Nora took another sip of her smoothie, laid back her head and let out a deep relaxing sigh. This was her favorite part of the day. She was plopped on her pink floaty, drifting across the crystal clear water. Her perfectly pampered toes were hanging off the edge, teasing the cool water. The sun was so bright it was as if it was shining just for her, tanning her skin, lightening her hair. Her warm skin had her so perfectly relaxed that she was just beginning to doze off when Jen came strutting out of the house. Prada purse in hand, Gucci glasses on her head, heals propping her up tall, she was ready for the day.
“Nora, honey, I’m going out with the girls for lunch.” Her sweet voice flowed out from between her perfect set of teeth, covered by lips that never failed to be shining. As much as Jen loved Nora, more than any other nanny she’d ever hired, Nora loved Jen in return even more. Nora idolized her. The way she carried herself and her family with such grace. Even after three weeks of living in that gorgeous house, Nora still couldn’t believe how lucky she was to have gotten such a dream job.
“Sounds good, Jen! I’m going to get dried off here in a few minutes and go get started on lunch.” Nora always smiled so brightly when she talked to Jen, and more than that, it was never disingenuous. She had never had the best relationship with her own mother and now here was this seemingly perfect woman that adored her, gave her the job of a lifetime and welcomed into her family and her home. Nora couldn’t help but try to impress her constantly.
“Aria’s play date was supposed to last till eleven so she should be getting dropped off pretty soon here. Call me if you need anything.” With her last word she spun around and walked her head-turning walk through the back gate and into the driveway where her freshly cleaned Audi was perched waiting for her.
Nora hadn’t heard from Isaac in a while and decided she’d had enough sun for the morning. She patted herself dry, draped her sun dress over herself and slid through the sliding glass door, directly onto the tan hardwood floor of the kitchen. She strolled across the kitchen, passed the dining room, through the family room and up the winding staircase. Nora loved this house so much that she couldn’t help but smile as she looked around when she walked through it. The perfectly textured ivory carpets felt so relaxing on her bare feet. The tall ceilings and modern design mesmerized her. She made her way to Isaac’s room and popped her head in.
“Hey there, buddy. I didn’t know you were up yet. About ready for some lunch?” She asked with the sweetest smile she could muster. As fun and sweet as she tried to be she still hadn’t completely won over the 10-year old, but she was getting there.
“No thanks Nora, I’m not really hungry.” He murmured.
“Alright well you’ve been playing your video game all morning, why don’t you come downstairs while I get started on lunch. I’m sure you’ll be hungry once you get going.” Nora worked to win him over because she really did like him. He had his aunry moments, like any little boy, but he was alway well-behaved and entertaining.
About the time she made her way back to the kitchen she heard the front door slam shut and the soft pitter patter of little feet skipping across the living room and into the kitchen. Nora could hear her sweet giggle but she was hidden by the granite-topped island occupying most of the kitchen’s open space.
“That’s funny, I thought I heard a little monster come in. I guess not.” Nora said with a grin.
“Rawr!!” Aria leaped out into the open space in front of her. Nora shrieked her rehearsed shriek and they both giggled. Aria ran and hopped into Nora’s arms, still wearing her blue, frozen backpack. As always, Nora greeted her by lifting her into a tight hug and spinning her around. The two girls fell to the ground in a pile of laughs. Nora loved this family but she especially loved Aria. It took only a matter of hours, after becoming the live-in nanny, for this boisterous little 4-year old to steal her heart.
Aria was Nora’s best friend, they did everything together and Aria loved her too. Her dark brown curly locks perfectly framed her olive-toned face. Her soft blue eyes were so big and always had a glimmer to them. Their similar hair, eyes and skin tones always made people think that they really were related, but neither of them minded, they just turned to each other and grinned whenever someone asked.
“Tag! You’re it!” Aria shrieked and ran up the stairs. Nora chased after her through the living room and up the stairs. Nora cornered her in her parent’s bedroom and tagged her, she turned to run away but tripped and fell onto the large wardrobe in front of her. She rattled the large wooden structure and a box fell off from on top of it. The lid popped off and a stack of papers scattered from within it.
