Reflections

[Zetti]

Story Title: Reflections

Type of story: Long Fic

Main Characters: Nicole, Mia, Angelo, Roman, Aden and OC's

BTTB rating: T/A

Genre: General

Does story include spoilers: Nope

Any warnings? Will warn if necessary

Summary: Set a year later after Revelations, a shock comes to Nicole/Angelo but what is it and how will it change their lives?

This Fic is dedicated to Marigoldy for the creative help she has given me when I was planning this fic. Much appreciated Tele!

Part One

'It is going to be tough tomorrow' Aden noted to Roman as he walked back into the kitchen after his shift at the diner

'I know, Nicole is still struggling to keep it together' Roman said as he sat down 'She has been so resilient and now the fact that it's a year tomorrow.

'She has gone back to how she was after Rob died' Aden added

Aden shook his head in despair, he hated seeing Nicole in pain, and it had been a year since Rob died and she was just an empty vessel of pain, anger but she had Mia and Angelo.

Neither of them could make up for the fact that Rob was gone but Nicole needed to heal. The old saying that time heals is true, he could attest to that face especially since he had been through that with Belle.

He missed her but he knew that if he hadn't moved on then he would probably not be here right now, he was in a better place now because he had learnt to miss her but not dwell on it.

'She will need our support, she really will' Roman put in.

'She has Angelo' Aden said and refused to let Roman put him down, Aden knew what happened to them both and at first just like Roman, he was angry that Nicole had taken him back despite the fact that Angelo hated himself.

'I know, but we are her family as well'

'I know, I know'

Roman asked Aden 'How was your date?'

Aden looked at him in surprise. He didn't think Roman would ask how it was not when it was the memorial tomorrow.

'Aden?' Roman asked a few minutes later when he didn't get a response.

'For a first date, it was okay'

'Just okay?'

'Well. She works with me, it's a bit awkward and strange' Aden admitted

'Why?'

Aden didn't respond, he didn't know to tell Roman that she was there when Rob died, that she was his own method of coping, he talked to her because he didn't know what else to say'

'To be honest, I haven't really dated much since…'

Roman nodded as he understood what it was that Aden was trying to relay to him. He smiled at him.

'You don't need to hide the fact that you are dating her, you know, you deserve to be happy'

'Thanks Roman'

**

'Time does heal' Angelo said to the crowd that had gathered at Stewarts Point to remember Rob.

'We haven't forgotten Rob and with every day that has passed we miss him. Our hearts were shattered but your support and love over the past year has helped us both get to where we are today, both Nicole and I are incredibly grateful for your support and we want to say thank you for coming to this memorial. We also wanted to say thank you to Brax for supplying us with a bench and a plaque. It means a lot'

Brax looked on & returned a smile to Nicole and Angelo. He wasn't surprised that Angelo and Nicole had got back together and stayed married, they both knew what they wanted and he wasn't one to be soppy but he thought that they were right for each other.

Nicole looked at the plaque, the weeks after Rob's death left this gaping hole inside her and she didn't know how to get rid of it, she needed to heal.

She was surprised to learn that Angelo had gone for counselling and it made her realise that maybe counselling was the best option for her so that she could move on.

It had taken them 8 months to get back to where they were before that night and Nicole had never been happier.

She could finally envisage a future, albeit it was sad as well because Rob wasn't going to be part of that future but she held him in her heart and she knew that Angelo did as well.

Angelo whispered into Nicole's ears 'You want to head back? Mia will be waiting'

She turned and looked him into the eyes. 'Thanks'

'For what?' he asked as she took his hand in hers.

'For everything, for being patient as we got our relationship back on track'

'I would do anything for you and Mia'

'I know you would' Nicole said as they made their way home. They walked to the door and found an envelope on the floor.

Angelo picked it up and looked at it. He turned it over and all he found was the words:

Nicole & Angelo Rosetta

Angelo looked at Nicole who looked as confused as he felt. He walked into the lounge and Nicole closed the door. Their curiosity had been piqued. Angelo sat on the sofa and Nicole sat next to him.

'Open it'

He opened it and lifted out a piece of paper and as he put the envelope down, a photo fell out but neither of them noticed it as their attention was on the photo. Nicole picked it up and gasped in shock.

Angelo frowned and looked at the paper with the words written on. 'Got your attention now.'

'This is too weird' Nicole said before anger started to surface 'This has to be a joke'

'Not a very funny one' Angelo scoffed.

They both sat there staring at the paper, neither of them knew what to make of it, it was very confusing and they both had no idea what to do.

'How can it be?' Nicole asked again as the phone rang, they were both glad that it had rung, it was a small distraction from the piece of paper.

'Hello'

'Is this Nicole?'

She frowned and Angelo gestured for her to put it on speaker.

'It is'

'Is your husband there?'

'Who are you?' Angelo asked as Nicole sat next to him. She held onto his arm, somehow they both knew that the photo wasn't fake, it was real.

'You will find out in good time'

'What do you want?' Nicole asked with fury creeping into her tone.

'I have what I want but I want you as well

'Why?'

'You ripped his heart out'

Angelo was confused 'Hold on. Whose heart?'

'My brother's'

Who is your brother' she asked.

'Penn'

Nicole sucked in her breath as she heard that name; the jerk was still screwing her over even when he was six feet under.

'What was with the letter?' Angelo asked

He heard a laugh. 'Haven't you seen the photo?'

'What photo?' Nicole asked as Angelo put his hand into the envelope again and pulled out a photo. It was a clear picture of Rob holding yesterday's coastal news.

For a few moments, he didn't know what to say or do but he came back down to reality as Nicole gasped.

'How the hell…'

'It can't be' Angelo said as he dropped the photo in shock. They both watched as it landed on the floor below them, they had no idea what to do next. The whole thing was very confusing and strange for them both.

