In the first part, the twins found their biological mother but Jane hadn’t got the nerve yet to tell her about it.

*****

Ilona noticed the tension and asked ‘Is there something you should tell me?’

Jane was in despair and couldn’t stop the tears that came up to her eyes.

She quickly took a picture out of her pocket and handed it over to Ilona while she said between sob and sob: ‘Does this mean something to you? After our parents death, we discovered that our mother hadn’t been our real mother and…’

But then her voice refused to continue talking when she saw that Ilona had started to cry. Jeremy and Val where scraping their throat more often than usually.

Jeremy stood up and said: “I’ve prepared a buffet, so what do you think about going inside and continue talking while eating…”
While having dinner, Ilona told them the story from her point of view and she remarked: “I’m very grateful to both of you that you came here trying to find me and I’m very sorry for you that you lost your parents so soon. I remember the happiness on Lady Jane’s face when I told her I would have twins. I would like you to consider her as your real mother because she brought you up. As for me… just call me Ilona. I’m so happy that you found me”.

When she saw how Val, after dinner stood up and started to collect the empty plates to wash them, she looked at him and with a smile on her face she said: “My boy, I’m so proud of you”.

Jane got a lump in her throat when she noticed how her brother had problems keeping his tears back.
They had been talking all night and the sun was about to rise when Ilona went home.
Ilona had asked permission to come in the afternoon with her son Mateo who would have his birthday very soon. He always had longed for an older brother or sister and, she supposed that he was old enough to understand her reasons for having the children of a rather unknown man.

From that moment on, things went faster. Ilona brought Mateo after school to the ship. He found it very interesting and felt very ‘grown-up’ that his mother had trusted him, telling about her life in Valverde in the old Simworld. He looked once and again to Jane, trying to digest that she was his older sister.

They told him that Jane was only half of the surprise because her twin brother, Valdemar, would be there in a moment. He had gone to do some shopping.

Mattie was very pleased with his new ‘status’ of ‘not being the oldest’ anymore and he talked and talked to Val. It was friday and they decided to invite the boy to sleep on the ship. They would bring him home tomorrow. So the boy made his homework and slept in the same room as his older brother.

Ilona had waited for her husband to arrive and she explained everything to him. She was a bit worried of how he would take it. He knew her story of course but it turns so real when her first twins are around.
She didn’t have anything to worry about. Chester, a lovingly man, said: “Darling, I’m so glad for you that you got to know your first children. I suppose that you feel complete now, because… 8 is enough”. She embraced him thankfully.

It was already late when Ilona went to see her friend Cynthia who lived in the same street. She told her about the news and asked her if she could have the triplets during tomorrow night and Sunday. They would celebrate Mattie’s birthday and Jane and Val would be coming. She invited Raph as well.

Next afternoon the Hemmingways brought the little girls to Cynthia’s house.

Ilona saw that Risto, Cynthia’s youngest one, had grown a lot as well. She invited him to the birthday party but he had already a date with one of his friends. They went home and prepared everything for Mateo’s birthday.

Val and Jane had already known Mattie’s younger brothers: Marvin and Chessie. Ilona told them that they would see the triplets another moment. She wanted to spend some quality time with her 5 oldest children.
The moment was there when Mateo had to blow the candles out while everybody was celebrating already.

He was very happy because his best friend Raph Lightkeeper had come as well and could spend the night with him. Everybody was pleased… no not everybody… Marvin felt unhappy because he is a loner. There were too many people in his opinion.

Now… look how Mattie changed into Mat. He looked perfect and his friend Raph was very impressed to see him so big.

He asked him if he still wanted to be his friend. Mat embraced him and said: “Of course; you are my best friend. Within a few days it will be your birthday as well and, who knows, perhaps you will be taller than I am”.

But when everybody started to dance in the hall, Mat didn’t look so happy. He looked bad humoured! When Jane saw how that hurt Ilona, she told Mat to come with her to the living room. Val followed as well.
“Why don’t you feel happy? You look if though you didn’t like the birthday party”.

Mat said: “I really don’t know. I suppose I always have been kind of ‘bad humoured’ but I know I have no reason for that anymore; especially not with a big sister like you” and he gave Jane a wink.

Jane and Val promised to take him on a holiday to the place where he wanted to go but not yet. First of all he had to finish school.
Ilona was really very happy to see how her 3 oldest children got along very well.

Then Jane received a phone call. It was an unknown number from Venice Lagoon.
“Miss Hunter? Here Inspector Patience from Venice Lagoon. I thank you very much for the forms you and your brother filled in. Thanks to both of you we have been able to put Chester Field behind bars for a good while”.
“Thank you for telling me, inspector. So we don’t have to go there to testify anymore?”
“No, that won’t be necessary. Thank again and good-bye”.

Jane: “Hello sir, are you still there?”
“Yes, can I help you?”
Jane: “Yes, perhaps you can. Have you heard something about that young woman who worked on the train…?”
Patience: “Daisy…, yes; that’s a sad story. In the contract she had signed there was a closure, stating that she wasn’t allowed to intimate with passengers. She didn’t know that and they threw her out. Poor girl, alone in an unfamiliar place without relatives and being pregnant!”
Jane: “What??? Oh… my goodness! Do you know where she lives?”

Patience: “She lives in the Dockstreet but I’m afraid that I don’t remember the house number. If you want to, I can investigate that for you”.
Jane: “That won’t be necessary mister Patience. Thank you so much for this information”.
Val decided to go back to Venice Lagoon to find Daisy. At the pharmacy he bought some tranquilizers for the flight and he went immediately to the airport.

When Jane told all this to Jeremy, she said: “That silly girl hasn’t been careful when she shared her bed with my brother!”
He looked at her and, scratching his ear, he asked: “Are you careful when you share my bed?”
Jane panicked and said: “oh goodness, gracious… no… I haven’t been careful either”.
Jeremy caressed her and said: “Don’t worry, I have been careful and will always be. I don’t want to bring an unexperienced woman into trouble”.

Val had already arrived at Venice Lagoon and he went to see the city map. Once he knew where the Dockstreet was, he started footing.

He crossed the whole town, up and down bridges until he reached the Dockstreet. Now… in which of these house lives Daisy? He started knocking on doors. The ones that opened didn’t know about Daisy.

The sun had already set and Val stood there, trying to forget his fear for the dark, when all of a sudden a taxi arrived. He saw Daisy coming out and walking to her house.

His heart skipped a beat when Daisy opened the door after he rang the door bell.

His heart was filled with love and tenderness. She was pregnant! It was his baby!

He caressed her belly and whispered in her ear: “My little flower, would you mind if I take you with me to Sunset Valley? There we can give birth to that precious little baby of ours together.”
Daisy smiled and answered: “Yes, I will be very happy to come with you but I doubt that you can give birth to the baby”.

She told him to spend the night with her and invited him into her bed but Val, first of all, wanted to make sure that the baby wouldn’t get hurt. So he read a book about pregnancy and when he saw there was no problem, he enjoyed the night with his beloved one.

Next morning, he called his sister to tell her that he found Daisy and that he would take her immediately to Sunset Valley.

Jane was pleased to know that her brother was so happy and she was very aware of Jeremy who, from behind, put his arms around her. She felt his warm breath in her neck and shivered with pleasure. There they stood together, wondering what the future would bring them.

The End