Chapter Thirty-One Part Five

Authors note: This s the end of generation one and the last of the finale.  I will be starting generation 2 slightly different.  I will not reveal who the heir is until a little ways into the generation.  I have several reasons one being I accidentally killed the heir, which was going to be Sydney from the start. Since she really died in a fire in game I decided to go with.  So I decided that I would let the game decide who the heir will be.  As the premise of the legacy started with alien abduction I'll go with the first child that is abducted in game.  However if the aliens have decided to leave this poor family alone I will be holding an heir vote once the oldest becomes a young adult.  Plus I have some wrap up to do with how the kids are coping with their sisters death, which will affect theirs lives throughout generation 2.

After the funeral everyone tried to resume a normal routine. They decided not to rebuild their house and soon sold the land to the horse stables next door, who were looking to expand. They recovered what few possessions they could from the wreckage and William took comfort from the few paintings that Sydney had stored in the pool area. William set them up in an empty corner of the house they were renting. He would sit there staring at them, mourning the loss of his princess.

One evening after William came home from work, he went as usual to view her paintings only to come rushing over to Jessica demanding "Where are they?"

"Where are what?" Jessica asked

"Her paintings. They're gone, all of them. Including the one that wasn't finished." William said feeling as if his world was collapsing all over again.

"I sold them."

"You what?" William asked not wanting to believe what she just said. As she silently nodded confirmation, William reached out as if to shake her but let his hands drop to his side. "You had no right. That was all that we had left of our little girl. How could you?" He gulped for air as he relived the loss of his princess all over again.

"It wasn't good for you, spending all that time alone with those paintings. We're all grieving and trying to come to terms with her loss. It's not helping that you've turned that corner into a shrine."

"What right do you have to decide what I need? You didn't even ask me." William said as he picked up a vase and threw it across the room. "Isn't this how all this started. You were only doing it for my own good. Always thinking you know best. I'm not crazy and I resent you deciding things based upon what you think is best."

"William please, how many times do I have to say I'm sorry?" she cried "I thought I was doing the right thing."

"That's beside the point. You didn't believe me. You believed that damn doctor over your own husband. You decided, to go through with his plan. How Jessica, just tell me how am I supposed to forgive that?" William stopped wrapping his arms around himself wondering how he could ever look at her without seeing her as the woman who betrayed him? The person he held responsible for his daughters death. Standing there breathing heavily, he noticed his children looking at them from the kitchen table. "I need to go. I can't stay here."

"Go get some air, clear your head. When you've calmed down, we'll talk." Jessica suggested.

"I'm not coming back.

"William what do you mean? You can't go" Jessica said trying to block his path. She grabbed his arm as he pushed past her.

"Let go. I can't stay here. There's too many memories," William said in a flat monotone voice devoid of all feeling. Jessica dropped her hands from his arm and refused to look at him. Silently she mouthed "I'm sorry," as she wondered if it was too late to salvage her marriage.

The kids were stunned by what they just witnessed. They had never seen their parents fight before and here they were separating right before their eyes. Little Beverly broke their stunned silence when she ran to the door.

"Daddy don't leave. We need you," she screamed.

William stopped at the sound of her young, scared voice. She ran up to him, wrapping her arms around him crying "Daddy I love you, don't go." Soon he was surrounded by the others, all had tears rolling down their cheeks, pleading with him not to leave them.

Sighing William looked into their distressed faces and realized he couldn't leave them like this. No matter the issues between him and Jessica, he couldn't bring more grief and heartache to his children. "Oh kids I love you. I just can't be here anymore."

"We don't want to be here either Dad. Please take us with you," Gene chimed in voicing their collective thought.

"Shh calm down. I'll come back," William began than stopped revising what he was going to say. "I was offered a position in a restaurant in Barnacle Bay. I was going to turn it down but now I think I'll go and check it out. I hadn't considered it because I knew it would mean pulling you guys out of school and moving you away from your friends." Stopping again and looking into their faces William continued "Now I think it might be a good idea. A change would do us all some good. So I think I'll go and check it out, find us a house, then I'll be back."

"Then we'll all move, including mommy?" Beverly asked quietly. 

 

Before responding to Beverly's question, William looked over their heads at Jessica who was standing a short distance away. "Yeah mommy can come too on one condition. She has to let me make this decision and trust that I know what I'm doing."

Jessica was hurt but knew he was justified in what he said. She did need to learn to trust his decisions. She was relieved that she was included in these plans and it gave her hope that their marriage wasn't over, they might yet get a second chance.