Page 72 of Captive Mafia Wife

“What is it?” I ask.

“Nothing.” He leaves me with a kiss on my cheek. “A work call.”

I’m so focused on capturing images of Pearl with my digital camera I don’t notice how long he’s gone. She’s such a wee ham for the camera I barely notice when he returns. Until he says, “Freya. I need to speak with you.”

“Okay.” Leaving Pearl with Morven, I follow him to the edge of the room.

“I don’t know any other way to say this.” He puts a hand on the pole he stands next to as if he needs something to lean on for support.

My heart drops to my sparkly wedding shoes. I should have known by how long he was gone that the call would be bad news. “What?”

Finally, he drags his gaze up to meet mine. The look in his eyes makes my stomach drop to my heart-filled shoes. “I’ve just gotten a call from Glasgow police. The mother has come forward. And her DNA is a match to Pearl’s.”

Chapter Twenty

Fredrick

I’ve never beenprouder of my wife’s strength of spirit than I am when she hands that precious little girl to her mother.

Pearl’s grandmother, Cass Owens, works part-time as a secretary at a police borough outside Glasgow. Word of our search reached her over time. Two years ago, her daughter, Leah, who was only nineteen at the time, briefly dated someone much older than her.

A man named Ross Macdonald.

Cass and her husband Joe never took to Ross, even before they found out about his criminal past. During that short time, Leah got pregnant by him.

When the baby was born, Ross demanded custody of the girl. He threatened Leah. Already feeling unsure of herability to be a mother at such a young age, not to mention becoming a financial burden on her parents, Leah relented.

Her mother, Cass, says that Leah instantly regretted caving to Ross. She cried a lot. She tried to focus on school. And she never stopped pining for her daughter.

A dark-haired baby she had named Ophelia.

Pearl—now we know her name is Ophelia— had grown so close to Freya that she didn’t want to go to her mother, Leah. Freya offers the child and mother soothing words. “Don’t worry, she’ll warm up. She loves everyone.”

Leah’s young eyes fill with joy and uncertainty as Freya approaches her with Ophelia.

Leah’s hands tremble as she reaches to take Ophelia. “I only held her once. At the hospital. She has no idea who I am.” Gently, she takes the baby from Freya’s arms, her smile beaming, nerves dissolving as she holds her. “Ophelia. Hello. I’m your mam.”

Ophelia looks from Leah over to Freya, reaching for her with her little words: “Fre-da. Fre-da.”

“It’s okay, clever girl.” Freya smiles, gesturing to Leah. “This is your mama. Can you say mama?” Her wide blue eyes look from one woman to the other, trying to make sense of this moment.

“Here.” Freya slips off the three-strand necklace of pearls she’s worn daily since the little girl came into our lives, lovingly placing it around Leah’s neck. “Take this. Pearl—I mean, Ophelia…she loves it.”

Ophelia takes the familiar beadsbetween her fingers, relaxing in her mother’s arms, and the two quietly study one another’s faces.

Leah and her parents spend the day with us, learning Ophelia’s routines and likes and dislikes. At one point, Cass looks at Freya and me, saying, “I’d do anything for Leah, and I’ll do the same for Ophelia, too.” Which makes Freya tear up when Freya’s goal is not to cry today.

When the day ends, Freya, a Burnes through and through, can say goodbye without a tear. Me, on the other hand? I am wiping my eyes right to left, pinching the end of my nose, saying, “I must be having allergies.”

When the door closes, Freya turns to me, crumpling into my arms. I hold her tightly for a long time, not speaking, only offering comfort. Finally, I say, “I know you’re not alright but are you…okay?”

She gazes up at me, a sweet smile on her face. She’s striking, sending a pang through my heart. She says, “Whit's fur ye'll no go by ye.”

“Meaning?” I ask.

“She belongs with her mam and her kin.” Freya shakes her head. “We were only meant to be a stop-by on her way.”

Feeling a welling in my chest, I pinch my nose again. “I—I’m glad we could give her a safe place to stay.”

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