Replacement Baby

by Mary Ann Smart

  “Oh no,” Rose teased. “You aren’t becoming a shopaholic, are you?”

  Rose purchased her new dress and they left the shop, she and Lionel crossed the street and continued slowly down Portobello Road. They stopped in several shops, but no one item stood out to Rose. Lionel suggested that they continue until they get to one of the antique shops.

  “So I’m thinking about legally changing my name,” Rose told him as they walked at a leisurely pace. “I want a fresh start. And I don’t really want to carry the Porter name for the rest of my life.

  “Well, what if you get married?” Lionel pointed out. “Then you wouldn’t need to be a Porter anymore.”

  “Yes, true, but that is not in my immediate future,” Rose replied. “I was thinking of being Rose Jennings again.”

  “That makes sense,” Lionel said. “I like it. It sounds good.”

  “I feel a lot more free than I ever did before,” Rose told Lionel. “I think I’m braver, too. I kind of want to break out of my routine and see the world.”

  “You should,” Lionel told her.

  “Why don’t we see the rest of Europe together?” Rose suggested.

  “Sure, I’d love that,” Lionel agreed. “But when?”

  “I don’t know,” Rose replied. “Anytime, I guess. When we can.”

  “Where would you want to go?” Lionel asked her.

  “France,” she said, beginning to list country names. “Italy, Germany, Austria, Switzerland. Spain and Greece, too. Anywhere, I guess. I just want to see the world.”

  They wandered around the shop for an hour. They came across various antiques, such as a large suit of armor and a set of Royal Albert china.

  “I have an idea,” Rose announced suddenly. “We should become private investigators. Just independent detectives, you know. We could set up a little office in London somewhere. I think we’d be good at it. We busted those jewel thieves, after all.”

  “You think so?” Lionel’s voice sounded shocked. “Us? We have no experience, no credentials.”

  “I know, I know,” Rose admitted. “And that’s where the problem would be. But we could do it kind of for fun at first. Sort of help people out. And then maybe with experience and if we get really good at it, we could make some money.”

  “I like the sound of the idea,” Lionel told her. “But I am worried about our, shall I say, complete lack of experience. Who would trust us with an important case? We’re just a couple of young college age kids. We wouldn’t know what we were doing.”

  Rose stopped and walked in front of Lionel. She turned to face him. “Lionel, we snuck into a mysterious house and busted a ring of notorious jewel thieves. We do have some experience.”

  “Okay, okay, you’re right,” Lionel admitted, putting his hands up in defeat. “So where do we even start?”

  “I don’t know, but I’ll think about it.”

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Rose settled into her normal routine with ease. She began working for Mrs. Douglass again. Rose found herself enjoying the mundane tasks of filing and typing, which she had found boring before. Julie still worked at the hospital during the week as usual and Lionel often stayed in his room, writing historical articles.

  A police officer often patrolled their street and Mr. Douglass made sure that they all took precautions. The doors and windows were securely locked each night and it was a rare occasion for any of them to go out after dark.

  Though they did not go out at night, life continued on as normal during the daytime. During the week, Rose and Julie often went to their favorite tearoom. Rose and Lionel took long walks through the park and around the neighborhood during the afternoon. Rose loved how ordinary everything was after her wild experiences. Soon her arm healed and Rose felt like normal again.

  One evening, Lionel surprised Rose and Julie and purchased tickets for the three of them to go to a West End show. The show was The Music Man, which none of them had ever seen before. Afterward, they even went out for dessert at a popular restaurant near the Tower Bridge. Rose felt adventurous being out at night, as they had spent many evenings at home since the incident.

  It was almost midnight when they got home, so Rose wearily changed into her pajamas and got ready for bed. She hummed the song Good-Night, My Someone from The Music Man as she brushed the tangles out of her hair. The song had been stuck in her head all night. She pulled back the covers and quickly fell asleep, listening to the breeze rustle the leaves outside her window.

  * * *

  Rose awoke some time later and opened her eyes in the darkness. She sensed a presence in the room. She looked over toward the door into her room and saw that it was open. A pool of light streamed in and a tall, dark figure stood in between the door and her bed.

  Squinting her eyes, Rose realized who the figure was.

  “Mother.”

  “I have to do this, Lisa.” Mother spoke in a quiet, low voice.

  Raising her arm, Mother lifted her arm. In her hand, she held a gun.

  “No, Mother,” Rose whispered. “Please don’t.”

  “I have to do this,” Mother repeated. “They told me I had to do it.”

  A shot rang out.

  Rose screamed.

  Mother collapsed onto the floor.

  Lionel walked into the room and flipped on the light. Rose’s memories were blurred together after that moment.

  Rose saw a gun in Lionel’s hand. He stood over Mother. Rose looked at Mother, who was lying in a pool of blood. Mr. and Mrs. Douglass rushed in. Mrs. Douglass screamed and Mr. Douglass must have called the police, who arrived within minutes. Julie’s high pitched voice came from the hallway, and it was filled with distress.

