Chapter 31: Blessing in Disguise

Our children waited patiently at home for our arrival.

The plane ride home was nerve racking to say the least. As I tried my best to stay calm, Agnes was visibly worried. Our thoughts were cluttered with unsettling possibilities.

In attempt to calm Agnes down, I suggested she read a book. That seemed to have done the trick for the remainder of trip.

Of course we couldn’t rush the plane to go any faster, but once our speed was in our control, we got home as fast as humanly possible.

We were relieved to see the children safe and sound waiting for us in the living area.

“Mommy!!” Seymour shouted, throwing his arms around Agnes.

“We got home as soon as we could, is everyone okay?” Agnes asked.

“NO!” whined Gwendy.

“We’re fine, Mom!” assured Persephone.

I rushed over to give the kids kisses and hugs. I’ve never been more happy to see them safe!

“So what on earth happened?” I asked, holding Gwendolyn.

“Nothing, nothing. A lady just visited, and said she was a social worker, and that she needed to speak to our parents, we told them that we were in charge, and the neighbors were keeping an eye on us, and that you were on vacation. She said she’ll be back later this afternoon, around 4 or 5.” Persy explained.

“So did you bring us back anything?” She added.

Agnes listened intently to the girls explaining everything the social worker said, she seemed to still be very shook up.

“See baby? There’s absolutely nothing to worry ourselves about, we did nothing wrong and the kids are fine. If we did something bad, they would not be here right now. Let’s just wait to see what she wants before we panic okay? I said, calming her down.

I think what I said eased Aggy’s trouble a little bit, at least. She took a deep breath and calmly told the children to play in their rooms until the social worker left.

Then the doorbell rang.

Our hearts sank as Agnes answered the door.

“Hello. Mr. and Mrs. Darling, right? My name is Gina Capps, with child protective services. I hope this is an okay time for you, I’d like to speak with you.” The woman said.

“Of course come on in!” Agnes said.

Gina sat down at the dining table with the both of us and set a folder down in front of us.

“I need to speak to you about a very, very strange incident that occurred nearly a year ago. I am not allowed to go into detail, for privacy reasons, but I’m hoping you could help, as you have been linked to the incident.” She began.

Gina opened the folder, and the first thing we saw was a photo of a  little girl.

“Her name is Kirsten Remington. She was found in the yard of a couple in Riverview,by Riverview authorities,  after some bizarre events took place that night.”

I could feel my heart beating out of my chest, and for the first time in my life since I was resurrected, wished I could be a ghost at that moment.

“I’m sorry, Ms. Capps. But how exactly does this pertain to us?” Agnes questioned, nervously.

“Well you see, When we first brought Kirsten in to question her, her memory was almost completely erased.” Gina began.

That’s because we added an elixir to the brew to erase any memory she had of us resurrecting her, which the  Crumplebottom sisters taught me.

“Well, the only thing she could remember was the name Helen Hall, is that name familiar to you?” Gina asked.

We had to think fast about our answer.

“Yes. Helen was a dear family friend we knew since before our children were born. Unfortunately, she is no longer with us.” I said.

Gina nodded and pulled out a piece of paper from the folder.

The Child Kirsten will go to the care of Erik and Agnes Darling
-Helen Hall

“After some research of Moonlight Falls records, here’s what we found. This is a copy of Helen’s will. Here it clearly states that whoever Helen is, she somehow had something to do with the events that occurred at the Remington/Jones estate. And that you two are who she intended Kirsten to go to in the event of her passing away.” Gina explained.

“However, at first, we could not legally give her to you both, because Helen had no rights whatsoever to her. We still don’t even know how she was connected in any way. But the problem is, Kirsten has been in countless foster homes, but nobody is willing to keep her after learning about her horrific experiences, and her memory loss is a problem too. You were her last resort. If you both would consider taking her in, the court process could be fairly easy, since it’s been a year with no luck in finding her a home.” Gina continued, sounding somewhat desperate.

I couldn’t believe that Helen considered us godparents if anything were to happen to her, that was definitely not what we signed up for when resurrecting her.

“I am truly sorry that she has had trouble finding a loving home, but we have 3 kids of our own, and I’m afraid making room for another one is just not an option right now. I’m very sorry Ms. Capps, and I do hope for the best for Kirsten.” Agnes said.

I think I was still in shock that bringing her back actually worked!

“Fair enough, Mrs. Darling. I’m sorry for your time.” Gina said, standing up.

“Wait!” Agnes said, stopping Gina in her tracks.

“Yes?” asked Gina.

“I am not sure how this would work legally, but I do know someone who could love Kirsten like their own.” Agnes said.

“I’m listening.”

“Their names are Morgana and Connor Frio. They’ve been friends of mine since I was a kid, they had a child, but he sadly passed away. Morgana has recently healed as much as she ever will, and she definitely has a lot of love to give! In fact, she lives right across the street.” Agnes said, pleading her case.

“At this point, I’m pretty desperate to find her a home. I’ll be back tomorrow around noon and we’ll schedule and appointment with them!” Gina said, smiling.

That night, everyone was pretty exhausted and sleep came easily. Seymour took my spot in bed so I ended up passing out on the couch.

The next morning, Gina arrived back to our house and the three of us walked across the street and rang the doorbell. Agnes wanted to surprise Morgana, but she still called to tell her we were coming over.

“Morgana, Connor… Gina Capps. Gina… Morgana, and Connor Frio.” Agnes introduced.

“Pleased to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Frio. I’m with child protective services and I would like to  speak to you about a little girl in our care, who’s been through some bizarre occurrences, who needs a loving family. Agnes recommended the two of you.” Gina explained.

Morgana began to tear up, she definitely seemed interested.

“Do you really mean it?! Like how certain are you about this?” Morgana asked.

“Well Kirsten has been through several foster homes, she needs a permanent family soon to ensure a somewhat normal childhood. It would take a few background checks and a home inspection, followed by a court hearing over the next couple months, but if those check out normally, we can begin the adoption process right away.” Answered Gina thoroughly.

Gina then pulled out a photo of her.

“This is Kirsten. She is approximately 8-10 years old, and has a very complicated story. She has only one living relative, a cousin, who refuses to believe she’s alive, and doesn’t wish to take care of her. She’s been in several foster homes over the past year, and suffers from memory loss, making it difficult to care for her, resulting in foster homes giving her up again.”

Jared flashed a big smile, and Morgana began to cry.

“She’s absolutely beautiful!” Morgana whimpered.

“Thank you for all the help Mrs. Darling. Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to discuss the potential parenthood of the Frios with them further.” Said Gina.

“Oh of course, don’t mind us, we’ll be right on our way!” Agnes said.

“Thank you so much Agnes, I don’t know how to thank you enough for this.”

“Morgana, no need. You were and still are a mother. You did not deserve to have motherhood ripped away from you like that, you still deserve a chance. Now you don’t stop fighting until that little girl is yours okay?” Agnes reassured Morgana. It was times like these that made me so proud to have such a compassionate wife.

Later that evening, Seymour took a bath and also played scuba diver in the tub, while Agnes brushed her teeth.

The girls barged in unannounced to pester Agnes about the scoop on the social worker.

“What did she say mom?” “Mom! Just tell us, god!”

“Your father and I were just helping a little girl find a loving family, and we think we found one!” Agnes announced.

“Yay!” Pers shouted, clapping her hands.

“Now will you two get out and give your brother his privacy?”

“You did a beautiful thing for the Frios today, Agnes. You’ve made them so happy.  I’ll never know how I wound up with such a perfect, compassionate woman, I really won’t.”