**

Hehe, I scared you all didn't I! But on a serious note, would I really kill off an innocent little child! You should all hang your head in shame!

[Zetti]

A/N: This chapter is set in the months between Revelations and the beginning of this story. It jumps several months in the latter half of this chapter

Part Two

11 months ago

‘So baby, we will have some fun, wont we’

Rob looked up at her. ‘I want my mummy’ he whimpered.

‘I am your mummy now Rob, don’t worry, we will have fun’

Rob recoiled in the small bed that he lay in, he wanted his teddy and his mother, he wanted his dad to hug him and he wanted his Granddad to get rid of any monsters in the closet but most of all what he wanted was to be at home.

He was scared but this woman that he didn’t even know wouldn’t let him go home. She kept saying that he was at home but it wasn’t his home, he lived in a big house with his family and his toys.

‘I want my teddy’ he insisted later on that night as she tried to tuck him up in his bed.

‘I will buy you a new one’

‘I want my teddy, my mickey mouse teddy’

She sighed. She didn’t really think that he would be so attached to his belongings but she had to see this plan through.

‘So how is my little man doing?’

Rob glared at him. He didn't like him, he was a horrible man and he hated it when he called him his little man.

‘Complaining’

‘He got that from Nicole’

‘I bet he did’ she smirked and smiled as they both walked out of the room and locked the door so that Rob couldn’t get out.

**

The funeral dawned, the past few days had been so painful for them all. Nicole had shut herself away from everyone apart from Angelo. She needed him to be there. Mia spent all of her time curled up on the bed between them both. Neither of them wanted to let her out of their sight.

‘It’s time’ Roman said as he walked into the room.

‘Take Mia’ Nicole said

‘I need a few moments alone’

Angelo nodded and picked Mia up. They had both decided that it wasn’t a good idea that Mia attended the small service that they had organised. She still hadn’t grasped the fact that Rob was no longer around.

‘She wants a few moments with Angelo’ Roman said to Aden as Mia reached out for him. It was strange how quickly Mia had grown attached to Aden but Aden didn’t complain, he loved Mia and he wanted to be in their lives.

‘Don’t blame her, she shouldn’t be burying him.’ Aden said quietly.

Roman agreed and was about to respond when Nicole and Angelo walked into the room. ‘You go ahead, we will follow’ Nicole said

Aden handed Mia over to Irene who had agreed to watch Mia, none of them thought that Mia should be around that situation, it was hard enough and it would hurt Nicole and Angelo if they had to watch Mia be in pain, it was a horrible situation and Irene really did wish that she could get

A while later…

Nicole stood up at Stewarts point and watched as people gathered in front of her.

‘Thanks everyone for attending, you have no idea how much it means to me to see so many people here to support me and Angelo’

Angelo gripped her hand as she begun to tremble and took over ‘He was our beautiful son, we love him. We can’t thank you all enough for the support you have given us through the past few weeks and we thank you also in advance for all the support I know you will offer us.’

Nicole spoke up ‘I am not a big speech writer but I found a small saying that I want to tell you all’

‘The dead they sleep a long, long sleep;

The dead they rest, and their rest is deep;

The dead have peace, but the living weep.’

Roman had tears falling out of his eyes. He looked over at Roo who was sat with Morag. He had pushed her away and forced her to break off her relationship with him. They both missed each other but Roman had his pride, he wasn’t going to take the first step,

‘Talk to her’ Aden urged, he could see that it broke Roman’s heart not be next to her but he was stubborn & Roman refused to make the first move.

Aden turned his attention back to Nicole who had begun talking again.

‘We will never forget you baby, Rest in Peace Rob’

**

Few months later

‘Are we going to talk?’ Roo asked Roman as she packed the last of her things into a box. They had been split up for a while but neither of them wanted it.

‘What’s to say?’

‘Oh how about why are we doing this when it is clear that we don’t want to be apart?’

Roman shrugged his shoulders. Roo wanted to shake him and tell him that she loved him. She had never dreamed that he would push her away.

She didn’t want break the relationship off but he was one stubborn jerk and she honestly thought that if she pushed him away then he might wake up and realise that they were meant to be together.

‘It’s over, there is no point dwelling on it’

Roo sighed and picked her box up ‘Fine, I told you then and I will tell you now, I love you but I won’t wait forever’

Roman wanted to grab her right there and then but his pride stopped him. He wasn’t going to make the first move.

**

Nicole and Angelo had finally decided that they should be back together with the help of Aden who had made them both see that despite it all, all the pain that they had been through and still experiencing was partly because they weren’t helping each other through the pain

‘We have to accept it’ Angelo said sadly to Nicole ‘He’s gone.’

‘I know, but I still think he will come running through the door and jump on the bed’

‘With his teddy’

Nicole smiled, Rob always loved that teddy, and Angelo bought it for him for his first birthday. He heard Nicole sniff a few moments later and she moved along the bed till she was snuggled up in his arms.

They had their fair share of problems over the past few months but Angelo had gone into counselling and she was coming to terms with the fact that Rob was gone, he was actually gone, she would never be able to hold him or tell him off for running when he shouldn’t be. She felt tears pooling in her eyes but she steeled herself, she couldn’t cry, not today, it was hard enough.

**

[Zetti]

& as promised, here is the next update. Hope you all like it

Part Three

‘I think we should tell the police’ Nicole said later on that night when they got into bed, they didn’t know what to do but they knew they had to do something,

‘I don’t think that is a good idea’ Angelo admitted.

‘Why not?’

Nicole propped herself up on her elbow and looked at him waiting for a reply.

‘We will sound crazy’ Angelo said

‘We have the photo, the paper and the phone call’ Nicole reasoned

He had to agree with Nicole, they did have some proof that something had happened, especially the photo.

‘I know, but we have spent so long battling Rob’s death and the grief, I don’t think people will believe us’

‘Well…’ Nicole didn’t have a response, what could she say?

