When Georgia’s grandchildren pointed to a nearby café and yelled words that broke her heart, she was at the beach with them.
“That’s Mom and Dad, Grandma!” they cried. The sight of a couple who resembled her late daughter Monica and son-in-law Stephan, who had died in a tragic accident two years prior, made her breath catch.
Grief has a way of changing who you are and how you perceive yourself. But Georgia experienced a completely different feeling that summer morning as she stood in her kitchen and gazed at an anonymous letter.
Only five words were written in the note: They’re not truly gone.
There was no way. After Monica and Stephan’s deaths, she had been working for two years to provide her grandsons, Andy and Peter, with a secure life.
However, that wasn’t all. Monica’s old credit card, which Georgia had kept active in order to retain her daughter, buzzed her phone with a notification within minutes. The alert mentioned a recent charge at a local coffee shop.
Her voice trembled as she said, “Hello, I’m calling regarding a transaction on my daughter’s account.”
Billy, the customer service agent, paused before answering.
“Ma’am, the actual card was not used to make this charge. The account was connected to a virtual card.
“A card that is virtual?” Georgia inquired. However, I’ve never set one up.
“It looks like the virtual card was made just before your daughter died,” Billy said. “Would you like me to turn it off?”
“No,” she blurted out, her heart racing. “Please keep it running.”
Following the call, Georgia contacted Ella, her best friend, to tell her about the strange series of events.
“I’m not sure,” Georgia said. “But I have to know.”
Georgia took Andy and Peter to the beach with Ella on Saturday after they pleaded for it. While Georgia showed Ella the anonymous letter, the boys played contentedly in the waves.
“Look, Grandma! “It’s Dad and Mom!” he exclaimed.
Georgia stopped, staring at a couple seated by the window.
Georgia instructed the boys to stay here with Ella.
The man remarked, “We had no choice, but it’s risky.”
The woman let out a sigh. “I miss them, the boys in particular.”
Georgia’s heart was racing. It’s you. However, why?
“Mom?” She muttered. “How did you find us, exactly?”
Stephan came before Georgia could answer. “How could you abandon your kids? Are you aware of the suffering you have caused us?
Monica and Stephan exposed the truth: they had made up their oaths to escape crippling debt and threats from adversaries.
We believed we were keeping the boys safe,” Monica cried. “We thought their lives would be better without us.”
“Dad! Mom! We anticipated your return! They put their arms around them and sobbed.
Before bringing Monica and Stephan in for interrogation, the police let the reunion go on for a short while. One cop looked at Georgia. They are being charged with serious crimes, ma’am. This is a very unusual situation.
The anonymous letter was left on the coffee table as Georgia sat by herself later that evening.
“Did I make the right decision in calling the police?” she whispered into the silent room. Or should I have allowed them to remain undetected?
She was sympathetic to her grandsons, who would now have to lose their parents once more, but she also felt that justice had to be served. Georgia decided to save Andy and Peter from further pain.
How would you have reacted if you were me? Would you have called the police or kept it a secret?