Some days it\u2019s just a dull aching in your chest. Some days, it hits you like a sucker blow in the heart.\n
That summer\u00a0morning in my kitchen, staring at an anonymous letter, I felt something quite different. I guess it was a mix of hope and horror.\n
My hands trembled as I read the five words again: \u201cThey\u2019re not really gone.\u201d\n
The crisp white paper felt as if it were burning my fingers. I felt I was managing my grief by attempting to provide a stable existence for my grandchildren, Andy and Peter, after losing my daughter, Monica, and her husband, Stephen. But this note made me understand how wrong\u00a0I was.\n They had an acc:ide:nt two years ago. I remember Andy and Peter often asking me where their parents were and when they would return.\n It took me several months to convince them that their mother and father would never return. It broke my heart when I told them they\u2019d have to handle things on their own now, but I\u2019d be there for them whenever they needed their parents.\n After all of my hard work, I received this anonymous letter claiming Monica and Stephan were still alive.\n \u201cThey\u2019re\u2026 not really gone?\u201d As I sank into my kitchen chair, I said to myself. \u201cWhat kind of sick game is this?\u201d\n I had crumpled the paper and was going to throw it away when my phone rang.\n My credit card provider alerted me to a charge on Monica\u2019s old card. The one I kept active only to keep a bit of her.\n \u201cHow is that even possible?\u201d I whispered. \u201cI\u2019ve had this card for two years. How can someone use it when it\u2019s been sitting in the drawer?\u201d\n \u201cHello, this is Billy speaking. How may I help you?\u201d The customer support representative responded.\n \u201cHi. I, uh, wanted to verify this recent transaction on my daughter\u2019s card,\u201d\u00a0I explained.\n \u201cOf course. May I have the first six and last four digits of the card number and your relationship to the account holder?\u201d Billy asked.\n I gave him the details, stating, \u201cI\u2019m her mother. She\u2026 pass:ed away two years ago, and I\u2019ve been managing her remaining accounts.\u201d\n After a lull on the line, Billy spoke carefully. \u201cI\u2019m very sorry to hear that, ma\u2019am. I don\u2019t see a transaction on this card. The one you\u2019re talking about has been made using a virtual card linked to the account.\u201d\n \u201cA virtual card?\u201d I inquired with a frown. \u201cBut I never linked one to this account. How can a virtual card be active when I have the physical card here?\u201d\n \u201cVirtual cards are separate from the physical card, so they can continue to function independently unless deactivated. Would you like me to cancel the virtual card for you?\u201d Billy inquired gently.\n \u201cNo, no,\u201d\u00a0I managed to say. I didn\u2019t want to deactivate the card because I assumed Monica must have activated it while she was alive. \u201cPlease leave it active. Could you tell me when the virtual card was created?\u201d\n He paused to verify. \u201cIt was activated a week before the date you mentioned your daughter passed.\u201d\n I felt a shiver go down my spine. \u201cThank you, Billy. That\u2019ll be all for now.\u201d\n \u201cThat\u2019s impossible,\u201d Ella exclaimed. \u201cCould it be a mistake?\u201d\n \u201cIt\u2019s like someone wants me to believe Monica and Stephan are out there somewhere, just hiding. But why would they\u2026 why would anyone do that?\u201d\n The charge was not large. It was only $23.50 at a neighborhood coffee shop. Part of me wanted to go to the business and learn more about the transaction, but I was also terrified of discovering something I wasn\u2019t meant to know.\n I intended to look into this subject over the weekend, but what happened on Saturday turned my world upside down.\n Andy and Peter asked to go to the beach on Saturday, so I accompanied them there. Ella had volunteered to meet us there to help me care for the kids.\n The seaside breeze carried the salt spray as the kids plunged in the shallow waves, their laughter booming across the sand. I hadn\u2019t heard them sound that lighthearted in a long time.\n Ella and I lounged on our beach towels, watching the kids play.\n I was showing her the anonymous letter when I heard Andy exclaim.\n \u201cGrandma, look!\u201d He took Peter\u2019s hand and pointed to the beachside caf\u00e9. \u201cThat\u2019s our mom and dad!\u201d\n My heart has stopped. A woman with Monica\u2019s dyed hair and beautiful stance sat barely thirty feet away, leaning against a man who could easily have been Stephan\u2019s twin.\n They were enjoying a tray of fresh fruits.\n \u201cPlease, watch them for a bit,\u201d I pleaded to Ella, my voice cracking with urgency. She consented without inquiry, but concern clouded her gaze.