The door creaked open. ‘Mama?’

Nicole sat up and reproachfully said ‘Mia, you should be asleep’

‘I had a nightmare’ she said clutching her small teddy to her face and sniffed.

Angelo smiled at her reassuringly & lifted the covers. He picked her up and put her in the middle of them both. Mia nestled her head into Angelo’s arms and Nicole kissed her forehead. Mia looked up at Nicole with her angelic look that she had seen so many times before.

‘Can I sleep here?’

Angelo grinned; he knew that Mia would ask Nicole because every time she asked him, Angelo would refuse.

‘Only for tonight, but tomorrow, you have to sleep in your own bed missy’

‘Promise Mama’

Nicole couldn’t help but giggle when Mia said that, she had missed the closeness with her family, when they got Rob back, she knew her family would be complete and that nothing was going to break them apart, she wouldn’t let anything break them apart.

‘I will drop Mia off and then I need to go to the bank to sort out the loans’ Angelo mentioned to Nicole the next morning.

‘Mama. I can’t find my shoes’

‘Near the door Mia’

Mia ran to the door and she shouted back ‘Found them!’

Nicole smiled and finished putting Mia’s lunch into her lunchbox. Angelo draped his arms around her waist and nuzzled her neck. Nicole pushed him away slightly and turned around ‘Not here!’ but she couldn’t help but grin back at him.

Angelo grinned and kissed her before pulling away but keeping his arms wrapped around her, he kissed the tip of her nose before grabbing Mia’s lunch and making his way towards the door.

‘Don’t miss me too much’ Angelo said

Nicole laughed ‘I won’t don’t worry!’

**

‘I think it’s time’ he said

‘To do what?’

His face broke out in a sinister smile. ‘To reveal our identity, they now know Rob is alive, and I am sure soon they will be trying to find him if they aren’t already.’

Stacey frowned. ‘Are you sure?’

‘I am. Trust me I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t have to’

‘So the main aim to get Nicole back?’

He smiled and nodded. ‘I just want Nicole back in my life. We were good together’

Stacey wasn’t sure if he was doing this just for Nicole, he always had ulterior motives but she had no choice but to submit to what he wanted.

‘Once they know who we are?’

‘Well…’ he faltered. He didn’t think he should reveal his plan to Stacey, she had done her part, it had been a long way to get to this stage & he had no plans to ruin a good thing.

‘What about Rob?’

‘he’s coming with us’ he said confidently

‘Why? Isnt that risky? They might get him back?’

He smiled. He knew that she was rattled but he wasn’t afraid, he had no intention of letting his plan be derailed but if they did get Rob back then maybe that wasn’t such a bad thing, might make it easier for him to put his plan into action.

There were a few complications though, her father was around, he hadn’t factored that into his plan but nevertheless, he was certain that he would be able to figure it out.

How much harm could he be? He didn’t know however that Aden was also back on the scene & the two of them could be deadly when they were partnered together. He hadn’t planned out his return to Summer Bay as such but he knew he would be back and making Nicole his once again & whatever he wanted he got, he had never lost before and he had no intention on losing again,

**

So who do you think he is? I would love to hear your theories…

[Zetti]

Thanks Lucii.

Part Four

Angelo left Mia on the sofa watching SpongeBob. He joined Nicole in the kitchen. ‘We need to tell Roman and Aden’

‘I still think the police should know’

Angelo sighed warily. ‘Are you sure you want to do that?’

‘I don’t know’ she admitted. She didn’t know whether involving the police was a good thing but she needed to do something.

Every night they spent without Rob ripped the remaining pieces of heart into bits and she hated that feeling.

‘So are we telling Roman?’

‘& Aden’ Nicole said as she nodded.

‘I will call them over tonight, after Mia is in bed’

Nicole sighed and nodded. Angelo wrapped his arms around her slender frame and she hugged him. She was intensely grateful that she had him and that he wasn’t going anywhere.

**

‘You need to be careful, I told you about her father and Aden’

‘I know, trust me. Roman might be ex SAS, but he has no idea who I am’ he spoke with confidence but Stacey was still very wary. He had this charm about him but it was creepy at the same time.

‘Well, I wouldn’t be so sure’ she said as she gave Rob some food, he had begun to accept that he wasn’t going anywhere because he didn’t complain anymore when they both put him into bed.

‘What do you mean?’

‘Obviously Nicole will have told him all about you or if he hasn’t then Angelo will have’

‘Stacey, relax’

‘I need to make sure this is for the right reasons. Tyler deserves that much’ she shot back.

He rolled his eyes at her. ‘I know, trust me soon, your part will be over.’

‘Not if I end up in prison’

He sighed, she was a hard one to keep control of but he wasn’t going to need her much longer, he had to admit, getting Stacey in the plan was a stroke of genius and he couldn’t wait to see the look on Nicole’s face when she realises that Angelo got his one night stand pregnant.

‘You won’t, not if I can help it’ he put in but he was lying, but then again, she didn’t know that.

Stacey couldn’t see a happy ending but she had to protect her son, her baby, she wasn’t going to ruin his life, not if she could help it.

She wouldn’t let it hurt him, if she could help it, she loved him with all her life and she would do anything for them.

‘Rob, you want to go to the park?’

Rob looked at him, he wasn’t sure if he should, he still didn’t like him. He didn’t mind Stacey, she was nice to him but he didn’t like him but he was scared of him and he wasn’t sure what was going to happen.

‘Sure Mummy.’

He smiled at Rob but Rob wasn’t looking at him. Stacey picked him up and took him to the kitchen where they put on his boots and coat.

Rob walked to his room where he picked up his ‘new’ teddy that she had bought for him. He did wonder why his mummy didn’t want him.

Flashback

Rob looked up at her. ‘I want my mummy’ he whimpered. He had just come around and he didn’t like the place where he was. It was cold and there were no windows. He didn’t like the dark. His mummy would always give him a kiss and a cuddle.

