Jansen’s POV
Suddenly, Jessie and I stood up, feeling both happy and surprised. Our lips painted a big smile. Finally, we could go home. We couldn’t wait to hug Mom and Dad, enjoy Lily’s cooking, and joke around with Ken.
“Rose, are you serious?” I asked to make sure.
“Of course. Get ready. They’ll be leaving soon,” Rose replied.
“Mom, please prepare the food for us to take to the ship. I’ll get my stuff ready now,” Rose pleaded as she hurriedly entered the house. However, her mother asked her to take a shower and change her wet clothes into new ones.
Rose went into her bedroom, while Rose’s mom prepared the food for us. Jessie and I sat down to wait for them.
Jessie looked at me with a smile. There were no words to describe how I felt at that moment. I would take this terrible experience as a learning experience. Jessie and I would have to be more careful in the future.
A few moments later, Rose came out of the bedroom. She was already showered and fully dressed, with a jacket on and a backpack on her back.
“Did you bring jackets or blankets? If you did, wear them, because it’s freezing,” she asked us as she accepted a large bag of food from her mother.
“We brought jackets. Ok, we’ll put them on now,” I replied.
So Jessie and I hurriedly put on our jackets and carried our backpacks on our backs.
“Are you ready?” Rose asked.
“Yes. We’re ready to go,” Jessie and I replied.
“Good. Let’s go,” Rose said.
Before leaving, Rose hugged and kissed her mom. Jessie and I hugged Rose’s mom and said thank you. Then, the three of us walked to the beach. By then, the rain had stopped, although the road we walked on was wet and muddy. It was quite quiet in the village as everyone stayed indoors amidst the bad weather and freezing air.
“Oh, did you bring blankets? If not, I brought extra blankets,” Rose asked as she held Jessie’s hand, while the other hand carried a bag of food.
“We brought two blankets. To be honest, we took them from the ship that brought us here,” I replied.
“Really? Don’t they know you took the blankets?” Rose asked.
“They knew. A man named Andy knew when we took the blankets and food. Rose, which boat will take us to Valdirra?” I asked.
“The one over there near the big rock. The blue one. All the boats here will sail to Valdirra. It’s just that we’ll be on the blue one,” Rose replied as she urged us to walk faster because a man standing near the boat waved his hand and asked us to hurry.
Long story short, the ship we were on set sail. I held Jessie’s hand while looking at Palaca Island. It turned out that this island was not as bad as we imagined. The other side of the scary island was a beautiful village with friendly people. However, there are meetings and farewells. Maybe someday I will invite Mom and Dad to visit here.
Jay Lee’s POV
“Piper, I’m leaving now. Take good care of yourself. Lisa, Max, your mom, and my mom are here. They’ll keep you company. I’ll let you know when I get to Palaca Island,” I said.
Piper’s face looked troubled. There was a look of fear and worry on her face. And when I held her hand, sweat covered her palm. Her body was also trembling like she was holding back tears. And sure enough, it wasn’t long before her eyes turned red and clear liquid flowed down her beautiful face.
I immediately hugged her tightly. I stroked her back and whispered in her ear, “Don’t cry or I’ll find it hard to leave. Smile and I will return safely with the twins. I promise.”‘
Piper was still sobbing. I released my embrace, and I wiped her tear-drenched eyes. “Don’t cry anymore. Smile. Come on. I have to go in a minute.”
Piper wiped her eyes, looked at me, and smiled. Even though she was forced to smile, I was happy. For me, her smile and my children’s smiles are the things that make me strong and happy.
“Ok, I’m leaving now. Get some rest,” I said as I kissed her lips and forehead.
“Take care. Don’t forget to let us know,” she replied.
“Ok. Love you.”
“Love you too,” she replied.
Long story short, after saying goodbye to everyone, Nick and I headed to the Valdirra police station. We would gather there, then together head to the dock and sail to Palaca Island.
Arriving at the police station, Tom greeted and asked us to get into the police car that had been waiting for us. Then, the motorcade made its way to the dock on the edge of Valdirra Town.
Forty-five minutes later, we arrived at the dock. A ship has pulled up to the edge of the dock. We rushed out of the car, grabbed our luggage, and climbed aboard.
Once everything was ready, the boat started sailing.
Jansen, Jessie, Dad is coming. Hang in there!
It took about six hours to reach Palaca Island. Enormous waves were crashing against our ship and the sea wind was blowing very hard. It was difficult for the terrain to traverse. I couldn’t imagine the fear the twins were experiencing. I’m sorry, Jansen, Jessie, that I couldn’t protect you.
Finally, six hours later, we reached Palaca Island. The ship docked and dropped anchor a respectful distance from shore. Then, we boarded boats to get to the island.
Arriving at the island, an eerie sight greeted us. A vast, dark forest lay before us. I wondered what we would find in the forest. How were my two children?
Tom tapped my shoulder and led me into the forest. Carrying our backpacks on our backs and a few other bags, Nick and I followed the policemen. They were policemen trained in land, sea, and air.
When our feet touched the ground in the forest, a dark and eerie atmosphere greeted us. We heard many strange noises and there was no sunlight coming into the forest as tall trees blocked it.
We continued walking through the wet ground and thorny plants. Imagining my two children going through the same thing made my heart sad.
We continued to walk into the deep parts of the forest. The surroundings grew darker and the strange noises we heard grew louder. I saw small snakes slithering in the trees. They were aware of our presence and hissed as if warning us not to disturb their habitat.
Finally, one of the policemen walking in the front shouted, “There’s a house up ahead. Everyone get ready!”