"Rahul is at the hospital now, Padma didn't take the flight." Arami cried happy tears. "He's in stable condition, now. He'll recover from his infection. He'll live."

"Thank G.o.d." Jill felt a grat.i.tude and joy spreading through her very bloodstream, a sensation she couldn't medically explain.

"Yes, yes, Padma is with him, she just called me. My sister, her mother, is fine, too, in Mumbai."

"What happened? Did Rahul's grandfather reach Padma?"

"No, no, no one could reach her, she had turned her phone off, for the plane." Arami started to calm down, her words slowing and her tears subsiding. "Padma boarded the plane with Rahul and the boys. They were going to take off!"

"Who stopped them?"

"Someone went to the airport, they drove there. They got pulled over for a speeding ticket, then they got a police escort. They got Padma and the baby off the plane, right before it left for Mumbai."

"Who did that?"

"Your office manager, Sheryl."

"Sheryl?" Jill asked, astounded.

"She's wonderful woman, that Sheryl. A wonderful woman."

"She is?" Jill caught herself. "I mean, yes, she is."

"I must go, talk to you later. Thanks again, so much."

"Thanks for calling, and please tell Padma to call me, if she wants." Jill hung up just as there came a knock, on the door.

Chapter Sixty-eight.

"Honey, are you all right?" Sam gathered Jill in his arms, and she hugged him back, her eyes br.i.m.m.i.n.g, her heart full of love.

"Yes, I'm fine."

"Don't cry. I'm here now, it's okay now." Sam held her close, and Steven stood behind him, looking like a mini-Sam, complete with thick hair, sharp blue eyes, tortoisesh.e.l.l gla.s.ses, and tan Dockers.

"Thanks for coming home." Jill wiped her tears and got in control, and Sam released her, his pained gaze appraising her injuries.

"What did they do to my girl? My G.o.d, it looks like it hurts, so much."

"No, it's not too bad."

"I've got nothing left to kiss."

"My lips are fine," Jill blubbered, but the words weren't out before Sam gave her a soft, sweet kiss.

"I love you," he said softly.

"I love you, too." Jill realized suddenly that she hadn't introduced Victoria and Steven. "Victoria, this is Steven Becker. Steven, Victoria Skyler." She hesitated. "Stepson, meet ex-stepdaughter. Oh, whatever. Kids, meet each other."

Victoria smiled. "I'm not an ex-stepdaughter, I'm a stepdaughter."

Steven snorted. "And we're hardly kids."

Sam laughed. "You're both kids, to us. Forever." He turned to Jill, leaned over, and kissed her again. "Let's go home."

"Yes." Jill thought they were the sweetest words ever. "Let's."

"Victoria?" Sam straightened up, turning to her. "You're coming home with us, I hope. We can all have dinner and try to decompress. I'm sure Megan would love to see you again."

Jill felt tears br.i.m.m.i.n.g again. She appreciated that Sam made the offer, but she was old enough to know they were still at an impa.s.se. Sam would feel the same way, and it remained to be seen if they could agree on how to make a new family. If they couldn't, there wasn't going to be a wedding. Jill had come to understand that love didn't answer the question of whether they should marry, but merely asked it. Love wasn't the end, but the beginning.

Victoria was beaming at Sam. "Thanks, but what do I do about school? I have cla.s.s tomorrow."

"I think we can get you a doctor's note," Sam answered, with a crooked smile, then looked down at Jill.

"Done," she said, smiling back. She felt an overwhelming yearning to see Megan again and get everybody safe under one roof, her roof.

On second thought, her greatest wish would be that someday, it would be their roof.

Chapter Sixty-nine.

Jill was cleaning up after take-out pizza, in the kitchen with Sam, Steven, and Victoria, all of them waiting for Katie to bring Megan home. It was raining hard outside, another spring storm, making Beef shudder on his bed. Victoria had showered and changed into an old T-shirt and sweatpants that belonged to Megan, and Jill had on a pink cotton sweater, jeans, and clogs. Except for the bruises, bandages, and pain meds, she felt like Mom again.

"Mom?" Megan called from the entrance hall, then entered the kitchen in her yellow sweats, gasping when she saw Jill's face. "Mom! What happened to you? Your eye and forehead? Mom, oh my G.o.d!"

"Come here, I'm fine." Jill smiled, opening her arms for Megan, who came running to her like when she was a little girl.

"Are you okay?" Megan hugged her tight. "What happened? Katie said it wasn't that bad, but it is. You look like you got really hurt."

"I'm fine, and so is Victoria. We had a long day, but now it's over."

"Nice face, Jill," Katie said with a smile, coming into the room. She met Jill's eye, and in one look, told her that she loved her.

"Back at you." Jill smiled. She had already told Katie everything on the phone. Not even the FBI could come between best friends.

"h.e.l.lo and good-bye, all." Katie waved to everyone. "I gotta go. Much love!"

"Bye and thanks, honey." Jill kissed the top of Megan's head as Katie left. "Want some pizza? I can microwave it."

"No, I ate." Megan looked up, shaken. "Nothing can ever happen to you, Mom."

"It won't." Jill knew what she meant. "I love you."

"I love you, too. So what happened? This is so weird! It's like everything's gone crazy all of a sudden."