‘They don’t want you’ she said gently, she had no intention of hurting him, she was a mother herself, he was forcing her to play this role and she hated it but she had to do it, she had no other choice in the matter.

‘Look’

Rob could see Nicole and Angelo playing with Mia on the beach from a distance. Stacey whispered into his ears. ‘They are having fun without you’

Rob closed his eyes and shook his adamantly. ‘They don’t know I am here that’s why’

Stacey wanted to let him got to them but she had to put her son first and so she put her hands on Rob’s shoulders and he knew that she wouldn’t let him go.

‘They don’t want you’

Rob moved his eyes upwards and looked at Mia laughing with his mummy. Tears began to pool in his eyes. He wanted to be with them but Stacey’s words had begun to make an impact.

What if they don’t want me?

Maybe I wasn’t good enough for them?

Was I really naughty?

Stacey saw his face crumple up and she hated him for making her the bad guy in all this. If it wasn’t for Tyler and her link to Angelo, she wouldn’t be in this position but she was split in two, she was a mother and she knew how she would feel if she was Nicole.

She thought to herself, the saving grace has to be that she thinks he is dead, so she isn’t going through he pain of knowing he is out there somewhere but she knew that if her son was dead, she would feel this empty void inside of her, it would be very painful and it would destroy her.

‘Come on, I will get you some food and you can watch some cartoons’ Rob sniffed and took the hand that she held out. He took one look at the scene in front of him and the tears fell and then he walked away.

End of Flashback

**

[Zetti]

This chapter is a flashback...

Warning: Sexual Content

Part Five

Stacey could see her baby sleeping in the cot, it had been such a long labour and she could feel tiredness taking her away into a lulling sleep but somehow she kept her eyes open & fixated on her baby.

He was so tiny, and yet so precious.

‘Stacey’ she heard a voice come from somewhere, she didn’t want to move her eyes from the small bundle of joy which has given her life renewed meaning.

Before getting pregnant, her whole life was revolving around being the perfect ‘daughter’ and she couldn’t even pull that off.

She wanted to give her son the love & the stability that she never had.

‘You have a visitor’ she heard the nurse say.

She frowned ‘Who?’

‘He says you know him’

‘Did he leave a name?’

‘He said he was a friend back in Melbourne?’ the nurse said sensing that the whole situation was quite dangerous. ‘I can call security’ she said in hushed tones.

She said ‘Let him in’ and the nurse nodded.

‘What do you want?’ she asked as he circled the cot and smiled at the baby.

'So have you thought about my offer' he drawled making her cringe as he trailed his fingers up her arm.

'I can’t do it. I have my baby to look after'

He looked steely at her making her feel visibly sick. He moved his eyes from her to her baby, he picked him up & Stacey knew that she would have to do anything that he wanted her to do.

'Fine, I will do whatever you want'

He smiled. 'Whenever?'

She nodded, incapable of voicing her response to him; she was terrified of him not for her own safety but for her baby.

'So what do I do?' she asked when he put her son back in his cot & she looked at him

'All in good time, don’t worry but first things first, you will be coming to live with me'

She frowned but didn't question him. She figured that he would be keeping her close to him in case she decided to try and run.

'When are you being discharged?'

'The doctor said tomorrow morning'

He looked into her eyes to try and gauge whether or not she was lying or not and after a few moments, he was satisfied that she wasn’t.

**

A few years later (just after the end of revelations)

Stacey hated the fact that she had to stay here for so long. She had been stuck in this place for nearly 6 years, she could barely spend time with Tyler as ‘he’ wouldn’t allow it. He thought it was distracting for her.

‘Stacey’ she heard him call and her insides recoiled out of disgust, night had fallen and every night she had to submit to him and his ‘needs’

‘So not long till we enact our plan’ he mentioned a few moments later when she got under the covers next to him.

He trailed his fingers up his arm and then straddled her. She had to smile at him and nod ‘Not long’

‘So Julianne will be in the room’ he said as he hitched her nightie up and kissed her neck. She draped her hands around his neck and arched her neck as an invitation to kiss her further but she hated it when he touched her.

He makes me feel dirty, she thought, but she submitted to him every night. She pulled his shirt off and he pulled her panties off. She lifted herself off the bed as he pulled her nightie off and threw it across the room.

‘& I will be in the morgue’ she said as he pulled his boxers down. He moved her hand down and she moved with his body, he moaned slightly as she touched him. She varied the touches and it made him moan even louder.

‘Good, so you are ready’ he commented as she moved her hands away and kissed him gently on the lips.

She nodded and she closed her eyes as she always did when it got to this stage, it physically hurt her to submit to him but she knew that she had to. He entered her slowly and she trembled but he didn’t take any notice. He just carried on till he was satisfied, the whole process was about exerting his control on her, she was just a pawn in the whole game and he loved that.

‘Wow’ he commented once he had pulled out of her.

She curled up as he moved off her but a few moments later, he looked at her ‘Oh and when we move as part of the plan, Tyler won’t be with us’

Stacey looked at him like he was crazy ‘What?’

‘He will stay here with a few friends of mine, don’t worry he will be perfectly safe. I promise.’

She didn’t know what to say to that and he knew that she was rattled but he couldn’t risk her getting distracted from the task at hand. Tyler would come later on.

‘Stacey?’

‘Okay. But with who?’

‘Don’t worry about that’ he said as he kissed her again and she knew that she would have to submit to him again as always.

‘So when are we doing this?’

‘Soon’

**

[Zetti]

Sorry for the delay in posting this chapter but it is ready now. I have to thank and credit Tele for helping me!

I love you for that.

Part Six

Nicole put Mia under the covers and wrapped her up warm. She closed her eyes and snuggled down, within moments she was fast asleep. Angelo was lent against the doorframe, waiting for her. Nicole moved away from the bed torn between staying and going with Angelo down the stairs. She wanted to keep Mia safe but she also wanted Rob back. She needed Rob back.

