Love Conquers All

The Rings

Ray
I told Anastasia that those rings need placed in the urn with the ashes and buried far from the Steele plot. He thought it was disrespectful of Brad to send those rings to him. Something made him give the package and the rings to the cops and it was a good thing he had. The box turned out to have further evidence against Brad. I just then realized he has our address. It didn't occur to me that he had possibly been waiting and watching for Carla to finally contact us and he found her once we picked her up. Granted he is in prison how did he get the package mailed out. I failed to notice it was from an attorney's office and not the prison.

Carrick
Ray wants to make sure there are no more surprises arrive at his home from Brad Duncan or his attorneys. So we sent a latter to cease and desist. I really don't want to have to go to Atlanta to deal with this issue, but once they bring him back to stand trial for the murders he did in Seattle then we can get into court to prevent him from any contact with the Steele's and the children of Carla's. The package was apparently sent from Atlanta before Ray got the call from Brad. It contained a safe deposit key to a bank in Atlanta that had usb drives with more evidence against Brad. Ray is trying to stay far away from all of this because he wants to keep his name out of it. Plus who knows what Brad could do to shift the blame onto others especially since Carla disappeared while Prescott was guarding her. At this point he isn't a suspect. We need to keep it that way. I am going to be there when they talk to him again.

Anastasia
I really didn't think things through about telling dad to give the rings to Isobella and Gail and Grace said it was an awful idea. They were right and I told dad to put them in the urn with the ashes once they find an appropriate place for the urn. I took Teddy to meet his uncles. Ray and Roger Steele. They look like me but male and they look exactly alike. Isobella is a good mother to them. The adoption has gone through for her to be the mother since Carla is dead. Ray is the father on their birth certificates so they are going with that. We don't know who the father really is, but we know it isn't Brad Duncan.

Christian
Ray and Isobella have their hands full with the infants so I offered to hire people to help them and they took the help. Elliott and Belinda were scared someone would claim Grace Ana after they discovered she was one of Brads victims in Seattle. They still have no idea who she was. I'm hoping there aren't any people looking for her mother. The adoption is finalized so unless extraordinary circumstances come to light it won't be reversed. Anastasia is upset about all this and I don't think she feels well.

Grace
We are celebrating Teddy and Thomas's first birthday today and everyone is coming. We are meeting Ray and Roger for the first time. Hannah and Harold are excited for the party as well. The Kavanagh's are coming as well. We are finally getting along better and Hannah and Harold are getting taller and soon will be in pre k and they are looking forward to it. Mia and Ethan are great parents and have started their own business. Kavanagh catering and wedding services. Apparently Kate's life insurance policy was found and she had a million dollar policy. Her trust fund was left to Ethan as well. She had gotten it when she turned 21 and had not touched it and wrote her will leaving everything to Ethan. So they put the money to good use and their business is really booming. They have extended themselves to birthday parties for all ages as well. I then hear about Carla's wedding rings and how they were sent to Ray and everything that happened with that. I start worrying about Grace Ana and Carrick told me the odds of a relative coming forward to claim her are huge and that legal steps would need to be gone through. He explained the closed adoption would make it difficult to find her to begin with.

Christian
Teddy and Thomas are best buddies now and they both have fun playing in their buckets and playing with their birthday cupcakes. I have had videos and photographs taken of our family members and friends enjoying this day with all them enjoying the two boys first birthday.

Four years later
Christian
I can't believe how big the boys have gotten and I watch as Anastasia carries our newborn over to me to hold. Phoebe Grace Grey is just perfect and she was born on Teddy's birthday, so we had to schedule it to the day we came home from the hospital with Phoebe. Thomas wanted to wait as well. He wants his birthday party with Teddy's so they will have everyone at the party. Hannah and Harold are enjoying time with friends they invited to join them. Enid and Eamon are enjoying every minute of the party. Probably because Mia is actually pregnant with Ethan's baby. It is a miracle she has gotten pregnant and she has to be careful. So she is in a wheelchair and enjoying all the children playing. I sit by her with Phoebe in my arms and she is playing with her little hands.

Mia
I am so happy with my children, but this baby is special for us, but I will never treat any of them differently even if this baby is special. All babies are special and innocent and I am glad that Thomas is happy and has never felt any rejection from anyone especially Anastasia and you. I know it was hard at first but I see that everyone loves him for who he is and nothing else. Anastasia is close with her brother Ray and Roger as well. They are being raised by Ray and Isobella. Ray did a great job raising Anastasia and her brothers as well. Carla was an idiot to divorce that man. Elliott and Belinda made sure he was given a lot of love. He and Grace Ana get along very well too. I half expected that Elliott and Belinda would want more children. Christian says he thinks they are trying now, but are open to adopting again.

Ray
I am thinking about when they finally gave Brad the death penalty and he was put to death, he confessed to finding out the mother of Grace Ana's family and realized that she was better off with Elliott and Belinda. He wrote his final letters to people and I was one of them. He gave me a choice to tell who Grace Ana's father was or to bury the truth. I handed the letter over to Carrick and asked him what I should do with the information? I of course didn't show him the name. The guy was scum. Plus he died from a bullet between his eyes. But he has family left.
Carrick looked at my face and he knew in that moment that he had no doubts of the scumbag and he told me to burn it all up and we never had this discussion.

Carrick
I watch as Ray takes something from his pocket and throws it into the fire pit lights it up and places the protective cover over it as the papers go up in flames. Grace Ana will hopefully never want to know who her parents were. I know her mother was a victim of her father in that there is no doubt.