HEJ, MY LOVE

ALL IS FAIR...

The doctors monitored Sierra for a week. Sierra felt as though she had subscribed to hospitals since the miscarriage. Jonas and Leone stayed with her, but it was time to leave despite the intense apprehension.

Unable to do the simplest tasks, Sierra sat on the edge of the bed, allowing Jonas to put on and tie the laces of her left foot sneaker.

"Thank you."

The man looked up, Sierra slightly leaned, and Jonas met her halfway for a kiss and a hug. Leone, who sat beside her, opened his arms to join in on the free hugs moment.

"Oh, isn't this a cute family photo?" Ulrich said from the door, "are you guys ready?"

"Yes," Jonas handed Sierra her crutch, and Leone stretched his hands out for his father to carry him. The boy refused anyone other than his parents to hold him. Thus Ulrich endorsed the role of standing by Sierra in case she fell.

During the whole week, everyone visited Sierra. Joshua and his indomitable twins. Ulrich and sweet know-it-all-Millie, Klara, Elsa, Jonas's parents.

As for Lars, he could not. As small as it seemed, his involvement was considered a breach of his parole. He found himself sentenced to a non-compressible eighteen months imprisonment thanks to Rut, who gave more body to her confession making the man sound like an accomplice. Lars became the jealous younger brother with no talent who wished to plunder Jonas' success. Rut, on the other hand, was free until the trial. The woman posed as a victim. Her version of the story made Bertrand laugh when the police interrogated him and tried to push him to affirm he blackmailed her.

"Blackmail, with what? I know nothing about her apart from the fact she's obsessed with Mr. Posterman. She was more than happy to help me. The woman didn't even want my money, can you imagine that? She refused ten thousand euros. Her gratification was to see the dead cockroach suffer."

"By cockroach, are you referring to Ms. Potsmann?" The inspector asked for confirmation.

"Of course, who else could I talk about?" Bertrand answered.

The man still thought Sierra dead, and as promised over the phone, when he spoke with Rut, he portrayed her as the cunning woman she was.

Concerning Lars, this time, Jonas didn't intervene. He did not wish to give him a lesson, but he preferred to tend to his family and Dirk to work on their case against the Gauthiers. The old couple refuted being aware of Bertrand's plans. They maintained their complaint and position.

Bertrand, well-advised, already built his case claiming temporary insanity. If things went his way, he could be free in no time after spending time in a psychiatric facility.

It was out of the question for Jonas, who had his lawyer's firm working around the clock and almost exclusively for him.

What ticked Jonas off were the allegations against Sierra. According to the Gauthiers, she used Leone to seduce him. Like a black widow, Sierra targeted his money while having an affair with Erik. One had to admit the proof they brought to the table looked convincing.

Since the other party asked for a hearing, Dirk Alstrom had access to the evidence in the Gauthiers' possession, which included multiple clichés of Sierra's lunches, including one where Erik grasped her hand.

Unlike the other times when Jonas kept everything to himself, he asked Sierra to explain the circumstances there and then.

His wife didn't shy away. She detailed every conversation she ever had with Erik, "I know how it may seem, Jonas. I shouldn't have maintained this friendship knowing how he felt about me, but believe me when I say nothing happened and nothing ever will."

Jonas believed he trusted Sierra and felt ashamed to ask after what she went through, but it was a necessary pain to see what strategy they could adopt in the border-to-border war. In France, the Gauthiers had more rights, while Jonas in Sweden benefitted from the protection of his country's laws.

Leone's grandparents were not considered a danger to Leone. Their avocet pushed by saying they had the right to see their grandson until proven otherwise, and Sierra deprived them of it by moving away.

Dirk built their case on the elements of harassment and privacy invasion. The photos proved the Gauthier conspired and corrupted the people of the couple's entourage. The grandparents were even aware of the incident with the police.

The lawyer also stressed the emotional strain and Rut's participation, which one could view as an influential factor in Sierra's miscarriage. Dirk knew everything pended on the judge's appreciation and that they could rule the information as irrelevant.

Jonas also asked Dirk to look into a procedure for a name change. The Gauthiers were toxic, and he didn't want Leone to have any form of affiliation with them. It wasn't something that bothered him at first, but now it seemed crucial. Jonas felt as though the Gauthier's name would have a negative impact with time. Also, Sierra and Leone's sibling would have the same name. He didn't want Leone to feel left out in any way.

Things were hectic, but at that moment, the most important thing for Jonas was taking his wife and son home.

Ulrich took Sierra's crutch and let her take a seat while Jonas strapped Leone, who cried.

"Leone, don't you want to go home with mom and dad? Nothing will happen to you. Dad will sit right by you. No one is going to hurt you."

The little boy sniffed. Cars were scary places. Leone looked at his father and pursed his lips; he had to be brave.

Jonas went and climbed on the other side. Sierra sat on the passenger's seat as her leg needed space. Ulrich started the car. Jonas's car was still with the police. Though he wasn't much of a talker, Ulrich attempted to spark a conversation, "so what have you guys got planned?"

"I can't move much, so I'll probably spend my summer by the pond feeding koi fishes," Sierra replied.

No one except Sigrid, who was present the night the paramedics brought Sierra into the hospital, knew about her pregnancy. The couple decided to keep the news to themselves until the second trimester. Not because they did not wish to, but they preferred to avoid getting people worked up to only perhaps deceive them.

"How about you, Jonas?"

"Eh, hum, I'll be by the pond feeding Sierra."

Sierra turned to glare at him while Ulrich laughed warm-heartedly.

Silence filled the car once more as they entered the road Sierra took that infamous night. During the daytime, the woods had nothing sinister. One could see through the trees from the road as the stems lacked density, yet the wood's face changed at night. Sierra swiped a hand on her forehead where sweat menaced to break out while goosebumps covered Leone's arms.

"Papa," Leone said while stretching his hand to tug on Jonas' shirt sleeve.

"I'm here, Leone."

Jonas hoped time would be reliable as usual, and Leone would quickly archive the events of that night.

They arrived shortly after. It hurt Sierra to think she was so close to home when Bertrand caused the accident. Ulrich parked, and Sierra attempted to get out. What usually took a minute became an endeavor for the woman who could not bend a leg.

"Let me help you."

Sierra looked up, "Jacob."

"You really know how to make me worry," Jacob said.