She had spent the last year grieving for Rob, almost coming to terms with the harsh reality that he was dead only to find out that he wasn’t. It felt like a dream, she didn’t know how it could be true, and if it was just a dream she didn’t want to wake up.

‘Did she go straight to asleep?’ Angelo asked as Nicole walked towards him. He didn’t move from his position by the door, just waiting for Nic to reach him. He said nothing for a moment just wrapped his arms around her and held her against him.

‘Yep,’ he said as he kissed her forehead and squeezed her hand.

The next conversation they were both going to have is going to be hard on them both and he wasn’t entirely sure if she would be able to cope.

‘You okay?’ he asked softly, as she pushed herself closer to him. He could sense that she was still taking in the events of the day.

So much had happened. Nicole was still fragile and grieving for Rob, only to find out that he was alive, it was enough to shake them both but he was worried about her.

‘I will be when we get Rob back,’ she whispered wary of Mia in the room behind them. Angelo moved out of the way and Nicole closed the door quietly before they made their way to the lounge where Roman and Aden were waiting for them. Nicole & Angelo knew that they both needed their help whether they liked it or not.

‘Are you going to tell us why you called us here?’ Roman asked looking at his daughter first before Angelo.

Angelo walked to the cabinet and pulled out the envelope containing the single sheet of paper and the photo inside. Nicole stopped him, and gestured for him to give her the envelope.

What is it?’ Aden asked

‘We found it today when we got back from the memorial,’ Nicole started and then looked at the envelope. She handed it over to her father who opened it slowly and Angelo looked at him to try and gauge his reaction.

Aden leant over and saw the photo before he looked up at Nicole and Angelo in shock.

‘Is that…’

‘Yes’ Angelo said, feeling Nicole tremble again with the memory of seeing the photo.

It made her heart break again and she hated knowing that he was alive and not being able to see or hold him. It tore her heart into fresh pieces matching the pain that she had felt when she was at Rob’s funeral.

‘How is this possible?’ Roman asked before he looked at a confused Aden.

‘It can’t be. I was there, I…’ he faltered as he remembered calling the time of death, he had no idea how it could be possible for Rob to be alive.

‘Who was there with you?’ Angelo asked as his former police intuition kicked in.

‘The nurse and me, that was it,’ Aden said.

‘Who was the nurse?’

‘Julianne,’ Aden said feeling as though he had been punched in the solar plexus.

Roman frowned and looked over at Aden who looked away as soon as he caught the expression on his face.

Nicole was confused. ‘What is it?’

‘Tell them’ Roman commanded not meaning it to come across sounding callous.

‘I have sort of, been dating Julianne,’ Aden confessed.

Nicole rocked back on her heels. She didn’t even know that Aden was dating anyone but she didn’t care about that, she needed to know if she had Rob or at least if she knew it was.

‘You need to call her and put it on speaker, so we can see if it is the same person’ Angelo said after a few moments

‘Same person?’ Roman looked at Nicole.

‘A woman rang us and made it clear that the photo is not a fake,’ Nicole mentioned a few moments later when she had got her breath back.

Aden wasted no time in getting his phone and dialling Julianne. Angelo put his arm around Nicole; he knew that she was going to be scared.

‘Hello?’

‘Hey, it’s Aden’

‘Hi.’

‘I was wondering, do you want to meet up sometime?’ he said looking at Nicole who shook her head indicating that it wasn’t her.

‘Sure, but I am busy this week with shifts so maybe next week?’

‘Sounds good. How about you let me know when you are free and we can organise something?’

‘Great, I will do that, I am actually in the middle of something right now, and can we talk later?’

‘Of course, see you at work.’ he said.

‘See you’

Aden was confused. ‘She has to know something; we were the only two people there.’

‘Was she an existing nurse or?’

‘I don’t know,’ Aden admitted ‘I only just started that day’

Angelo nodded watching as Nicole walked into the kitchen. He knew that she didn’t want to be there when they started throwing conspiracy theories around.

Nicole sighed feeling dejected and sad, pain soared through her but she had to keep her mask on because Mia needed her, however inside she actually had no idea how she appeared to be so calm and collected when she just really wanted to fall apart.

‘We will find him and bring him back’ Roman said just as Nicole poured herself a glass of wine. He’d followed her into the kitchen knowing she needed some reassurance. And although he could offer her little enough of that he had to try.

Nicole moved the glass of wine to her mouth before she heard footsteps in the garden. She frowned and she made her way to the window so she could see who it was.

‘Nic?’ Angelo asked coming through to the kitchen as he heard her cry out.

Roman strode to the window and cursed. ‘It might be her but then… ‘

Angelo nodded ‘It might not be, but we need to know, we can’t just let her stay out there’ he put in.

‘Agreed’ Roman said.

‘What are we going to do?’ Nicole asked as Roman blocked her view of the window, although to be honest he wasn’t sure what the next point of action was going to be.

‘She is in the car now,’ Roman muttered to himself trying to figure out whether or not it was worth going outside, because there was a risk that she might drive away but then he thought to himself, why is she here is it because she wants to talk?

‘Who is in the car? What is going on?’ Nicole asked, she had no idea what the hell was going on but she didn’t want to wait to find out.

‘Nic. Stay here’ Roman said as he walked towards the back door. ‘Stay here,’ he said again but he knew that Nicole wouldn’t listen and groaned when she made her way to follow him. Angelo reached out and stopped her.

‘I need to see her’ She told him but she really wanted to shake her and make her give Rob back. She needed her son back in her life, their lives.

‘No, it will make the situation worse’ Angelo reasoned with her. He didn’t want to place her in any danger but he was wary of the whole situation.

**

[Zetti]

Thanks everyone. Here is the next chapter.

