It All Started With The Kidnapping

Chapter 29- A Shattered Reunion

Luna's pov

Before I could say anything, I'm suddenly enveloped in a bone-crushing hug from Elijah. I want to cry happy tears because I've found my family—they were here all along. I hug Elijah back, and he whispers, still holding me tightly, "I will never let you go again." I smile, savoring the moment with my brother. It's going to be strange saying "brother" instead of "friend." After being alone for so long, suddenly having a family feels overwhelming, but it's a good kind of overwhelming. I know it will take time to adjust. Then I hear my mother say, "I should have believed Leo. I'm so happy to have my daughter back." With that, Elijah, Mom, Dad, and I all share a heartfelt group hug, but we quickly pull apart when Dakota blurts out, "I knew it since the day she came into my store!" What? She knew? Before anyone can ask how, Renee turns to her, exclaiming, "You did? And you didn't tell me? How dare you!" We all burst out laughing at that, and it feels so good to have my family by my side. Then Leo—Dad—asks, "How did you know?" and everyone stops, turning to look at her.

She looked at me and said, "It was easy. I'm surprised Theo didn't figure it out—she has purple eyes. There's no other family in the world with purple eyes besides yours. And then, a couple of hours ago, when I saw her white and black hair, I knew for sure that she was your daughter." My dad nodded in agreement, adding, "Her eyes gave it away to me too. That's how I knew she was my daughter." He looked at me with a warm smile, and I felt a surge of love. Then I noticed Theo shift uncomfortably, glancing around at everyone before settling his gaze on me and then on Elijah. He suddenly said, "Wait, that means I like Elijah's sister." We all burst out laughing, even me. But then Elijah, with a completely serious expression, stopped laughing, turned to Theo, and said, "Break her heart, and I will kill you. Even though you're my best friend, I will still do it."

Theo raises his hands in the air as if to surrender and says, "Trust me, nothing in the world will make me stop loving her." I blush at his words; we haven't even said "I love you" to each other yet. He looks at me with a smirk, and I can't help but glance at Elijah, who meets my gaze with a smile before turning back to Theo. "I hope so," Elijah says, "I don't really want to kill you." Theo starts to laugh, and I smile at him as he responds, "I'd love to see you try to kill me." Theo stands up, and Elijah meets him halfway, but before they can prove their points,

my mother steps in, saying, "Boys, calm down. Let's go eat before it gets cold." Theo walks over to me, takes my hand, and we head to the dining room together. The table is overflowing with so much food it could feed an entire neighborhood. We all fill our plates and sit down, and soon, the room is filled with the sound of laughter and conversation, a true family dinner.

But then my dad looks at me and asks the question I've been dreading, the one only Sara knows. He asks, "What happened to you when you were kidnapped all those years?" I knew they would all find out eventually,

so I take a deep breath and begin. "When I was little, they tried to make me believe they were my parents, but I never believed them. At first, they were nice, treating me like I was theirs, but that all changed, and I still don't know why. They started ordering me around—'get this,' 'clean that'—and if I didn't comply, there were punishments. These weren't just simple hits; they were far worse. So, I did everything they asked, but their son, Mason, stayed by my side. When I was younger, I thought he wanted to be friends, so we hung out together. But when I was about 11, a few months before I ran away, I realized he liked me more than just a friend. At first, I was happy, but then things started to go wrong. If I didn't listen to him, he would hurt me, so I obeyed him too. I was so naive back then—I didn't know better. Then, one day, I saw one of the servants, who had always treated me like her own daughter, talking back to Mason. She was the only one who really cared for me. But when she defied him, Mason's father killed her right in front of me. That's the day I ran away, with nothing but the clothes on my back. I fled to a town called Black Hollow, where I tried to pick up the pieces of my life. I went to school, got a job at a café, and that's when I met Ace."