The Legacy (49 page)

The object of my thoughts takes my hand in his. He can
see
the
subtle
sadness
behind my
smile
and I know
he
understands. We are sharing the holidays with family, the
people we love, but our family isn’t complete, not without
Phillip. Only when he is finally with us will we be whole again.
Adagio continues to gaze at me, sending me silent words of
comfort.

And I do feel comforted. I am always amazed at how
connected he is to my feelings, and I consciously will the
sadness from my eyes, wanting to convey to him that I am
okay.

The ringing of the doorbell surprises us all.
“I will get it,
amore.”
“All right.” I wonder who could be stopping by on

Thanksgiving
Day.
In
unexpected
company
Italy,
we
are
usually
prepared for
during
the
holidays,
and
people

When
Adagio
reaches
the
door,
he
opens
it
and
freezes. From somewhere deep inside, a sob erupts as he drops
to his knees and pulls Phillip into his arms. Phillip wraps his
arms around his father’s neck and cries.

“Oh, thank you, God!” Adagio cries, lifting him. “Thank
you!” He looks at Officer Payne, who also has tears trailing
down his face and grips his hand firmly. Finally finding his
voice, he say, “Please, come in.”

Ed follows Adagio in and closes the door. Phillip’s arms
are still tightly wrapped around his father’s neck and Adagio
relishes the feel of them. “We have missed you so much,” he
says, looking into his son’s eyes.

“I missed you, too, Papa. And I missed Mama.” Phillip
hears the familiar beloved voices coming from the dining room.
“Where’s Mama, Papa? I want Mama.”

“I will take you to Mama now. She will be so happy to see
you. We've both missed you so much.”
“I love you, Papa.”
“I love you, too, son.” Adagio kisses Phillip’s cheek as
tears streak his own face. “I love you so much.”
Adagio silently holds Phillip in his arms as he stands in
the doorway of the dining room, watching Cisely wipe Ingo’s
face. Her back turned to them. When the room suddenly goes
quiet, she looks up.
“Phillip!” Ingo cries.

I quickly turn and gasp, my vision blurring at the sight of
my little boy. “My baby!” My voice is barely a whisper. “My
baby!” My knees weakening, I reach for a chair and quickly sit
down.

Adagio puts Phillip down and he runs to me, crushing
himself against me. As soon as he wraps his small arms around
my neck, I wrap him in mine and cry without restraint. Adagio
kneels beside me, enfolding us both in his arms. Ingo runs to us
and Adagio pulls him into the circle, holding us all. I can hear
Jessica and Sadie crying and Ed sniffling.

Phillip finally draws back and smiles, placing his hands on
my face in the way that is so endearing to me. “I remembered
to pray, Mama, and God was listening, just like you said.”

I repeatedly caress his face and hair. “I'm so proud of
you. You’re such a good boy, so brave, and we've missed you
so much.” I can’t say anymore, overcome by a fresh bout of
tears.

“I missed you, Phillip,” Ingo said, his face wet with tears.
Phillip moves from my embrace long enough to hug
Ingo. “I missed you, too.” Then he returns to my lap and
Adagio softly caresses his back.

Jessica moves to my side and kneels. “I’m so glad to see
you, Phillip,” she says, smiling through the tears.
Phillip reaches over and hugs her. Then he glances over
my shoulder. “Sadie!” he cries, jumping down from my lap,
running to her.
Sadie drops to her knees and scoops him up in her arms.
“I worried about you so much,” she says with a sob. “I’m so
glad you’re okay.”
“I’m glad you’re okay, too. It scared me when she hurt
you.” His lips tremble.
“I know,” she soothes. “I know. But I am fine, and now
you’re back with your mama and papa. Everything is going to
be okay.”
Phillip nods, hugging her again and immediately returns
to me. I hold him close, silently sending up prayers of gratitude.
When all emotions are under control, Ed finally gives us
the details of Phillip’s whereabouts and how they came to find
him. He tells us Gladys took Phillip to Charleston, South
Carolina to the home of one of her old friends. Little did
Gladys know, the friend knew about the kidnapping from the
newspapers. He’d also seen posters of Phillip and recognized
him the moment he saw him. He said if there was one thing he
couldn’t stand, it was the thought of a child being taken from
their family and being abused. He kept Gladys ignorant of his
knowledge long enough to sneak Phillip out and get him to the
police. They immediately went out and captured Gladys, which
wasn’t too hard because she was so intoxicated when they
found her, she wouldn’t have made it very far.
Phillip is still clinging to me as Ed concludes the details.
There are no words to describe how grateful we are that it is all
over and Phillip is home and safe. We thank Officer Payne
profusely for all he has done and ask him to convey our
gratitude to the police department.