& again I credit Tele for the help

Part Seven

‘Who are you?’ Roman asked as he approached the car. He knew that he had to tread carefully and he also knew that Aden had been clever enough to get to the car from the other side.

She chuckled as she stepped out of the car.

‘I will only talk to Nicole’

‘Like hell you will!’ Roman enunciated carefully, forgetting to be cautious in his protection of his daughter.

‘Get her out here’

Roman wasn’t sure how viable the threat was but he didn’t want to put Rob into a situation where he may actually end up dead this time but Aden shook his head when he moved away from the car indicating that he’d seen nothing that posed a threat.

‘So who are you?’ Roman asked taking a half step back.

‘I will only talk to Nicole. I won’t say it again’

Aden piped up

‘I know you, Stacey isn’t it?’

Nicole’s ears perked up and she raced over to where they were.

‘Stacey? She said recognising the name, she didn’t know how but she did.

‘She was working in the hospital the night ‘Rob’ supposedly died; she was responsible for taking the body to the morgue." Aden told her.

Nicole hissed and Aden held her away from Stacey. ‘How did you do it?’

‘Remember, you were going to check his pulse and Julianne ‘dropped’ the syringe?’

Aden nodded. ‘What did Julianne give him?’

‘Well, let’s just say, it was enough to slow his heart down to pretty much a stop, worked well’ she smirked.

Nicole looked at her and wanted to do nothing more than slap the smug grin off of her face. She didn’t know why she didn’t, maybe it was because Aden was holding her back physically but deep down she knew it was because she might hurt Rob and she wasn’t prepared to risk that at all even if she knew slapping her would definitely make her feel better.

‘Why are you doing this?’ She asked in a quiet voice.

Stacey wanted to retort back but she saw the pain in Nicole’s eyes, she knew only too well how much it hurt not to have your own kid with you. She never wanted to get put in this position but she didn’t know what to do.

‘I…’

Nicole shook Aden off. ‘Tell me’

‘I have to, he has…’

Aden frowned, he sensed that Stacey was hurting and he wanted to make sure that Nicole didn’t get hurt.

‘Who?’ Aden asked as he stepped away from Nicole slightly.

‘We can help you’ Nicole added.

Stacey scoffed. She didn’t want to pass up on the offer of help but he was manipulative and he had her son, her baby, she wasn’t going to risk anything happening to him.

He was her life and while she did feel sorry for Nicole because she was in the position as her, she had to weigh up who was more important and without hesitation, it was Tyler, he would always come first.

‘I can’t, he will kill me & take my son’

‘Your son?’

Nicole frowned. ‘Hold on, you said you were Penn’s sister?’

‘He wanted me to say that, to make you guys look for her.’

Aden asked ‘Who is Julianne then?’

‘Unlucky. He manipulated her into helping him. Nothing more than that."

Angelo made his way to the front door to see if anything was going on. He walked around to the alleyway around the back. Nothing could have prepared him for the sight that he saw.

Nothing at all.

**

[Zetti]

Thanks everyone for the comments

& dont worry about it Amy

Thanks Tele for the help.

Warning: Use of language.

Part Eight

Angelo gasped and the figure moved away slightly which incidentally made it easier for him to see the man fully.

‘How?’ Angelo gasped out his mind whirling as the connections were made inside his head.

He smirked at him. ‘So how has the past year been without my son?’

‘You bastard!’

Penn smirked yet again, it was so easy to get Angelo wound up but he wanted more than that, he wanted Nicole to suffer for inflicting this man on his son. He’d wanted to come back the moment he found out that Nicole was pregnant, but circumstances prevented him. By the time he’d had made plans to come back, Angelo had taken over his role as Nicole’s partner.

‘He’s my son;’ Penn told him smugly, reminding Angelo that he could never claim to be Rob’s biological father.

‘You are supposed to be dead’ Angelo said dismissing his previous comment.

‘Am I?’ his grin threatened to take over his face. Angelo saw Rob peeking out from behind a dumpster that was just a few metres away.

Rob looked terrified and Angelo really wanted to punch Penn and grab Rob but he couldn’t, he couldn’t and what’s more, he wouldn’t. He wouldn’t do anything that physically hurt Rob. He knew that Penn was a nasty piece of work and that also he was very unpredictable there was no way he’d be able to get to Rob just like that.

Roman had managed to get away from the girl by allowing Nicole to talk to her; he could hear something from the alleyway and went to investigate.

He could see Rob and someone else, he could tell that whoever it was had made Angelo angry, but Roman’s focus was on Rob and trying to get his attention. The boy was fixated on Angelo. It was understandable but he needed to get closer to him.

He’d had training to deal with these types of situations but it was different when it was personal, he still couldn’t believe that he was just a short distance from Rob.

A living and breathing Rob.

Angelo spotted Roman behind Rob and Angelo shifted himself slightly on one foot, Penn didn’t make anything of it but it allowed Rob to hear something from behind him.

He looked up at Penn, who made him call him Daddy but he didn’t like calling him that, he sniffed silently but Penn was smirking at Angelo and didn’t notice Rob getting antsy.

He knew that he could hear something but he was scared that if he moved then he might hit him or try and hurt him.

‘I want mummy’ he sniffed, calling out.

Penn was irked when Rob spoke but it broke the others’ hearts to hear him say that. It made it hit home that he had been away from them for so long. Roman edged closer, he knew exactly how to keep quiet and get to Rob. He gestured to Angelo to make Rob keep his eyes on him.

‘Sport, are you okay?’ Angelo asked knowing that it would annoy Penn but he wanted to reassure Rob that he was still part of the family no matter what Penn had said to him.

‘Don’t talk to him, he isn’t your son’ Penn called out his voice showing his lack of self-control.

‘You weren’t there when he took his first step’ Angelo shot back ‘or when he went to school for the first time.’

Penn picked him up. ‘Tell him behind me to back off otherwise; you will not like what happens next’

‘Dad...’ Rob whined as he looked at Angelo.