“Look Nora, it’s me!” Aria pointed at the papers spread across the floor. Nora picked up some of the papers to examine them, her eyes suddenly grew very large.
“Look Nora, it’s me! What does it say?” But Nora was too frozen to say a word. She squinted at the page, sure she was reading it wrong. She shuffled through the pile of papers and articles trying to make sense of it. ‘Makenzie Fields, brown hair, blue eyes, tan skin, 2 years old. Kidnapped.’ Multiple pictures on different articles, all that looked exactly like Aria. In one swift motion she gathered all the papers and scooped up Aria with the other arm. She rushed into Isaac’s room and sat directly in front of him. With Aria in her lap she cupped her hands over her ears to keep Aria from hearing the conversation.
“How long has Aria been part of your family?” Nora asked.
“What do you mean? Since she was born.” His quivering voice revealed his uneasiness.
“Isaac you can tell me.”
“You can’t tell mom I told you. Mom brought her home one day, said that Aria was my new little sister, but no one could know that she was adopted.”
Nora froze. Her eyes still big, she turned and look at Aria. Those beautiful big blue eyes gazing up at her. What was she supposed to do. She was way in over her head. How did she get caught up in something so radical. Even with her front tooth missing Aria still had the cutest smile. She didn’t say a word just continued to gaze back at Norah, eyes glimmering. She loved that little girl, Nora wanted to do right by her.
Instantly Nora was back on her feet, Aria propped on her right hip. Nora and Isaac locked eyes.
“Nora don’t.” He spoke. Suddenly the room was empty. The two of them bolted down the stairs and into the kitchen. Isaac snatched the phone off the counter held it behind him. “Nora I don’t want you to leave. Mom will make you leave if you tell, like the others. I want you to stay. I won’t tell mom you know. Please Nora.”
She slowly set down Aria and held out her open hands to Isaac, “I love you both Isaac. I don’t want to leave I just want to help your sister. And you too. Isaac give me the phone.” He shook his head and took another step back. Nora leaped for him and gathered his whole body all in one swift motion. She held him in a bear hug and wrestled the phone from his tight grip. She glanced at Aria, still not having said a word, the little angel just stood there. Nora dialed.
“Makenzie Fields went missing two years ago. She has brown hair and blue eyes. I think my boss kidnapped her.” Her voice quivered but she spoke clearly. The dispatched forwarded her call to a detective.
“This is detective Mahone, did you say Makenzie Fields?” He asked calmly.
“Yes, yes. She is 4 years old now, has blue eyes and brown hair. Her name is Aria now. Aria Morgan and her mother is,”
“Jennifer Morgan.”
“Yes Jen. How,”
“I know the family, I will be there right away.” The detective hung up. She paced back and forth. Hands quivering, lightly stepping, frantically glancing around,  as if not knowing what to do next. It felt as if hours were passing. She bit her nails. Her mother had always yelled at her not to do that. Within minutes, she heard the sirens and the ear-piercing shriek of tires coming to a halt. She rushed outside in a panic and collapsed into the detective’s arms.
“I know this is a lot, but ma’am, I need you to calm down.”
“Aria, Aria Morgan. That’s Makenzie Fields.”
“Ma’am can you come with me please, you can tell me what you know.” Mahone got a tight grip on her and led her toward the squad car and guided her into the back seat, shutting the door behind her. Nora, confused, looked out the window and saw the detective walking back towards the house. Jen was standing in the doorway with a pleased smirk on her face, shaking her head. Aria propped on her hip, Isaac standing at her side, guilt stretched across his face. Nora squinted and tried to focus on her moving mouth. What was she saying to Mahone?
“It’s a shame she found that box. This one was my favorite.” She sighed. Jen knew that Nora caught what she had said when she could see her facial expression change from the other side of the window glass. Jen laughed to herself. She spun around and walked her head-turning walk back through the front door and slammed it behind her. An officer in uniform got into the driver's seat and turned on the ignition. Mahone came back to the window and whispered to her through the open gap.
“She gave you a good life kid, it’s a shame you gave it up. No one came looking for Makenzie and no one is going to come looking for you.” He stood in that very spot as he watched the rotating red, white and blue lights fade as the car disappeared in the distance.