School Lockdown

Chapter 20: New Beginnings

The twins were ten months old now. Casey was just like an older brother to them. He loved them as much as he loved Angel.

I'd almost finished with my second year of College. Natalie and Charlie went to UCLA too so we were still the best of friends. Emily and Sam went to different schools but we still kept in close contact and video chatted once a week. Natalie and Charlie are dating now and they make the cutest couple. Casey and I have been on numerous double dates with them. Emily found a great guy in her class at Uni named Emmett, while Sam was dating a girl from our Senior Year Algebra class, named Melissa. They both went to the same school and found out they'd both had a crush on one another in high school but were both too shy back then to admit it.

Cam had been released from jail a few months back and was on home detention. He seemed to be better but Sam wouldn't speak to him after finding out his involvement with Red. 

A week after the twins were born, I called Jordan. I decided I would hear out his side of the story, though I hadn't forgiven him just yet. Casey went with me as a precaution. 

Apparently Red had threatened him the same way he threatened Casey. Jordan's parent's had both been killed in a house fire when he was twelve and it was only him and his older sister left. She got custody of him and she was all he had. He hadn't been working with Red or Cam prior to this. 

It was only when Cam came in to the gas station where he worked asking if two people had passed matching our descriptions. He said he didn't like the crazed look in Cam's eyes so he said he hadn't seen anyone pass. That was when Cam showed him the gun in his pocket and threatened to kill him if he was lying so he said he'd seen us travelling south a few weeks ago. 

He said he only remembered us, or me in particular was because I did drop my keys on the floor and there was only a name on one of them. But he had no way to contact me to give them back so he just held onto them hoping I would return to look for them. After Cam thought he found the address where we lived he returned telling Jordan he must go and ask for me to make sure it was the correct house. That was when Jordan showed up that day at the safe house. 

As Cam had to stay on the down low for a while until the public weren't on the lookout for him as much and wasn't it a stroke of luck for him when we went to the mall that day and I ran into him. On Red's orders, he wasn't supposed to kill me but keep me hostage until Red escaped from prison. When Cam was caught and put in custody, Red called Jordan. Telling him exactly where his sister was and what she was doing at that moment. He threatened to go in and kill her if Jordan didn't kidnap me. 

That was when I saw him at the gas station that time on the way back to LA. And when his phone rung, it was Red asking if he'd captured me.

After he received news Red was dead, he knew his sister was safe so he handed himself in for what he had done. And that was the whole story.

I'd forgiven him as I knew I couldn't be a hypocrite, Casey and Jordan pretty much had the same situation except Casey was forced to work with Red longer.

After the meeting with Jordan, Casey and I went back to my parent's house where Lauren was already there, playing with the twins. Lauren had taken a special liking to Angela, as she reminded her of Angel.

Angel never left my mind. It was a tradition now to go to the cemetery every Saturday for lunch with Angel. Angela and Angelo would play with their toys around the grass by her grave.

~

After dinner one Sunday night at my parent's house with Lauren and Casey also, Mum handed me a card from Emily. "This arrived yesterday. It's addressed to 'The Andrews' but I think you should open it. I tore open the envelope wondering what on Earth Emily was writing to the whole family for. I read it aloud.