\n \u201cDon\u2019t go anywhere,\u201d I instructed the boys. \u201cYou can sunbathe here. Stay close to Ella, okay?\n The kids nodded, and I turned to face the couple in the cafe.\n My heart skipped a beat as they stood and strolled along a short path surrounded by sea oats and wild roses. My feet moved on their own, following at a distance.\n They walked closely together, whispering and occasionally laughing. The woman tucked her hair behind her ear, just like Monica often did. Stephan\u2019s collegiate football injuries caused him to walk with a minor limp.\n Then I heard them talking.\n \u201cIt\u2019s risky, but we had no choice, Emily,\u201d the man added.\n Emily? I thought.\u00a0Why does he call her Emily?\n \u201cI know,\u201d the woman sighed. \u201cBut I miss them\u2026 especially the boys.\u201d\n My fingers turned white as I grabbed the wooden fence that surrounded the cabin.\n I assumed it was you. But why\u2026 why\u00a0would you do this?\n When they went inside the villa, I took out my phone and dialed 911. The dispatcher patiently listened as I described the untenable situation.\n I remained at the fence, listening for further proof. I just couldn\u2019t believe what was occurring.\n Finally, summoning all of my strength, I approached the cottage door and rang the bell.\n After a brief interval of silence, footsteps approached.\n The door opened, and there stood my daughter. As soon as she recognized me, her face turned pale.\n \u201cMom?\u201d she gasped. \u201cWhat\u2026 how did you find us?\u201d\n Before I could react, Stephan appeared behind her. Then the sound of approaching sirens permeated the air.\n \u201cHow could you?\u201d My voice quivered from wrath and grief. \u201cHow could you leave your own children behind? Do you have any idea what you put us through?\u201d\n \u201cI think we\u2019ll need to ask some questions,\u201d one remarked, gazing between us. \u201cThis\u2026 this is not something we see every day.\u201d\n Monica and Stephan, who had changed their identities to Emily and Anthony, shared their experience in parts and pieces.\n \u201cIt wasn\u2019t supposed to be like this,\u201d Monica replied, her voice shaking. \u201cWe were\u2026 we were drowning, you know? The debts, the loan sharks\u2026 they kept coming, demanding more. We tried everything, but it just got worse.\u201d\n Stephan sighed. \u201cThey didn\u2019t just want money. They were threatening us, and we didn\u2019t want to drag the kids into the mess we created.\u201d\n Monica continued, tears trickling down her cheeks. \u201cWe thought if we left, we\u2019d be giving the kids a better, more stable life. We thought they\u2019d be better off without us. Leaving them behind was the hardest thing we ever did.\u201d\n They said that they manufactured the accident to make it appear as if they had fallen from a cliff into the river, anticipating that the authorities would quickly cease looking for them and assume they were dead.\n They told how they relocated to another place to start over and even changed their identities.\n \u201cBut I couldn\u2019t stop thinking about my babies,\u201d Monica admitted. \u201cI needed to see them, so we rented this cottage for a week, just to be close to them.\u201d\n I couldn\u2019t help but feel there had to be a better method to deal with loan sharks.\n Once they\u2019d admitted everything, I texted Ella our location, and her car arrived with Andy and Peter. The youngsters burst out, their faces beaming with pleasure as they recognized their parents.\n \u201cMom! Dad!\u201d they exclaimed, sprinting toward their parents. \u201cYou\u2019re here! We knew you\u2019d come back!\u201d\n Monica gazed at them, tears welling up in her eyes. She was meeting her children after two years.\n \u201cOh, my sweet boys\u2026 I missed you so much. I\u2019m so sorry,\u201d she said, hugging them.\n I watched the event play out, whispering to myself, \u201cBut at what cost, Monica? What have you done?\u201d\n The cops allowed Monica and Stephen to have a brief reunion before pulling them away. The senior officer looked at me with sympathy in his eyes.\n \u201cI\u2019m sorry, ma\u2019am, but they could face some serious charges here. They\u2019ve broken a lot of laws.\u201d\n \u201cAnd my grandchildren?\u201d I inquired, witnessing Andy and Peter\u2019s perplexed expressions as their parents were separated from them again. \u201cHow do I explain any of this to them? They\u2019re just kids.\u201d\n \u201cThat\u2019s something you\u2019ll have to decide,\u201d he said gently. \u201cBut the truth is bound to come out eventually.\u201d\n Later that night, after putting the kids to bed, I sat alone in my living room. The anonymous letter rested on the coffee table in front of me, its words taking on new significance.