Phillip sits between Adagio and me as we finish our meal.
Watching the ravenous way he eats moves us both to tears. It
breaks my heart to think of him going hungry. After he has
finished, he takes a bath, smiling as he exits the bathroom
wearing his own familiar clothes.
We gather around the table again and have dessert. At
one point I notice Phillip looking from me to Adagio with quiet
thoughtfulness. Then his expression changes to one I can't
discern.
“What is it, honey?” I ask, caressing his hair.
He tearfully looks up at me. “Will she come back to get
me again?”
My eyes meet Adagio's and his sad expression mirrors my
own. We mourn the innocence our son has lost. Before this
happened, he'd been so carefree and full of life. I hope he will
one day be that way again.
“No, baby,” I finally answer. “Gladys will never take you
from us again. She is in a place where she can never hurt
anyone else.”
Adagio presses a hand to Phillip’s cheek. “We promise
you son, we will always keep you safe.”
We know it will take time for Phillip to adjust, but he is
back with us now, and I can think of no greater blessing to
have received this day.

After the boys are in bed asleep, we stand in the
doorway of their room and gaze at our youngest son. We are
grateful beyond words to have him back and I'm constantly
sending up prayers of thanks for his return. I also thank God
for helping us endure this whole ordeal. Never again will I hear
of another child being kidnapped without feeling a deep sorrow
for that child and his family.

Striving to be strong has taken more out of me than I
realized. As I continue to watch Phillip sleep, a strong wave of
emotion comes over me. I turn to Adagio as tears splash down
my cheeks.

“It's all right,
amore
,” he whispers, taking my shaking
shoulders in his hands.
I manage to hold everything inside just long enough to
make it to our bedroom. Then the flood of emotional grief that
has filled me for so long comes forth. Adagio pulls me into his
arms, sinking to the floor with me as I weep.
“Everything is all right, baby,” he whispers against my
ear. “It's okay.”

Adagio understands her tears and knows her feelings well
because his are the same. They are grateful the ordeal is over,
and they can now get on with their lives. But the pain will take
time to fade. He is sure this time of letting go of their emotions
is a good start. Leaning back against the bed, he cradles Cisely
against his chest until her sob subside.

Adagio presses a kiss to her brow. “Then what is my
excuse? I am not pregnant and I don't get PMS often.”
She chuckles and takes in his soaked shirt. “It seems like
I’m always wetting your shirts these days.”
“And like I told you years ago when Ingo died, I have
many and you can cry on them all. I just want to be here for
you.”
“And you always have been. You helped me through one
of the hardest times of my life.”
“Even then, there was no other place I wanted to be than
with you.”
“I don’t know what I would have done without you.”
Smiling, he presses his forehead to hers. “You would
never have had the chance to find out.” He looks into her eyes.
“I was supposed to be there for you, Cisely.”
“I know,” she says, touching his face. “Through all these
years you have never let me down, and you’ve never failed in
your devotion to me.” She brushes a hand back through his
hair.
“And I never will.”
Snuggling closer, she buries her face in the curve of his
neck, sighing deeply. “How can I be so happy and still feel so
much pain? How can I feel so much love and gratitude and still
have this ache?”
“I don't know
, amore.
I also wonder about those things
because I feel the same.”
After a few moments of silent contemplation, Cisely says,
“I guess we just have to believe that the joy we feel now will
slowly replace the rest of the hurt because it is stronger than
the pain. I know we will never forget the pain, nor would I
want to because it has been refining. And that refinement will
only add to the joy we feel, making it that much greater later
on. A little while ago I couldn’t see that. But I do now.”
“And because of your strength, I now see that too.”
Tears fill his eyes. “I'm so grateful for you.”
“And I'm grateful for you.” She touches her fingers to his
lips before pulling his head down.
As Adagio becomes lost in her kiss, he feels his life can
be no more perfect. His family is whole again, and the woman
he loves with all his heart and soul again has his child growing
inside her. Soon they will go back home to Italy, and he
promises himself that he will always treasure each and every
second of his life with his family, because that is how often the
blessings come, each and every second.

Holding hands, Adagio and I gaze at one another as
Sadie and Peter repeat their vows and are pronounced husband
and wife. I have always considered the veranda the most
romantic spot at our home, and it is the perfect place for my
cousin’s intimate ceremony.

Before we moved back to Venice, Sadie and I kept in
touch with each other through phone calls every few days.
Sadie told me about Peter Grant and their growing feelings for
each other. Before long the two fell in love and became
engaged. We invited them over for dinner, and as soon as we
met Peter, we could tell he was a great guy. It was easy to see
how much the two loved each other.

Velma was overjoyed to get to know her sister. Pete and
Dona were also happy to meet the niece they never knew
existed, and they welcome her to the family.

The day before we were to move, Sadie called me with
some exciting news that would bring me even more joy. Peter
had received a phone call from an old colleague whose wife was
from Venice. They moved back to Venice last year to be near
her family and he opened a medical practice a few miles outside
of the city. He offered Peter a partnership, and after pondering
long and hard about it, Peter and Sadie felt he should accept
the offer. Peter’s mother, Helen, would be moving with them
as well. She and Sadie had become very close.