A/N: NOT EDITED.

Chapter 16 - The Past, Come What May (Donovan POV)

I walked robotically to our car, felt my brother Clay take the keys from my hand and push me into the back seat with Katherine, and the silent ride to where I didn't know. I couldn't - if ask - tell what route he took, how long the ride lasted, what I saw, even if the sky was blue. Nothing, we had lost our babies, Sawyer and Tristan, we had left life - who I was - back with those two wonderful children. Stiffly I heard noise around me, felt someone squeezing my hand, heard sobs, heard reassurances, but nothing - nothing ­ around me - could overwrite the ruling from Judge Williams.

In my haze the door opened and once again Clay was there at my side, his face haunted, stiff, he helps us out of the car, and into our house. Our family already inside, "We lost them," I whispered to him my voice shaking, "we - we had them and now, now we don't." I searched his face hoping that I had imagined this pain, this hurt and removal of who over six years I had become. I was still a brother, still a son, a husband, friend... brother in law, all those things, but I wasn't - I wasn't a father anymore. The most important roll I had ever had, wanted and cherished was gone.

"This can't be it," I shook my head the images in my line of sight all blurred together, "I can't - I can't just give them up like this..."

"Then don't," Margo said coming next to Clay, standing, her face mourning the lost of her niece and nephew the same.

Nodding woodenly, not sure what she was planning, I entered our home, and when they placed me near the couch, I sat at the edge not sure what was going to happen next, what I was supposed to do now. We hadn't planned, we didn't think... We had them for their whole lives and within months of meeting their birth parents, we had lost our children.

"I'm not going to lie, I think - there was just something wrong with the ruling, guys - I know you don't - that you're hurt right now but..." Margo shook her head.

"What judge in their right mind just gives two children back to the birth parents-" she stops abruptly, "Tell me what you want me to do Don, whatever it is, if you want to fight this ruling - then that is what I'll do!" she pleaded with me.

Glancing at Katherine, she seemed as far gone as I was, she stood on weak legs and left the room, going up the stairs, without replying to Margo, I followed her. Straight into Sawyer's bedroom, she sat on our daughters' bed, her face red, swollen and splotchy. One hand at her mouth she screamed, muffled and rocked back and forth, as her body jerked uncontrollably.

Helplessness. Rage. Failure.

My own emotions now pushed aside, I cradle my wife against my chest, "We'll get them back, we won't - this isn't right Katherine," I murmur believing those words, knowing that I was speaking the truth at that very moment. My eyes focused on a picture of Sawyer and Katherine on my child's bedside table, wide smiles, as in that picture they looked - happy. If this is how my grown wife was behaving, how on her earth were my children fairing? How were they holding it together? "We will do everything we can to get them back, Kathy, I swear," I promised not just her but myself as well.

Kaden POV

Cleaning up the house, we spent the morning after the ruling shopping, preparing and purchasing what the children would want when we finally arrived back home. Upon John and Etta's request the vampires that actually lived in the beach house of the main house we would now be calling home entered and took pictures for me to see what everything looked like. Personally, I had expected more color, but everything in the home was in shades of light pastels. We had enough bedrooms on the off chance that Etta and I wanted to build our very own baseball or football team, which I joked and teased about.

"Two more, Kaden... two more," she replied seriously.

"But lots of practice?" I smirked.

"When Ree, Morgan, Myles, Vivian, Sawyer and Tristan are well occupied..." my smirk fell. I never thought about how it was with my parents and all the siblings I had, how they ever found time to make more? I mean if one child was good it seemed that their twin was also at peace. However with three sets of twins, when Ree was moody, Morgan was fussy, and then that created a domino effect with the others.

"So what else do you guys think you'll need," I asked Sawyer and Tristan. "We don't have much summer stuff?" Sawyer said looking at the young girls section. I rolled my eyes; I could already see that she was my little shopper and the girly one out of all my girls.

All my girls, I smiled brightly at the thought. "Can we get more pops?" she asked her smile excited. "Yes, but you need to get things that are at least a size larger than you are right now as well," I warned.

