As the van kept on driving for what felt like an eternity to Caroline, she couldn't help but wonder if they should have done anything differently to protect their children.
They thought they were doing the right thing, but is leaving your child ever the right thing to do?
Maybe if they stayed together, they would have been better able to protect their precious daughters, to stop any pain from reaching them.

"But our life was so hectic, running away from every shadow and every whisper, that was no way for children to live their lives.
Still, they don't seem happy with the lives they had. There is something in Rina's eyes that told me she had known deep pain and the same is true for Serena, only a different kind of pain.
Oh, my God did we hurt our children so badly by trying to protect them?" Caroline wondered.

As if sensing her doubts Jack put his invisible hand over hers and gently squeezed in a gesture of support and shared suffering.

Soon enough the van pulled to a stop and Caroline couldn't help but shiver.
What happened next would be deciding Rina's fate, all of their fates, and she wasn't sure if she was ready to face the challenge.
Failing this particular challenge would mean certain death and although Caroline was not afraid to die, she was terrified at the idea of anyone she loved being hurt.

Finally, the door flew open and the guys gestured for her to climb out of the van which she did very slowly.
As her eyes adjusted to the outside light, she could see that they were in front of an old rickety house on the hill.

The house was huge and it seemed to be made of sturdy material, but it was also in a bad state of disrepair.
Its paint was chipped off by the weight of time it held on its shoulders. The general appearance was one of an abandoned old house that had seen too much.
There was a rustic feeling to it and the suggestion of beauty it once possessed was visible in the shapes and curves of it that were untouched by the passage of time.

The house was situated on an isolated hill and there were no other houses in sight. It seemed to be far away from any cities or villages.
Ominous clouds were gathering above the house, making it feel even more eerie and unapproachable.

Caroline had a bad feeling deep in her bones but knowing that there was nothing she could do about it but move on, she approached the house cautiously, with one guy leading the way and the other one following close behind.
It seemed to her as if they were afraid she might try to run away.
How that even occurred to them was beyond her since she knew one thing for sure and that was that she would never leave her daughter in danger to save her own skin.

As they entered the house Caroline did her best to try to remember the way to the front door because the house was huge and the last thing they needed was to get lost.
The fact that she could feel Jack and Serena's presence gave her the necessary confidence to go on.

Soon enough, she was led to one of the rooms on the first floor that was fully-furnished and was in contrast with the house's disused appearance.
As she was led into the room she realized that Rina wasn't there and that scared her.

"Have they killed her in the meantime?" She thought to herself.
Not knowing who 'they' were she wasn't sure what they would or wouldn't do.
"Where is my daughter?" She asked in an angry voice.

In that moment she was a mama bear fighting for her cub and the guys who brought her there were more than shocked by her behavior.
People were usually terrified by them, not demanding so her behavior came as a big shock to them.

"She is perfectly fine, I can promise you that." An elegant voice that was in contrast with what Caroline expected said.
That was when from the shadows emerged a lone figure that oozed of confidence and superiority.

"Who are you?" Caroline asked.
She couldn't reconcile the stylish man that stood in front of her with nefarious things that were happening in that house, so she couldn't stop her curiosity from showing.

"Who I am is not important. What you need to know is that I am the one in charge. My word is the law and when I say that your daughter is fine that is the truth.
However, whether she stays fine is up to you." He said.
His tone of voice was calm and composed as if they were discussing a business deal and not the life of Caroline's beloved daughter.
For him, it was nothing more than a business deal and that made her sick to her stomach.

"What do you want from me?" Caroline asked wanting the meeting with the slimy guy to end as soon as possible assuming that after that she would be allowed to see her daughter.
"First of all, I want to see what you can do. I need to know that all this trouble was not for nothing." He said in a firm and detached way of a salesman checking his merchandise.

Nodding her head in agreement, Caroline started focusing on the feelings of inadequacy that often plagued her.
She focused on the feeling that she was a horrible mother for not being there for her children when they needed her, on being invisible to them for years.
Then she thought about being an invisible member of society, the society that didn't care about her pain and loss, about the people who only wanted to use her without any regard to her as a human being.
All those emotions started overcoming every cell of her body, and she allowed it to spread, to occupy every inch of who she was.

Over the years she had become quite good at what she did and it took her only a few seconds to become fully invisible.
Upon becoming invisible, she could see the faint shapes of Serena and Jack standing by her side and their support meant the world to her.
She focused on that feeling of joy, family, and love, letting them become all she ever was, is or would be, and she was back to her old, visible self.

"Very well, that's alright then. We can talk about business now." He said as if he hadn't just watched a person disappear without a trace and then appear again.
"We need to enter a highly guarded building and retrieve something from it. Your specific...set of skill will come in handy since none of my men can accomplish what you can and there is no way to hack the cameras." He said.

"How will I break into a building when I have never done anything similar in my whole life?" Caroline asked.
"Don't worry about that. We will give you an earpiece and all you will need to do is follow our instructions." He said.
"Very well, then. When am I expected to do this?" She asked.
She was trying to figure out how much time they had to form an escape plan.

"I will come back tomorrow with the blueprints of the building and other information. We need to do it as soon as possible." The guy said.
"Okay. May I see my daughter now?" Caroline asked.
It was hard to pretend the news wasn't bothering her, but she did her best.

"Yes. Take her to the girl." The boss said to the man standing there awestruck and lost.
The shock was obvious on their faces since they didn't have the acting abilities of their boss.
Caroline's little trick had left them stunned and it took some time for them to register the order.
Once they did, they hurried her off with her as fast as they could.

Soon enough they were in front of a stern old door that had a huge padlock on it.
"Those imbeciles dared lock up my little girl!" Caroline thought furiously.

As the door opened up she could see a shadow in the dimly lit room and as the figure turned at the sound of the door opening Caroline could see her daughter's worried face.
Without thinking about it too much she hurried towards Rina and embraced her firmly holding her tight, never wanting to let go.
Her baby was alive and unharmed and that was all that mattered to her.

When she finally broke the hug she stared intently at Rina trying to gauge if she was hurt in any way.
"I am fine, mom," Rina said as if guessing her thoughts.

Upon hearing Rina call her 'mom' Caroline released a strangled sob and hugged her one more time, tears streaming down her face.
By that time the scoundrels who kidnapped her daughter were already gone, and she was glad they didn't witness the emotional display between the two of them.

Only when she said it did Rina realize that she had called Caroline 'mom', but it didn't seem strange to her, it felt natural, right.

"You came for me," Rina said.
There was a surprise in her voice and a pool of tears gathered in her eyes.
"We will always come for you," Caroline said as she held on to her daughter for a bit longer.

Upon noticing the chains around Rina's hands, Caroline could no longer control her emotions and started crying and sobbing uncontrollably.
"This is all my fault." She said between the sobs.
And then Rina was the one holding her mother and assuring her everything would be okay.

"It is not your fault," Rina said gently as so many emotions made her heart swell from joy.
There was someone who cared about her. No matter what the future might bring, Rina was happy that she finally knew what it felt like to have a loving mother.
Even being kidnapped didn't seem so bad to Rina if it meant finally feeling loved.