, Heather. I'm sure that your dad is going to be locked away for a long, long time. We need to focus on one thing at a time."

  "Make sure Mom's death is on his list of offenses." Heather sat, crossing her arms.

  "Macy, can you tell us the rest of the story? From what you've described, that was around the new year. What happened since then?"

  Sniffing, Macy sat up. She looked into Chad's eyes. The look on her face broke Chad. New tears fell from his own eyes.

  "Daddy, it's my fault that Dorcas died. It's all my fault."

  "No. No, baby. It's not your fault. Chester's the one who pulled the trigger."

  "But if I hadn't snuck out of the house, we never would have gone there. If I hadn't insisted on getting out of the community that night, she'd still be alive. It's my fault." She fell against him again.

  Alyssa leaned over, rubbing Macy's back. "You did nothing wrong, honey. You were just trying to get away."

  Macy nodded, her face still against Chad.

  Officer Anderson came over to them and put his face near Macy's. "Macy, dear, listen to me. I'm a police officer and from everything you've told me, you have nothing to feel guilty about. All of this is on Chester. He's the one who lured you, kidnapped you, took you there, and shot the girl. He did it all. You did the right thing by trying to get away."

  Macy sat up. "But it's still my fault."

  Anderson shook his head. "No, honey, it's not."

  Dr. Jones looked at Chad. "You're going to have to get her into counseling when you get back home. She can't walk around with that false guilt."

  "We know that," Alyssa said. She continued to run her hands through Macy's hair. "Can you tell us the rest of the story, baby? What happened next?"

  "But first you guys have to find Luke. He's missing and he probably needs help. I'm sure of it. I hope he didn't go back to the community. They might have…." Macy's eyes filled with tears again.

  Rage ran through Chad as Macy told them about Chester breaking her leg. If the police didn't arrest Chester and put him on death row, Chad would find a way to kill the bastard with his own two hands.

  He held her even tighter as he listened to her tell the rest of the story of how she was forced to cook and clean for the psychos. It was all he could to stay silent. Macy held it together remarkably well. He didn't know how she did it.

  When she was done talking, she collapsed against him. He kissed the top of her head again.

  Alyssa spoke up. "Are you guys going to arrest that man now? You've just made Macy relive every horrible moment of her ordeal."

  "Her testimony is going to make a huge difference. We need to hear what Heather has to say about him too," Fleshman said.

  "You don't have enough on him from what Macy said? He kidnapped her and did all those awful things to her a
gainst her will. He nearly killed her, too!"

  "We have plenty, but we need to know the whole story. Heather's been trying to tell her side for a long time. We need to give her some floor space as well."

  Dr. Jones squirmed in his seat, looking uncomfortable.

  Chad looked over at Heather, still unable to get over how much she looked like his daughter. She looked like she had been through a lot, too, forced to stay in this hospital for even longer than Macy had been missing.

  "What about everything she's been through?" Chad asked. "She's been locked up in here with no one listening to her. That's not right." He glared at the doctor. "Who was looking out for her? Seems to me the hospital should have to answer for that. Maybe if they would have listened, Macy could have been spared what she went through—or at least some of it."

  Anderson nodded. "It'll be investigated thoroughly, I assure you." He turned to Heather. "Tell us your story, please."

  Light

  Macy walked outside with her parents, blinking fast in the bright light. She still couldn't believe that it was really happening. She was free. And Chester had been arrested.

  One of the police men who had been taking notes asked her dad if he wanted them to drive their car home.

  "No. I can do it. Thanks for everything, you guys." He shook both of their hands. "When everyone else wanted us to give up, you kept helping us. We can't possibly thank you enough."

  Macy looked back inside the building where Heather stood with some other officers. They were supposed to take her to the farm to stay with Chester's parents. What would they think when they found out Macy hadn't been Heather?

  Heather caught Macy's stare and gave a little wave. Macy waved back. They were both going to be okay. Macy more than her, since she was going back home to her parents and brother.