Chapter 864
But now, the nightmare was finally over. The clouds had parted, and she could see the sun again.
“Carey!” Hannah broke down, sobbing as she embraced her daughter. “My child! You’ve suffered so much p>
Seeing them, everyone else in the room began to wipe away tears. Even Celeste, who had no blood relation, was crying uncontrollably.
“What about me, Carey? Do you remember me?” Stuart asked, his voice thick with emotion.
Carey turned to him, a smile mingling with her tears, and nodded. “Stuart p>
That single word transported Stuart back more than two decades. He knew, with absolute certainty, that his wife was back. She was really back.
“I’m sorry, Carey,” Stuart said, gripping her hand, his face etched with guilt as tears streamed down his cheeks. “I’m so sorry. I failed to protect you and our daughter. I let you both suffer p>
Carey shook her head, crying. “No, Stuart, it wasn’t your fault. Don’t say that p>
Though her memory had been gone, she had learned a great deal from her daughter over the past two days. She knew that after the crash, Stuart had been bedridden for over twenty years. He was a victim too. She also knew that their families had never, ever given up searching for her.
Kelley looked at Carey and asked, “Carey, what about us? Do you remember who we are p>
“Kelley,” Carey said, her gaze moving to Jade, then to Warren and Willis. “I’m so sorry. I’ve made you all worry for so many years p>
“And thank you, all of you, for never giving up on finding me and Freya p>
If not for their family’s persistence, they might still be scattered and lost.
“Carey, what are you talking about!” Warren’s tears started flowing again at his sister’s words. “We’re family! No matter how much time passes, we will always be family p>
Willis nodded firmly. “Big brother is right. Our family stands together, always p>
Carey then asked, “Where are my other brothers p>
“They’re on their way. They should be here this afternoon p>
Carey wept. “It’s so good to see you all again. It’s so good! I thought… I thought I
was an orphan in this world, with no home to return to p>
Thinking back on those twenty years of confusion and darkness, Carey
shuddered. It was terrifying. Truly terrifying.
“How could you be an orphan? You’re our only sister p>
Keira stepped forward, her voice trembling. “Carey, what about me? Do you still recognize me p>
“Mom!” Carey hugged Keira tightly.
Like Hannah, Keira had aged tremendously. Though only in her sixties, she looked closer to eighty, her face a web of deep lines. It was a stark testament to the grief she had carried all these years.
“Carey,” Keira held her daughter-in-law close. “Now that our family is finally together again, I can die in peace p>
Keira’s greatest wish in life was to see her son’s family reunited. She had thought
it was a distant, perhaps impossible, dream. But now, by some grace of heaven, she had lived to see it. She had no more regrets.
As the family was lost in the joy of their reunion, Hannah took Carey’s hand. “Carey, tell me what happened after the accident. Why were you in Valerium p>
The Richards family had come in such a rush that no one knew the details of how Carey ended up there. Keira and Stuart hadn’t had a chance to ask yet.
“I was brought to Valerium by Diana Vance, the dowager,” Carey said, her mind drifting back. “When I woke up after the crash, I was in a hospital. I had forgotten everything, everyone. Diana told me my name was Flavia Cartwright that I was an organ, and that my husband, Quinton Vance, had died in a fire while saving me p>
“She told me had to spend the rest of my life as a widow, atoning for Quinton’s death… I believed I was Flavia Cartwright. My years with the Vance family were like being in a cage. The dowager and Rosemary would beat and berate me prevent my memories from
returning, they kept me on
medication p>
“I was forced to take antidepressants for over a decade p>
“Later, when Diana saw my condition had stabilized, she had them stop the drugs.
A few years after that, I started having the same nightmare over and over. I saw a
black car tumble down a cliff, and I heard a baby crying p>
“At the time, I didn’t know the baby was Freya. I didn’t know I was Carey p>
“I lived in constant fear and pain p>
“When Diana noticed something was wrong, she had them put me back on heavy doses of drugs to suppress my memory. After taking them, I seemed to forget the dream for a while p>
“It was around then that I met Tina.
oundt
Tina was a good doctor. She realized the medication the Vances were giving me was wrong, so she secretly swapped it out. After that, I started getting better day by day. began to doubt the lies the Vances had told me p>
“On the day Freya came to Vance Castle for the party, the Vances must have sensed something was off. They tried desperately to keep me away from the main hall and even had me locked up. It was only with Tina’s help that I managed to get there p>
Carey looked up at Caitlin. “Luckily, fate was on my side that day. After Tina helped me get to the banquet hall, I found Freya p>