Page 126 of Malachi
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, you were born Gwenyth Jean Barlowe,” he explained. I watched as Talia’s mouth opened in shock.
“So… I was never Talia in the first place?” she whispered.
“No. It looks like they changed your name when they took you. We searched through missing persons records and matched you to a few cases that fit your description. It took forever, but we eliminated all but one case; the Barlowe family. DNA testing can be used to prove it fully, but we are confident we found your family,” the man said, pride almost emanating off him in waves.
“Gwenyth Barlowe,” Zeke repeated slowly.
“Gwenyth Temple,” Talia corrected, though she was obviously still processing.
“Is that what you want, love? To be Gwenyth?” Zeke asked her.
It was such a private moment; it felt wrong to even be in the same room as they spoke. But there really wasn’t anywhere else to go.
“I don’t know. Can I think about it? Can I still just be Talia for now?” Talia answered after a long pause of thought.
“Of course,” Zeke agreed, pulling her in and kissing her forehead sweetly.
“So, what do we do now? Do we just call them? Do we go to them in California?” Talia asked, her eyes unfocused as she thought through the overwhelming information.
“That’s up to you. We’re prepared to call them and explain everything. From there, if you want to meet them—”
“Yes!” Talia shouted. “I mean, yes, please.”
“We can absolutely do that. We’ll iron out the details over the next few days. But this is incredible news,” he explained.
“What about me?” Naomi asked quietly.
“After your interview, we went ahead and called your parents. They will be in St. George the day after tomorrow, Naomi,” Agent Driscoll explained. Naomi didn’t utter a sound. Not a single tear welled up in her eyes. She simply nodded once, but I noticed the way her hand held Gideon’s so tightly her knuckles had turned white.
“Thank you,” Gideon answered for her, knowing his wife couldn’t speak right then.
It was hard to imagine that it had all come together so quickly, but here we were.
“I still can’t shake the feeling that we’re in danger,” Ruth said with a shiver.
“You have nothing to worry about there. The Elders, including your father, are all in Purgatory now.” Agent Alcott said with a grin.
“Come again?” Levi said, dumfounded. The agent’s smile widened.
“No, really. We have booked them into Purgatory Correctional Facility, in Purgatory Flats, just outside of St. George. You don’t have to worry about them anymore,” he continued.
I shook my head, unable to keep a smile from my own lips. Purgatory. If that wasn’t fucking poetic justice, I didn’t know what was.
“What about the other kidnapped girls?” Eden asked beside me. Her hand held mine just as tightly as Naomi held Gideon’s.
“That’s a more complicated question,” Agent Alcott began. “We have put the girls into state custody for the time being while we continue to sift through information. It’s not ideal, partially because of the sheer number of cases. This has been going on for literally decades. We had hoped the information would have been easier to track down, but we are making strides. We hope to reunite each of them with their families as soon as possible.”
“That’s good to hear. Is there anything we can do? Any way we can help?” Ruth asked, dabbing at her eyes with a tissue.
“Just keep doing what you’re doing. There is a lot to process here in Zion and we will be here for at least another week before it’s all said and done,” Agent Driscoll explained.
“I feel like we should do more,” Eden murmured beside me.
“Are you kidding?” Agent Alcott exclaimed, his eyebrows raised so high they were nearly to his hairline. “You all have done more than anyone could have expected, let alone asked.”
“Eden, you did something so brave — let’s just say I’ve seen less bravery from seasoned agents in my long career with the bureau,” Agent Driscoll stated with genuine awe.