Penn was incredibly irked that Rob still saw Angelo as his father but he had to expect that, he was never going to see him as his dad until he had Nicole back in his life. His Nicole. He could forgive her for getting with Angelo but now he was back and she would be his once more.

Roman stood up.

‘If you think you are going anywhere with him then you are seriously deluded,’ He called out.

‘I am going to walk out of here with him’ he said to them both.

Angelo looked at Roman with a defeated look that made Penn smile.

‘You really think I will let you walk out of here with my son’ Angelo growled.

Penn simply moved Rob’s jacket to reveal small square packages of C4 explosive strapped to a waistcoat with a variety of multi-coloured wires amongst them under Rob’s jacket making both Angelo and Roman freeze.

If they tried to get to Rob it was possible that Penn wouldn’t hesitate to press the button but a thought occurred to Roman, why would Penn blow himself up? What would he achieve?

What was the point behind these distractions? Both Stacy out the front and Penn here. Just as a possibility occurred to him he heard a high pitched scream coming from the house.

Nicole froze when she heard the scream. She knew immediately that it was Mia, in all the panic to see what was happening, they had all forgotten about a sleeping Mia. Thinking that she was safe in the house.

Aden ran into the house and headed up the stairs as fast as he could moments behind Nicole.

Roman looked back but he wasn’t sure if he should leave Angelo alone with Penn and Rob.

‘Go!’ Angelo called out to the other man.

Roman didn’t hesitate, he ran back into the house and joined Aden and Nicole in Mia’s room.

Nicole was sat on her daughter’s empty bed holding onto her blanket.

Aden was stood his back to the scene looking out of the window and cursing.

‘What happened?’ Roman asked as he strode to the bed and held onto Nicole.

‘She’s gone, I don’t know who or how, but she is gone.’ Her heart breaking as she spoke. "Both my babies are gone."

**

[Zetti]

Part Nine

‘You should have told us about the photo and the note before’ Charlie chastised them before putting all the available patrols to get and look.

‘We didn’t think you would believe us’ Angelo said as he walked Charlie to do the door.

‘Of course I would have’ Charlie responded but deep down she knew that she probably wouldn’t have believed them. It was not an everyday occurrence but deep down she was glad that Rob was alive but it was bittersweet because

Roman walked into the room; Watson had just finished asking him and Aden some questions. All four of them had been asked so many questions for the past 3 hours since Rob and Mia had disappeared again.

Angelo showed Watson out and knew that the minute he returned to the room, he was going to have to explain what happened.

Angelo walked back in and braced himself for the onslaught of questions but strangely, it didn’t happen.

‘How is he alive?’ Nicole asked Angelo.

‘I wish I knew. I really do’

Roman punched the wall making Nicole jump and Angelo soothed her by pulling her into his arms and kissing her hair.

Nicole couldn’t even describe how she was feeling, there were too many emotions and thoughts bouncing in her head & heart; she didn’t know what was real and what wasn’t.

‘What happened?’ Nicole asked once she had managed to calm down. Angelo sat her down.

‘Are you sure you want to hear this?’

She nodded. He moved his gaze to Aden and Roman who were listening but they didn’t say anything.

‘Okay’ he agreed.

Flashback

Back in the alleyway…

Stacey walked around the corner; she knew that she should be helping Nicole but she wasn’t thinking straight, she didn’t want to risk anything happening to Tyler. Her judgement was impaired but she was a mother first before anything. She hoped that Nicole would accept that but she knew it if the roles were reversed, then she might not be as forgiving. Maternal instincts tend to take over when it comes to protecting them and their welfare becomes your own.

She walked up to Penn and Angelo recoiled in shock.

‘Hi Angelo’ she said knowing that she had just shocked him to his core. Stacey knew that more heartbreak was on the way for him but she had to be selfish. Selfishness was going to save her son & maybe in time get them both away from Penn.

Penn handed Rob to Stacey. She took him in her arms. He took her to much more easily than he did to Penn which made Angelo feel like he had been punched in the guts.

‘Why?’

‘I had to’

Angelo frowned. ‘It was one night, I never meant to hurt you’ he said directly to Stacey.

She nodded ‘I know, I only ever intended it to be one night but it spiralled out of control. Too much has happened’

Angelo was now even more confused than before. ‘What happened?’ he asked moving his gaze from Stacey to Rob who looked terrified, it tugged on Angelo’s heart strings to see his son in so much pain but he didn’t know what to do, whatever he did was going to end up with Rob being hurt.

‘I ended up pregnant’

Penn looked intently at Angelo’s face; his face had been drained of its entire original colour.

‘What...’

‘His name is Tyler and yes he is yours’ Stacey said a few moments later. Penn used this time to take Rob out of Stacey’s arms which made Angelo feel frustrated, he didn’t know what to do, walk back down the alleyway & place Rob in the car. Angelo tried to get past Stacey but she blocked him.

‘He will blow him up’ Stacey said justifying her actions to herself.

‘How can you let him?’ desperately trying to understand, the past year had practically destroyed him and Nicole. He needed to understand Stacey’s reasoning behind it.

Why would she intentionally take his son away from his family, from everything Rob knew?

His stable & happy living environment.

‘He has my son, I have to’

Angelo finally saw the pain and suffering that she had been put under. ‘You need to get away from him’

‘Once I have my son, I will’

Penn shouted ‘Come on’

Angelo nodded ‘You better go, please take care of him’

He didn’t want to let them go, and he knew that Nicole would have killed him if she knew but he didn’t know what else to do, he just hoped that Stacey would get the chance to bring him back to them. He needed her to do that.

He should have been thinking about Nicole & how she would react but for those few moments, he had to admit in shame that he had focused all his energy on Stacey and he was reeling from the fact that he had a son with Stacey.