"Can we get outside stuff? Because you said - you said we could do lots of water activities too right? Because the house is near a beach?" Tristan asked not much on clothes.

"After we get all the stuff for Sawyer, here. We can check out other things... I have a boat I used to get from my island to the larger island - can you swim?" I stopped and received Sawyers signature 'duh of course' face. "Do you know how to surf?" he asked as we sat waiting for Sawyer to come out and show us her outfits for approval.

"What about school clothes do we need new school clothes?" Sawyer asked holding out jeans and some cartoon type shirt. I shook my head, "Actually... you'll be attending separate schools... Sawyer you and Vivian will be attending an all girls school, and Myles and Tristan will be attending an all boys school," and while their minds were blown I added, "And they have uniforms..."

"We won't be in classes together? We'll have different teachers?" Tristan asked his voice higher as he finished the questions. "Yes, but that's okay, you will get to tell each other-"

"Why can't we all go to the same school?" Sawyer asked the earlier happiness she was sporting all but gone from her face. "Well... you know how we said that I had two business there?" again trying to be honest and they both nodded. "I donate funds two the two schools, my employees send their children there and those are the two best schools. It's safe and all the other children that go there like it, I know you guys want to be with each other but after school you'll get home and you'll all be with each other..." I tried to play it up but they just shared a look with each other.

"Your school has a soccer team..." I told Tristan, "And yours Sawyer, they have a tennis team... swimming too."

"If we don't like it, are there other schools where we can be together?" Sawyer asked pointblank, and Tristan turned his own greenish brown orbs on me, nodding I give in. Happy with that other option available we continued our shopping expedition until Tristan and I were fully ready to head on home, despite Sawyer wanting to continue on. "We need to head back so that you guys can spend some time with your family," it hurt to say the words, but Etta and I had already discussed keeping our tones neutral, not bashing or downplaying the rolls that the Bradley's had played with the children. Anyone could've gotten Sawyer and Tristan, they could have been severely abused, mistreated, unloved... instead they got the exact opposite, the Bradley's has loved them from the minute they had them.

"Are mom and dad going to bring stuff from our room?" Tristan asked as we loaded the car with our purchases.

"I believe so..." I replied unsure.

"I hope they bring my album and all my other stuff too, like my bears and - and my favorite pillow and blanket," Sawyer says once we enter the car.

"You have a favorite pillow and blanket?" I ask her, taking everything I could. We - Etta and I - we hadn't raised the kids, there was just so much we didn't know and since our efforts to build a bridge with the Bradley's weren't working, we soaked up what we could from Sawyer and Tristan themselves.

Her cheeks turn rosy as she smiles, her lips closed and wide, "Uh huh."

"What's different about this pillow?" I asked watching as she covers her face giggling.

"I don't know, it's my favorite one though, it's soft and I like holding it, and - it's - it's just my favorite," she shrugs. "And the blanket?"

"Mom made it for me - I've had it since I was a tiny - tiny baby, Tristan has one too." There is a moment of silence and I want to tell them that their mom and dad would bring the items they wanted, but I didn't want to have them disappointed when or if the Bradley's didn't bring them. Driving in silence, the music down low, by the time we arrived back to the house Etta and the others were, both Tristan and Sawyer were out cold in the backseat and the driveway was filled with four new cars. Sighing I put the car in park, leaving our purchases in the back, I open backseat door on Tristan's side, "hey buddy, wake up, we're back at the house, your mom and dad are here to see you," I cooed, hoping to wake him peacefully because if there was one thing I had learned over the few months we spent with the kids, was that Tristan hated to be woke up before he was ready.

"Hey sweet girl," I tickled Sawyer's foot, her shoes on the floor of the car, "Wake up, we're here," pushing her hair from her face, she blinked, sitting up and looking around.