\n I picked it up and read those five words once more: \u201cThey\u2019re not really gone.\u201d\n I still didn\u2019t know who sent it, but they were correct.\n Monica and Stephan were not gone. They\u2019d decided to leave. And strangely, that felt worse than knowing they were d3ad.\n \u201cI don\u2019t know if I can protect the kids from the sadness,\u201d I whispered to the quiet room, \u201cbut I\u2019ll do whatever it takes to keep them safe.\u201d\n Now, I occasionally wonder if I should have called the cops. Part of me wishes I could have let my daughter to live the life she desired, but another part of me wishes she had realized her actions were wrong.\n Do you believe I did the right thing by calling the cops? What would you have done if you were in my position?\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Georgia was at the beach with her grandchildren when they abruptly pointed to a nearby\u00a0cafe. Her heart skipped a beat as they shouted the words that would rock her world. The couple in the caf\u00e9 looked precisely like their parents, who d.i.e.d two years ago. Grief transforms you in ways you never expected. Some days …\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":88044,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[657,642],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-88041","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-love-and-relationships","category-moral-story"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88041","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/30"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=88041"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88041\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":88045,"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/88041\/revisions\/88045"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/88044"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=88041"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=88041"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/echowoven.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=88041"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/timelesslife.info%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/11%5C/Screenshot_5.jpg%5C%22 "\\"\\"")
![\"\"](%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/timelesslife.info%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/11%5C/Screenshot_1-1.jpg%5C%22 "\\"\\"")
I immediately contacted the bank\u2019s customer service hotline.\n
![\"\"](%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/timelesslife.info%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/11%5C/8.jpg%5C%22 "\\"\\"")
![\"\"](%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/timelesslife.info%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/11%5C/Screenshot_2-1.jpg%5C%22 "\\"\\"")
Then I contacted my closest friend, Ella. I informed her about the unusual letter and the transaction on Monica\u2019s card.\n
![\"\"](%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/timelesslife.info%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/11%5C/Screenshot_3-1.jpg%5C%22 "\\"\\"")
![\"\"](%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/timelesslife.info%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/11%5C/Screenshot_4-1.jpg%5C%22 "\\"\\"")
![\"\"](%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/timelesslife.info%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/11%5C/Screenshot_6.jpg%5C%22 "\\"\\"")
![\"\"](%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/timelesslife.info%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/11%5C/Screenshot_7-1.jpg%5C%22 "\\"\\"")
They followed a shell-lined walk to a cottage covered in flowering grapevines.\n
![\"\"](%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/timelesslife.info%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/11%5C/Screenshot_8.jpg%5C%22 "\\"\\"")
![\"\"](%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/timelesslife.info%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/11%5C/Screenshot_9.jpg%5C%22 "\\"\\"")
The police cars arrived, and two officers approached fast but cautiously.\n
![\"\"](%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/timelesslife.info%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/11%5C/Screenshot_10.jpg%5C%22 "\\"\\"")
![\"\"](%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/timelesslife.info%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/11%5C/Screenshot_11.jpg%5C%22 "\\"\\"")
My heart sank as I listened to their narrative, yet resentment lingered beneath my sorrow.\n
![\"\"](%5C%22https:%5C/%5C/timelesslife.info%5C/wp-content%5C/uploads%5C/2024%5C/11%5C/Screenshot_12.jpg%5C%22 "\\"\\"")