I Shall Be Released

His rant was so bad the Social Worker hit a panic button. It seems that Probation and Parole Officers shared the office spaces, and two came through the door. He was threatening to kill Kyle, me, and anyone who tried to keep us apart. As soon as the officers showed up, the woman grabbed Carrie and hustled her out. They ended up wrestling him to the ground and arresting him, while I looked on in horror.

His parents were devastated, and he swore it was just the heat of the moment, and the Judge let him go into their custody.

The day came. All the mothers fussed over me as they settled my dress on me, all with tears in her eyes. I think it must have been hard on Juliette, watching me while her son faced probation violations, but she smiled and cried as we recited our vows. Autumn, Katie, even Nanette were bridesmaids, and Mom was Matron of Honor.

The preacher was beaming when he said "I now pronounce you man and wife," and Kyle lifted the veil to kiss me.

Suddenly, a scream that was almost primal ripped through the chapel. It was Beau, drunk, angry, and most importantly, with a pistol in his hand.

"She's mine! You won't take her away from me! I'll kill you if I have to, now let her go."

Kyle reacted by pushing me behind him and spoke calmly. "It's over, Beau. We're married now. Please, let it go. This isn't helping you any."

"She's about to be a widow, asshole. Then nothing will stand in our way. Abbie, if you want to see him stay alive, get Carrie and let's go."

He was only focused on me, so he never heard or felt Autumn creep up behind him. Most had fled the church, or were cowering in the pews. Among other things, Autumn was a police officer, a detective captain with the county. She had snatched up one of the heavy hymnals, the first thing to come to mind, and hit him as hard as she could on the back of the neck. It stunned him, and the pistol didn't quite leave his hand, but it was pointing at the ground. Before he could recover, Kyle, Henry, and the preacher tackled him, holding him as he thrashed and screamed. Two of his groomsmen joined in, and 911 had already been called. When they burst through the door, Autumn gave them a summary, and they cuffed him, dragging him down the aisle I had just walked so joyfully.

Juliette was in tears, Bob almost in shock, so the family descended on them while Kyle held a sobbing Carrie. In light of the event, the reception was postponed until after we got back from our honeymoon, and a somber group ended up at Kyle's, our house, I reminded myself.

We spent our time consoling his parents, but they knew he was going back to prison for a long, long time. The list of things he was charged with turned out to be very long, and his lawyer suggested he throw himself on the mercy of the court, citing the marriage of me and the loss of his daughter as being too much to bear. Instead, he stood up, told the Judge that he loved me and I loved him, that we wrote daily letters and I went to see him every week, and we'd be together again as soon as this misunderstanding was behind us. The Judge looked at the DA, who showed him the visitor log for the time frame he was in jail, and I never appeared once. Then he showed him the four boxes of unopened letters, as well as a statement that there had never been a letter delivered to him with my address on it. Juliette was weeping into Bob's arms when we heard the sentence. Four years in a psychiatric institution, and if there was any trouble the twenty-year sentence would come into effect.

He lasted a year before flipping out on a doctor and assaulting him, breaking his leg. His sentence went active, and he'd be 48 when he got out, if he stayed out of trouble. He died twelve years later, stabbed to death.

*****

Eight years later, the whole family watched as our daughters walked across the stage for their high school diploma. That's right, daughters. When Maria was fourteen, her mother remarried. Maria liked him well enough, but when they decided to move back to Honduras, she refused to go. Maria wanted her to keep her American citizenship, so we agreed to take custody of her until she graduated. She even started using our name, and soon every boy in high school learned not to mess with our girls. They were going to different colleges, Maria on a scholarship, while we paid for Carrie. We sent them money every month until they graduated. Maria went on to become a nurse practitioner, while Carrie got an MBA and landed a job at a Fortune 500 company, rising through the ranks at a good pace. Both worked locally, so we got to see them often. Maria would fly down to see her mother three times a year, and was being lobbied to go to work in their health care system. I had a feeling she was considering it.

Our son was thirteen, and was a star baseball player. His coach told us even now college scouts were watching him. Our twelve-year-old daughter was too young to consider anything right now, except an interest in boys. Usually, one look at dad or Grandpa Henry stilled any untoward attention. She was developing into quite a stunner, combining the best features of Ros and Mom, with a little of me and Kyle thrown in.

Mom's romance sizzled out, and the thought of her rattling around in her house alone bothered Kyle, so about a year after we got married Kyle had Henry and Bob help him on a project, as well as a few professionals, then invited Mom over, to show her the thousand square foot apartment they had remodeled for her. It was above the three-car garage, a holdover from the original owners. There was a really nice bathroom and bedroom, with a combination kitchen/living room.

Kyle told her the thought of her in that house alone worried us, so we built it for her, hoping she would live with us but still have her privacy. After she got done crying and kissing everyone involved, she moved in, only leaving seven years later when she finally found someone she considered Mr. Right. Maria and Carrie immediately moved in, using it their senior year and when they visited from college. We talked about it and decided it would be good practice for college life.

All the grandparents are still alive, though they're all in their seventies now. We dread the time when they start passing.

I heard Carrie and Maria talking to one of their friends who had been dumped by her boyfriend. "I thought he loved me," she wailed. They smiled and showed them the film of Kyle's proposal. The church was wired for video, so the preacher could reach those who couldn't attend, streaming it on the 'net, and he had made sure it was on, thinking we might want to keep it. We played it in our bedroom on our anniversary, and I still cry every time.