"Wakey wakey Tristan," she tapped him. Smiling she unbuckled herself, and coming to his side, taking a strand of her wavey hair and tickling him under his nose, laughing back when he groans and pushes the annoyance away. "Your mom and dad are inside, you can head inside Sawyer, I'll bring Tristan." Nodding she jumps from his side, entering the house, while I hang back to lift her brother from his booster seat and carry him inside.

Entering the home, I knew that all the Bradley's were here, and surprisingly, there were two small boxes of things, right near the door.

"Mom did you bring my pillow?" Sawyer asked Katherine who shook her head smiling, "Dad and I thought you might like to have it at our house for when you come back and visit..." I lifted a brow at this piece of information.

"But Pops said we aren't coming back here for a while," Sawyer answered in confusion between what I told her and what her mother was saying. Once Donovan noticed me enter with Tristan he was on his feet, ready to grab Tristan from my arms like I had stolen him.

Tightening my grip on Tristan, "It's nice of you guys to do this for them, I know that they would be disappointed to leave and not have said goodbye to you all," the words coming out easily.

"Daddeee," Ree shrieked from the stairs startling Tristan, his eyes opening as he winds his thin arms around my neck at the disturbance, before he reevaluates the situation.

"You fell asleep in the car," I tell him, rubbing his back before I set him on his feet -

"Wristan!" Ree stumbles over to him.

Smiling he picks her up, trying to get her on his thin hip, "Dad this is my sister Ree," he introduces her probably forgetting that Donovan and Katherine, Margo as well have all met Ree and Morgan, already.

Then again, in the months they spent visiting with us after the first time, his family never joined us.

"Yeah, gramma, this is Ree, Pops where is Morgan?" Sawyer pulls herself from Katherine, going to find Morgan.

"She's in the back I think," I answer distracted as Sawyer leads all the Bradley's to the backyard leaving Donavan, his mother and Margo in the room with me alone. "I see you didn't bring much of their things," I eyed the two small boxes.

"Seeing as they will eventually be returning-"

I hold up one palm, "You're not sitting in jail with your wife right now because of Etta and I, not wanting to the two people who raised our children sitting and rotting away in prison. You think that we didn't look into every single detail, that I didn't hire the best investigators to look into what happened when Etta gave birth. Our children weren't brought to you, you went to them, and you were in the room with the judge and that woman that signed our children over. I happen to have found her, and you wouldn't believe what I learned." I watch as Donovan shrinks back.

"You knew something was wrong, you aren't that completely oblivious to the situation, however you were getting two children, what you and Katherine always wanted. It didn't matter that things seemed off to either of you... all you saw was what you wanted. I can understand that, because what I want are my children... I was willing to look past whatever involvement you and your wife had in this fuckup... as long as I had my children. However if you want to drag this on, I'm ready for that fight, but just as long as you know that what you're doing is losing those children."

"How dare-" his mother rages.

"You bought our children, you gave your father ten grand... we traced the money around, every dime, and because money was traded, you could be charged Donovan, you, Katherine and anyone else that gave you money. Your father tried to hide it, as did Etta's father,"

"We don't have to let you in their lives... we can cut you out and make sure you never see them again. We didn't want to do that... but if you think that our easy going behavior will last over whatever scheme your family and halfwit sister lawyer over there has planned - you're surely mistaken."

"Tristan and Sawyer will never live with you again. They will never spend a night in your house, alone with you... You've made it so that you are nothing but strangers to us, to the two people that were willing to give you access to two children you claim to love... we went at this one way, just to get our children back, based on the fact that neither Etta and I gave our rights away."

"Margo... you seem to know much more about me that anyone else... what's my ethnic background?" I asked her with a raised brow. "Before you waste their money, your time... think about where I've come from..." she blinks confused at me. I just shake my head, at them all.

"You aren't going to win, you have no leg to stand on, but if you're determined to drag this out in the courts, I'm telling you now that you won't see Sawyer and Tristan again until they are both eighteen years old and can decide on their own." I stand and leave them in the living room, while I go off to find Etta, letting Sawyer and Tristan have this time with the Bradley family.

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