His eyes remained transfixed on the car door as Rob looked at him with tears in his eyes. He realised that he should at least try and to get to him and so he ran towards the car but by the time he had got to the end of the alleyway.

Stacey had already started the car and sped off at full speed leaving Angelo in tears and crouched on the floor with his head in his hands. He had no idea what to do next. Nicole ran outside and Angelo shot up as she ran into his arms.

‘What is it?’ He looked at her.

Roman answered for Nicole. ‘The whole thing was a distraction to get our attention and take Mia.’

Angelo froze and he felt like his heart had just been ripped out. He pulled Nicole closer to him and Roman left them to it. Angelo closed his eyes and let the rest of his tears fall.

**

[Zetti]

Part Ten

Nicole was still reeling from Angelo’s bombshell, she had ordered her father and Aden to leave the room so that she could talk to Angelo but she wasn’t sure what to say. Aden forced Roman to leave them both alone, Roman was ready to punch Angelo but that wouldn’t have achieved anything, if anything, it would push Nicole away because she detested violence.

Aden had to admit, he wanted to punch Angelo but he didn’t know the full story to do with Stacey so there wasn’t much he could do and he had to be calm so that he could deal with any rash decisions that Roman would probably make.

‘So she was pregnant?’

‘I didn’t know Nicole; otherwise I would have supported her’

Nicole sighed and responded. ‘I know, you would have…’ she faltered off, she didn’t know what else to say to him.

‘But?’ he could sense that she wanted to say something else but was holding back.

‘I can’t be around you right now, the thought of you having a son with her is physically hurting me’ Angelo moved so that he was face to face with her.

‘So what do you want me to do?’

Nicole moved her gaze to the picture on the mantelpiece, there lay a picture that had Rob and Angelo on the beach, they both had goofy grins on their faces. Angelo followed her gaze and he saw her reminiscing about that afternoon, his mind followed Nicole’s as he remembered.

‘Rob…’ Nicole called as she watched her son scramble on the sand trying to get away from Angelo who was intent on tickling him.

‘Mummy!’ he scrambled into Nicole’s lap expecting her to protect him from Angelo but she had a grin on her face as she started to tickle Rob herself. Roo was holding Mia and cooing away.

Angelo looked at them both, it was clear that Mia had his eyes but she had Nicole in her, it was so evident, when Mia smiled, it was the same as Nicole’s.

It made Angelo feel so special and blessed to have such a good family, two children who loved him and vice versa as well as Nicole who had given him her heart and so much happiness.

Nicole shook herself away from the memory, she saw Angelo watching her thoughtfully.

‘I hate you right now but I need you at the same time’ she admitted allowing a tear to fall before wiping it away knowing that more would follow but she didn’t want to show weakness even if it is the way she felt.

Her heart felt so wrecked and annihilated but she had to be strong in the face of everything, breaking down wasn’t going to do her any good but she had to be honest with herself, breaking down seemed like the easy option.

The only option.

**

Roman punched the punch bag in the gym with Aden watching him, he grimaced, he could imagine what was going through his mind, he didn’t know what to say to him.

‘You don’t have to stay, I am not going to punch Angelo’s lights out’

‘I bet you will’

‘I won’t, Aden’ and the tone of his voice made it clear that he was serious. He had no intention of hurting him.

Aden sighed as Roman toweled off & headed to the showers, he decided to leave him to it.

The next day…

Roo spotted Roman on the beach throwing pebbles into the ocean. She didn’t want to talk to him really but yet somehow she felt drawn to him.

‘Hey.’ She said as she stood in front of him.

Roman moved slightly so that she was not completely in front of her. ‘Hi’ he responded gruffly.

‘I heard about Mia’

Roman didn’t move his gaze to her, instead he just kept on throwing pebbles into the ocean, watching the ripples caused by it, for some reason, it calmed him down.

‘Do you want to talk?’ she asked gently.

Roman for the first time since she appeared looked her in the eyes. ‘Not really’

‘What do you want?’ Roo asked gently not really knowing where she wanted this conversation to go. She wanted him to open up but she didn’t want to force it, because he was stubborn and if he clammed up, it would be a hell of a job trying to get him to talk to her again/

He moved himself towards and kissed her hard on the lips. Roo could feel his pain in the kiss but she didn’t resist. She moved herself so that she was pressed up against him. He knew that he shouldn’t be doing this, he was using her to make himself feel better but he didn’t know how to get rid of the void that he was feeling.

He was powerless. He couldn’t even keep Nicole safe, he loved her and yet she had two children taken away from her. He wanted to help but where was he supposed to start?

Roo came to her senses, this wasn’t healthy for either of them & so she pushed him away. Roman looked at her with love in his eyes he truly did miss her but he was no good for her, he just brought pain & misery into the lives of those who he cared about.

‘Don’t’

‘What?’ he asked

‘Stop trying to push me away, I won’t let you’ she bore her eyes into his and made it clear by the sparkle that shone out that she wasn’t going anywhere and that if he tried to resist, he would regret it because she was not going anywhere. Roo grabbed his arm and made him sit down with her.

‘You pushed me away & I get it, you were hurting’

Roman didn’t respond but he did squeeze her arm to show how much he was listening to her. He owed her that much at least.

‘I get it, I shouldn’t have let you though, I should have been there and proved that I loved you’

‘I know you love me’

‘I still do’ she admitted.

‘So do I’ he acknowledged for the first time aloud. He really wanted her to let go of his arm because if she didn’t, he would kiss her and right now he knew that he wasn’t in the right headspace to deal with it.

His energy had to be focused on Nicole, she was his main priority and everything else meant very little to him or at least it didn’t mean as much to him at that moment in time.

‘But?’

‘I cant commit to a relationship. Nicole needs me to be strong’

Roo saw the pain resonate through his eyes, she knew that he had to focus on Nicole. She wouldn’t expect anything less but who was going to be there for him? He needed someone to lean on.

**