The Chance to make a Change

Chapter 30: Epilogue

Summary: You get a surprise.
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You woke up to the blinding light of the sun shining through the large hospital windows. As you carefully sat up, you shielded your eyes from the incoming rays of the sun. A new day had dawned. Luckily, it wouldn't be much longer before you'd be discharged from the hospital.

The first thing you noticed when you sat up was that the hospital bed to your left had the curtains drawn. You knew your former roommate had been discharged only yesterday. Did this mean they brought in someone new?

A glass of juice, a cup of water, and a covered plate stood waiting on the nightstand next to your bed. You shook your head at the sight of the little cup of vitamins. Everything for the baby. You decided to take them in first before starting your breakfast. Popping the pills into your mouth, you washed them down with the water provided, happy that you could pick up your own glass again and that you no longer needed a straw.

The faint rustling announced one of the nurses was coming before you could actually see her. You liked her, she was always kind and cheerful when she was on duty.

"Good morning," she said, smiling down brightly at you. "How are you today, sunshine? Feeling better?" she asked.

You nodded, smiling back at her.

"I can see it. You're radiating." She made her way over to the other bed, tugging at the curtains. "And I think I've got a little something that will make your day even more."

As she pulled the curtains aside, you came eye to eye with the man you had thought had gone.

Blue eyes pierced into you, watery with unshed tears. The wrinkles on his forehead, the grey streaks to his hair.

Your mind was racing. If he was here, and you were still here... did that mean that it wasn't over?

Because it was him. It was him! The oxygen mask covering his lips was a mocking imitation of the mask that he had worn so often.

A devil reincarnated. Albert was alive!

"Look," the nurse said, beaming brightly, "it's your uncle. Isn't this nice?" she sounded happy, but ice-cold shards of dread filled your being.

"We're having a real family room here."

Your heart skipped a beat. Family. Your hand was instantly drawn to your tummy underneath the sheets, a protective gesture. But he had caught sight of it. A small smile formed underneath that mask, curling Albert's lips.

"You're a strong one, Mister Shaw," the nurse yapped on while she did her daily chores, unaware of the changed mood in the room, "for you to recover so swiftly. It seems you won't be needing the extra oxygen any longer."

She started to take the mask off, leaning over him. Yet his eyes never left your frame. He followed the gentle rubbing movement of your hand past your belly.

"I'll just take that mask off for you, Mister Shaw," the nurse said, and then Albert's face was revealed. You still needed to adjust to the sight of it. A thin line of where the mask had been still ran down his face, a silent reminder of who he truly was.

"Thank you, nurse," his voice wasn't low or gruff. It was normal, gentle. He looked up at her with a kind smile, a man who was truly grateful for the help he had gotten.

If you saw him like this it became hard to imagine him to be the child murderer who had kept you locked up in his home, tied to his bed, and forced underneath him. But then his eyes drifted back to you and you remembered it all.

"Can I say how delighted I am to be united again with my niece," his voice was smooth like silk and the nurse by his side smiled with a soft 'awww'. "You have no idea how much torture it was to know she was here all on her own and that I was unable to visit her. She must have been so lonely."

"Well, I'm glad you two can keep each other company," the nurse happily chirped while she patted Albert gently with a gloved hand on his shoulder, mindful not to cause him any pain. "You two seem a wonderful pair."

"Oh," Albert breathed, his eyes sliding back to you, blue orbs darkening with lust. "I know."

"I'll just quickly take your temperature and check your vitals," the nurse said, taking up Albert's hand and clipping a little instrument on top of his fingertip. "Then I'll leave the two of you alone for a bit."

"My brother," Albert said, making small talk while the nurse finished her chores. Yet his eyes were still upon you. As if his words weren't directed at her but at you instead. "He tried to murder me. Strangulation. I made a lucky escape thanks to the boy."

"I am sorry to hear that happened to you, Mister Shaw," the nurse whispered respectfully while she completed her tasks. "It must have been awful to discover that it was your brother all along. But in our little community, you are already considered to be somewhat of a hero. How you tried to help the Blake boy."

She smiled and you felt a chill run down your spine. "At least the Grabber's gone now."

"Yes," Albert smiled, but you knew it was all an act. "We can all sleep safely again."

"Indeed," the nurse nodded, she sounded relieved.

She was completely unaware that the villain she was scared of was next to her side, smiling lecherously at you. The boogeyman wasn't gone. Neither did the nurse know that this man was not your actual uncle. That you now shared the room with the same man whose baby you were carrying in your tummy. The same man who had murdered, kidnapped, ravished, and beaten.

He was here. No longer a suspect.

Your eyes grew wide at the realization. It meant that he had gotten away. And then a new thought hit you. Perhaps, you hadn't been placed on his path to rescue the boys as you had initially thought. Not even to rescue Max.

Perhaps, it had all been because of him.

Nothing else had changed after all, no matter how hard you had tried. It seemed as if all of your attempts had been fruitless, doomed to fail from the start. But there was one thing that was different now.

He should have been dead.

And that thought stung you deep inside, making you want to double over. You wondered if you felt joy or regret now that you knew that you had come here solely to save Albert's life.

"Seems like I got a second chance," Albert whispered. His eyes met yours when you slowly looked up at him again while he confirmed your thoughts.

His guardian angel indeed.

The nurse smiled gently at him, then turned around and left the room.

Albert rested in the hospital bed, blankets tucked beneath his legs, wrapping him up and covering him completely. He had difficulty moving, you could tell. His head was tilted, his chin resting upon his right shoulder to look at you. He drew a deep breath and closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them again.

Albert flashed you a smile that was full of promise. The promise that he would not let you go. The promise, that you'd be with him for the long run.

"Seems like we can be together after all, angel."

His words sent a shiver down your spine. Was this why you had been brought to this world? To save the villain of the story? To give him his share of happiness despite that he did not deserve it?

Then, a new thought hit you, unbidden.

The thought that saving him meant that you are now forever trapped with him, your fate irrevocably intertwined with his own. It was a thought that frightened you, because the movie didn't tell what would happen beyond this point.

From here on, everything will be unknown...

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