"Go and sit." Jill let her go, and Megan went to her stool at the kitchen island, setting down her cell phone. Sam and Steven stood by the counter, and Victoria sat next to Megan on the island.

"Megan, it's so good to see you," Victoria said, giving Megan a hug. "I missed you."

"I missed you, too." Megan smiled, worriedly. "Does your head hurt? Did you get st.i.tches? This is so random. Jeez!"

"I'm fine. We both are."

"Mom?" Megan turned back as her phone chimed a text alert, but she ignored it. "What happened to you guys? Tell me, I can't even deal!"

"The bottom line is that Victoria and I met up with some criminal types, and we got a little hurt, but we're fine."

"What criminal types? Did they steal from you, like you were mugged?"

"No. It was about William, but I'm not sure how yet." Jill poured Megan a gla.s.s of water and set it down in front of her. "The police know all about it, and we'll know more in a few days."

"Did somebody kill William?" Megan asked, then seemed to stiffen, bracing herself for the answer.

"Honestly, I don't know. The police will tell us as soon as they can."

"Where's Abby? Why isn't she home? Does she know?"

"No, and she'll be home soon."

"Jeez." Megan turned to Victoria, touching her arm. "I know you feel sad about your Dad. I'm sorry."

"Thanks, and I'm sorry about the way I behaved at the memorial service. I know you loved him, too. We're in this together, now." Victoria offered her hand, and Megan accepted it, with a smile. Her cell phone chimed again, but she still ignored it.

"I love you, Vick."

"I love you, too, Mega."

Jill watched them, touched. "One last thing, Megan. We have to keep this a secret. If anybody asks, we have to pretend that I was in a car accident and that's how I got hurt. Don't go into school tomorrow, and I'll write you a note."

"I have a meet this weekend, on Sat.u.r.day, but maybe we shouldn't go." Megan's brow furrowed suddenly, and Jill thought her reaction was strange.

"No, we can go. Don't you want to? You've never missed a meet."

Megan hesitated. "Mom, there's something I have to tell you." Her phone chimed again, but she ignored it again. "You can't do anything about it, though. Anything you do will only make it worse."

"Okay," Jill said, surprised. "Tell me what happened."

"That boy I liked from swim club, Jake? He asked me to send him a picture of myself, so he could show his friends at his school. He said I was his girlfriend." Megan picked up her water gla.s.s and took a gulp. "So I sent him a normal picture that Courtney took of me, but he photoshopped it to make it look like I was naked, like I s.e.xted it to him."

Jill felt anger flare, but kept a lid on it. "How did he do that?"

"He cut out my head and put it on a naked body and he sent it to all the guys on the boys team, and then all the girls got it, and now the whole club thinks I'm a s.l.u.t."

"No, they don't, honey." Jill felt terrible for her. "No one thinks that."

Victoria added, "What a douche."

"I know, right?" Megan turned to Victoria. "Sorry, I feel so bad for you, about your Dad, and I have all this dumb stuff going on. It's not as important, and I'm just so, well, lame."

"No, you're not lame at all." Victoria smoothed back Megan's hair. "I can't believe he did that. We're in this together, right? We just said."

Megan looked back at Jill. "Mom, I'm too embarra.s.sed to go to the meet because everybody knows. It's a big, big mess, and I can't even go back to the team. And they need me to win."

Jill was trying to get the facts. "Wait. When did this happen?"

"Sunday, right before the meet. I think that's why I had the panic attack, but I just didn't want to tell you. I knew you'd want to call his parents or Coach Stash, and that would make everything worse. I'm sorry, I know you were all worried about me."

Jill blinked. She had a.s.sumed the panic attack was because of William's death, Abby's reappearance, and her own absence, but she had misdiagnosed her own daughter.

"What do I do, Mom? I can't go to the meet, and I can't not go to the meet."

"I can't talk to Coach Stash?"

"No, you can't. It's embarra.s.sing. The more you do, the more it's a bigger deal, and the naked picture will go everywhere and everyone will think I'm a total s.l.u.t."

Jill cringed for her. "But if I call his school-"

"No! That only makes me look dumber, don't you see?"

"Yes," Jill answered, because she did, finally. It was a no-win.

"I have to deal with it myself, and I hate myself for hiding and running away. It sucks, I suck! I'm the best swimmer on the team and I almost drowned because I'm so stupid and lame. I don't want to be that girl anymore!"

"You're not that girl, honey."

"Yes, I am!" Suddenly Megan jumped to her feet, almost knocking over the stool, and before anyone knew what she was doing, she ran out of the kitchen. Beef lifted his head from his paws, and Jill started to go after her, but Victoria rose and put a hand on her arm.

"Jill, wait. Let me go. No offense, but sometimes you don't need a mother. Sometimes you just need a friend."

"You're right. Go." Jill knew it was true, and Victoria left the kitchen and hurried upstairs.

Sam came over to Jill and embraced her, gently. "This, too, shall pa.s.s," he said, his voice deep and soft at her ear.

Jill was about to respond when she heard someone calling her outside, in the storm. She looked up at Sam, wondering. "Do you hear that?"

"What?" he asked, but Beef was already up and scampering to the front door, his toenails clicking on the hardwood floor.