The Sequel. The Little Rose.

Chapter Fifty-two. Be Brave.

Jia and her brothers finally finished selecting photos for the family album her dads had wanted to put together for her mom, and she sat back and took a long, hard look at some of the photographs she had chosen.

The one she had found of a frightened little 12 year old girl being held by a diminutive woman, together with her younger brother no longer hurt to look at.  These days Jia saw it as a picture of the start of a whole new life.  One filled with love and not fear.

It had been 20 years since mom and their dad Sean had found her and Ling one hot steamy night in Bangkok.  Jia had never really believed in much at all, but she did now.  Because, it had to have been something like fate that had led her to grabbing her brother and running that night of all nights.  She hadn't been able to take anymore, and she had known what was coming if they stayed.  So she had packed what few clothes they both had, waited until their father had gone out for the night, woken her little brother and ran for it. 

Jia hadn't known where they were going, but it had to be better than waiting to be separated and sold to do who knew what.  As it turned out she was right.  They had run for hours, dodging down alleyways and hiding whenever they heard someone near.  Well, until little Ling had been so exhausted, his adrenaline drained, that they had stopped and been caught by that animal.  Jia would never forget his dead eyes that had seemed to glow with evil at her.  But, then, he would never forget the woman who became her mom either.

It had turned out that her mom and dad Sean had been walking back to their hotel from a late supper to meet some of her other dads before they all went back to America.  Jia knew a little English only, but she had understood her mom speaking her native tongue perfectly, and she had been shocked at how someone only a little taller than herself had laid into that man, verbally and physically.

What happened next had been like a dream.  Her dad Sean had checked them over for injuries quickly, while her mom had pulled a phone out of her bra, of all places, and called for help; all the time keeping her foot pressed against the neck of the creep.  Ten minutes later after Sean had firmly hauled mom off and calmed her down, North and Silas had stormed in and delivered their own justice before carefully lifting her and Ling and carrying them back to their hotel and their future family.

Jia sat back as she swapped pictures with her brothers with a knowing grin starting to form on her face.  Her smart, intelligent, badass fathers were totally owned by a pair of eyes.  The look of pleading in her mom's eyes showed clearly in the photo she held, but she knew now it hadn't been necessary.  Knowing all her parents like she did, not a single one of them would have left her and Ling behind that night.  It had taken what seemed no time at all for their mom calm their fears, and her and their dads had given her and Ling the first sense of safety and caring they had ever had.

Not that the sight of North and Silas storming down that alleyway hadn't scared the living crap out of her at the time.  If Sang hadn't been holding them firmly and talked quickly, Jia and Ling would have ditched their bag and ran for it.   

Jia looked at the photo Alex had handed her.  He and Nic had been saved by their parents also, in Romania, about five years earlier than her and Ling.  She could only be grateful that they hadn't had to wait as long as she had, because the thought of him and Nic growing up in that bleak, cold place with only each other to rely on and love broke her tender heart. 

"We've come a long way, little sister," Alex murmured softly in Romanian, as he leant across and hugged his sister.  All four of them were multi-lingual; their mom had seen to that.  "No need to feel sadness now.  Our children will never know fear, hurt, hunger or sadness like we did."

"Or anger." Nic cut in.

"That's true," Ling added, as he gathered their photos together for the album.  "I was angry for the longest time.  Mom and the dads helped with that."

"Yeah, it's strange how someone so gentle, caring and sweet can turn on a dime and go all ninja and feisty," Nic sniggered.  "Best mom ever, right?"

"Little brother, I wouldn't trade this family for anything or anyone." Jia grinned as she watched her brother, who was built rather like dad Silas, glare.  She pulled her crystals out of her pocket and started to idly rub them.  It was funny how the action always made her feel at peace.

Ling looked at his older sister with an arrested expression.  "Sis, did you see mom before she left this morning?"

"No.  I think mom left a couple of hours earlier, long before I got here. Why?"  She asked curiously, still rubbing the crystals in her hand.

"Because I watched mom put both her crystals and yours in the Sunstone chest last night, before I left.  So how is it that you have yours in your hand now, because I'm not talking one of the drawers; I mean I saw mom put them inside the chest?"

"I needed them, so I got them," Jia replied simply.

"Wait a sec.  Just back up there, Jia.  Are you telling us that you know how to get into the chest?  As in, mom's Sunstone Chest?  How come you didn't show us?  The dads, well I get not telling them," Nic smirked at the immediate complaints around the table, and continued "but, come on.  We're you're brothers.  We should know too."

"Nu uh, I figured it out myself. You can too." Jia smirked, before qualifying her statement. "Well, most of it.  I admit Mom helped with where to push the little rod into which holes, but the buttons and other stuff was all me."

"Bullshit.  No way!  When did this happen?"  Alex exclaimed, "I've always wanted to know the secret to it."

"I finally figured it out a few years ago.  Mom was really proud of me, and she said someone other than her should know how to get into and none of the dads had ever asked.  She said I could ..." Jia cut herself off short, "um, never mind.  It's personal girl stuff.  I shouldn't be sharing it with men."  Jia rolled her eyes at herself mentally.  Flattery probably wouldn't work with this lot, but it was worth trying.

