“They were. They loved you very much,” Austin said. His hand rubbed the back of my shoulder.
The warmth of his hand soothed my frayed nerves. I wiped my eyes and nose, then squared my shoulders.
“How do you know?”
“They told me.” He reached over and grabbed a plain red leather journal. “It’s all in here.”
“You read it?”
“No, just a few entries around key dates.”
“Can I read it?”
“We’ll make copies so you can read it later.” He placed the journal in my hands and opened the cover. “But this you should read now.”
My lips moved as I read the message written in black ink. “To our most precious jewel, we didn’t plan for you, but we couldn’t love you more. You were a shock, but the instant we heard your heartbeat, we knew we our lives would change forever. For the better.”
The next note was written in blue ink, and the writing looked shakier.
“More than anything, our precious jewel, we hope to be reunited one day, but in order to protect you, we have to let you go. We love you.”
I sniffled.They loved me.
Austin lifted the journal out of my hands. “We’ll have the copies made before you leave tonight.”
“Thank you.” More than anything, I wanted to read the journal my parents had left me.
“There’s more,” Austin said. “You should sit.” He pulled out a chair, and I blindly did what he said.
Before Austin could tell me, Mary arrived with Natalie and food, so we took a break.
I didn’t want to stop, but I couldn’t ask them to skip lunch.It’s four, so maybe it’s an early dinner.
In the lobby, everyone, including Jay and AJ, ate and chatted. I sat and stared at the shade covered window that blocked my view of the items they’d found. I didn’t care about the jewelry, but the paperwork and journal might have the answers to my questions.
Austin sat beside me and handed me a plate. “I know you probably don’t feel like eating, but you should try. You’ll need your strength.”
I choked down the dry, tasteless sandwich and drank the soda Austin handed me. When the can was empty, I rested it on my leg and went back to staring up at the room that held my parents’ messages.
Mary replaced Austin at my side and gave me a hug. “This’ll all be over soon.”
“Will it?” I asked, scared it’d never end.
“I trust my boys; they’ll figure it out.” After a gentle squeeze, she released me and stood. “The girls and I will clean up; you guys go back upstairs.”
The guys all stood and started towards the stairs.
“Blaszek, you and Janerek stay down here.”
“Yes, sir,” they both replied. “Here, let us help you with that,” Nathan said, picking up some discarded cans.
“Come on, Nina, let’s find out what your parents left you,” John said. The only thing that kept me from running up the stairs was his arm around my shoulder.
Back in the room, John said, “Nina, Austin found your parents’ wills, insurance paperwork, medical histories, and bank information.”
“How? Why?” My brain couldn’t wrap itself around one thought long enough to form an intelligent question.
“I’m sorry, Nina, but they knew they might never see you again, so they planned for that possibility,” Austin said.