  Rose curled up in a ball on her bed, weeping. Lionel sat beside her, comforting her. Paramedics came and took Mother away on a stretcher. Rose continued to sob.

  “It’s okay, Rose,” Lionel whispered comfortingly. “It’ll be okay.”

  Police investigators entered the room, so Lionel helped Rose into her robe and led her to the sitting room down the hall. Crying for almost an hour, Rose felt her head spinning. What just happened? How did Mother get in the house? How did this happen? Is she dead? Did she just die in my room?

  Lionel stayed with Rose and rubbed her back as she cried. Rose finally sat up and wiped her tears away. She realized that for the first time in over ten years, she had really and truly cried. It was a strange feeling, but it also felt freeing to let go and have her emotions flow out through tears.

  Rose stood up with Lionel’s help as he informed her that he needed to take her downstairs to talk to the police. Rose let herself be led while she tried to grasp all that had happened.

  Three policeman sat on the sofa downstairs. Their pens and notepads were laid out on the cocktail table. Rose sat down on an armchair, and Lionel sat nearby.

  “Please tell us exactly what happened,” one officer requested.

  Rose took a deep breath and recalled all that had happened. She told the officers all that she could remember.

  “And also,” Rose added at the end. “She said something about ‘they.’ She said ‘they’ were making her do this.”

  “I wonder if ‘they’ is referring to those jewel thieves,” one officer muttered to another.

  Somehow, in my heart, I don’t think so, Rose thought to herself. It must be something more.

  “We discovered that the woman picked a lock on the kitchen door,” the officer continued.

  “So that’s how she got in,” Rose mumbled.

  “Well, thank you for the information, miss,” one of the three officers said to her. “The woman who tried to attack you is at the hospital now.”

  “You’re welcome,” Rose mumbled, her head down.

  Lionel walked with Rose back upstairs. Julie suggested that Rose sleep in her room for the rest of the evening. Rose did not protest.

  “Hey, Lionel?” Rose said as they stopped in front of Julie’s bedroom door. “Did you shoot Mother?” Sh
e knew the answer, but she wanted to hear the words from his lips.

  “Yes,” Lionel replied with hesitation. “Yes, I did.”

  Rose looked down at her feet for several seconds. Then she looked back up at Lionel.

  “Thanks for saving my life,” she whispered to him.

  “No problem, Rose,” Lionel said to her. “I was up late reading when I heard footsteps in the hallway. I peeked out and saw the strange woman going into your room. So I grabbed my gun and did what I had to do. You aren’t upset with me for hurting your mother, are you?”

  “She isn’t my mother, Lionel,” Rose replied. “But I’m not upset with you. You did what you had to do. I’m not exactly sure how I feel about the whole thing. But I know your intentions were good. So thank you for what you did.”

  “I’m so thankful you’re alive, Rose,” Lionel said, stroking her cheek.

  “I’m thankful to be alive, too.” She smiled.

  * * *

  The next morning, a police officer called Rose. He informed her that Mother had died in the hospital that morning. Lionel would not be charged because he shot Mother defending Rose.

  Hanging up the phone, Rose thought about all that had happened. She felt overwhelmed. Mother is dead. The woman who raised me is dead. But that also means that I’m safe from her. She wanted to kill me. She isn’t my mother. I have another mother. I have another mother and hopefully she will realize that I’m her daughter. Hopefully she will love me again, like she used to when I was a baby.

  Lionel peeked his head through the doorway. “Rose, are you okay?”

  “Yes.” Rose nodded eagerly. “Yes, I’m fine. I guess I don’t know what to feel. I feel something, but it’s not grief and it’s not happiness.”

  Looking out the window, Lionel was silent for a while before he spoke. “I hope you can forgive me.”

  “Forgive you?” Rose was puzzled.

  “I wasn’t trying to kill her,” Lionel explained. “I was trying to save you. It all happened so fast.”

  Rose nodded. “The whole situation is crazy. I know your intentions were good. And I’m glad that I don’t have to worry about her finding me anymore. But I still feel… I don’t know. Something inside of me feels loss.”

  Lionel squeezed Rose’s hand.

  “But Lionel, I do think someday my birth mother will believe me,” Rose told him. “I just got this feeling today. Like, I think I will see her soon.”

  “I agree,” Lionel told her. “She can’t deny her own daughter. She has your address, Rose. Don’t give up hope. Maybe she’ll come find you.”

  “And until that happens, I’m going to live life and enjoy every moment,” Rose announced. “I’m determined to be happy.”

  “Let’s enjoy life together,” Lionel suggested.

  Lionel stood and looked out the window. The day was sunny and everything outside seemed bright. Rose stared at him standing there. Lionel cared about her, maybe more than anyone. And she realized how much she cared about him. Feeling overwhelmed by love and loyalty, Rose called out Lionel’s name. He looked up at her and she smiled. She ran to him and he caught her in his arms. Lionel lifted Rose up and spun her around. For the first time, Rose felt truly free.

  * * *

  If you enjoyed Replacement Baby, please join Rose on her next adventure, for the mystery of The Vanished Daughter, available wherever ebooks are sold.