"Fuuuuuck, are you kids shitting us here?" their dad Gabe asked.  "I've been trying to figure it out for years, and my little girl knows already?"

Victor started laughing, "All we had to do was ask Princess, and she would have told us, Gabe."

"I confess I am interested in exactly what your mom shared with you, Jia," Owen murmured, trying with little hope of the conversation not being derailed.

"Well, so long as it wasn't stories of little Rose, we'll be safe," Kota smiled.

"Hey come on.  Those videos of mom as a little kid were awesome," all four children exclaimed at once.

The guys all froze for a moment and started communicating silently with each other.

"Who showed you those movies, and when?" Victor asked, as he ran his hand through his hair. If they had seen them when he thought they had, it would certainly explain some behaviour and activities that had happened in the kids mid teen years.

Jia and her brothers exchanged their own silent looks, before the youngest, Ling, confessed. "Remember Mom spent a 'special' day with us when we each turned 16?  Well, showing us her grandparents was part of it.  That was what was important to her."

"Yeah," Nic piped up, "Of course we all got a kick out of watching Mom do all kinds of interesting shit.  It certainly explained a lot of stuff she helped us with over the years."

"Showing you individually would have been hard for Pookie," Sean said thoughtfully.

"That's true.  It's why I never suggested it to her," Kota smiled reminiscently "and why Victor went through them and printed lots of pictures of her grandparents for her off of it."

"Aggele did tell us about showing them to the kids.  They always said they watched movies.  It was during their 'special time' to celebrate turning 16," Silas grinned. 

"Why that sneaky, devious ...  I am so going to ground her ass," North growled.

Everyone just rolled their eyes at North's declaration.

"Dude.  Get a grip, will you.  In 40 years you haven't managed to successfully ground Peanut.  It won't happen now.  Just admit you're as owned as the rest of us and let it go, will you.  Besides, Sang was honest, and none of us thought to ask EXACTLY which movies they watched."

"No, because each single one of our loving children simply said it was an old adventure movie that we had seen, and then their siblings carefully sidetracked us, by making sure they watched something else as well," Sean smirked.

"Cupcake and her loopholes," Luke grinned.  "I actually wanted to be there when you saw them, we just never seemed to find time all together at the right age."

"You four do realise that the joke is on you.  Because your mom is now your children's Grammy, and she's going to put all her life experiences to the test and show them everything they want to know, and probably things they never even thought of," Owen remarked.

"Not me," Jia piped up, before smirking, "I don't have kids, remember."

"I've seen that boyfriend of yours staring at you like you singlehandedly cause the sun to rise, Chickie.  I think he's serious about you.  So, give it a year or two and we may just have more grandkids," Sean grinned at his now blushing daughter.

"What the hell," North exclaimed.  "I'm not sure I approve of some young jackass making moves on my sweet daughter.  What's his name and where does he live.  Vic, you need to check him out straight away.  As in right now," he demanded, with a frown on his face.  He had never understood why he was the last to know about these things.

"This can't be happening.  Where's mom when I need her?" Jia murmured, before raising her head off the table and appealing to her other fathers.  "Come on guys.  Leave Blue alone.  He's a nice guy and I really like him.  Besides, I'm over 30.  I can make up my own mind."

"Well, it won't hurt to have him checked out.  If he's got nothing to hide, then he's got nothing to worry about," Silas smiled widely, fist bumping an approving Gabe.

"He's a lawyer, dad.  He even helps with local community activities in his spare time.  Leave him alone.  I don't want him scared off because you went all ape on him."  Jia turned to her most serious father and appealed to him.  "Daddy, please make him stop."

"Sorry sweetheart.  But, if he has nothing to hide then he won't mind us investigating, and if he truly loves you then none of us could scare him away.  If it makes you feel any better, we checked the girls out when they met your brothers too." Owen claimed.

"No, no, no," Jia moaned, before glaring at her hysterical brothers, and then turning pleading eyes on Victor.  "Please Daddy.  Don't listen to them."

Jia's brothers finally wiped away the tears from their eyes long enough to try and offer some support; to their fathers.

"You're our sister.  It's our job to look out for you," Ling claimed, smugly.

"Yeah, sis.  We've always had your back.  You know that," Nic chimed in.

Quickly switching to Romanian Jia set her brothers straight.  "Oh, really!  Who rang who the night someone decided to 'borrow' a certain dad's Jeep and then ran into a spot of trouble.  Yeah, that's right.  You two," she hissed.  "Alex and I had to leave college, where we were working hard, and come rescue your sorry asses.  And neither of us ever breathed a word."

"Oh, and what about the time ..." Jia broke off when Ling righteously pointed at their dads' big smiles because, to North's great satisfaction, Victor's face told the real tale.  He had already investigated young David "Blue" Campbell weeks earlier.

Jia rested her head back on the table and sighed.  "I am so telling mom on all of you."