"OK, but I'm scared to leave you alone. I'm scared for you, Aggie," Seth said.

"Look at you. You're the one who's sick, and you're worrying about me. You don't have to worry. I'm going to be fine, and I'll find a way. If I know you're worrying, it's going to make me worry," Maggie told him.

Seth laughed. "You're always worried, Aggie."

Seth lay back on the pile of pillows. He watched Maggie as she readjusted and started to read him another book. As she read, his thoughts wandered to when he was a little boy in his darkest hours living at the mercy of his captors. Maggie would hold him close after they'd hurt him and hum sweet songs. He would get lost in the vibration of her sound and feel as though nothing bad would ever happen to him again. Even though he couldn't comprehend death in its truest form, he knew he'd go away forever. Even that thought wasn't as frightening as being with John William or clients or even Thelma. Seth always found his peace in Maggie's arms, as he did now, and he came to the realization that he'd been given so much more than he ever knew.

Maggie left the words on the page and gazed into his warm, blue eyes.

"What is it?" she asked.

"It's nothin'. Except that I'm really lucky," Seth whispered.

Maggie was startled. Seth had lived such a tragic life. He had suffered so much pain and sorrow. She wondered if perhaps his mind was failing. How could Seth ever think he was lucky? Look what was happening to him...to her wonderful, sweet boy.

Seth could see that she was perplexed. "Aggie, we were really sad once. But we always had each other, right? You always loved me, right? That's why I'm lucky. 'Cause I never felt like I was alone."

"You're right, Seth. We've always had each other, and we always will," she confirmed.

Maggie felt ungrateful listening to Seth. He was right. They'd been lucky to have each other all of these years. With all of the horrors and torment, it was by sheer luck that John William had put them in the back of the van together, where they formed a bond that could never be broken.

Maggie began to hum as she softly rubbed his arms and shoulders.

"Just hold me, Aggie," the boy sputtered.

Maggie and Seth snuggled on the mattress and, for the next two hours, they didn't speak. They just held onto each other, feeling a love so pure that they knew they had received the greatest gift: love through the purest of all evil.

Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Four.

Maggie awoke to the sound of Seth gasping for air. Startled, she jumped off the mattress, waking Juju with a start.

"What is it?" Juju asked, her heart racing.

"It's Seth. Grab some towels and wet them with warm water," Maggie commanded.

Juju called the Freys at their hotel. "It's Seth. You need to come now," she said.

Thirty minutes later, the Freys arrived at the apartment still wearing their pajamas. Juliet rushed over to the mattress and Ron followed. Maggie moved away from Seth to give them space to sit beside their son. Ron put his arm around Seth's shoulders as Juliet took hold of his small hand.

"Oh, God, please. We've just found him," Juliet cried.

Seth opened his eyes. "Hi, Juliet," he breathed, and moved his head up slowly to glance at Ron and give him an acknowledging wink.

By this time, Maggie and Juju were in the bathroom, crying tears of anguish that they didn't want Seth to see. The last thing Maggie wanted was for him to be scared to die. Juju had gone to Thelma's while they waited for the Freys to arrive and sneaked Joey out the back door while Thelma was passed out on the sofa.

"My baby, we're so sorry," Juliet offered. "We're sorry for everything that's ever happened to you."

"Will you guys make sure you take care of Aggie when I'm gone?" Seth asked in a small voice.

"Yes, of course we will," Juliet answered quickly.

"No, I mean you have to really take care of her, just like she took care of me," Seth pressed.

Juliet slowed her mind to listen closely to what her son was asking. Maggie was the center of Seth's universe, and had it not been for her, they might never have seen their son alive again. Seth had been blessed with the presence of Maggie for most of his short life. Juliet finally understood.

"Seth, we'll love Maggie just as you have loved her. Your father and I promise you that," Juliet swore through sobs.

"Thank you," Seth said.

Over the next hour, Seth's breathing became more labored. He was making an effort to keep his eyes open. Even at thirteen, he instinctively knew his life was just about over and that once he closed his eyes and gave in to the soft, deep sleep that beckoned him, he would never open them again.

"Juju," Seth called.

Juju approached the mattress quickly and knelt beside him.

"What's up, little man?" Juju asked, her voice cracking.

"You're the best sister ever. You should shower more, though, 'cause you're kinda stinky. I mean, ya smell like ass," Seth joked.

"Yeah, well, your breath stinks like elephant shit," Juju countered.

Everyone in the room joined in a mournful laugh, including Seth.

"Joey," Seth said as she moved next to him. "I'm sorry we never got married. But when you do, and you have a baby, can you name your baby after me?"

Joey nodded. She crawled on top of him and laid her head on his chest, which was all skin and bones. She could hear his heart pattering unnaturally fast.

"It doesn't matter who I marry. He'll never be as good as you," Joey assured him as her bottom lip quivered.

"Aggie promised me she'll take care of you," Seth said proudly, to let her know he'd hooked her up.

Joey lay with him for the next fifteen minutes, as all of them swam in their own silent thoughts and regrets.

"Aggie," Seth breathed. "It's been really hard to live, but I'm more afraid to die."

Maggie went to him and brushed his curls from his eyes. "I know, Seth, but you've always been brave."

"I love you, Aggie. I can't stay awake anymore. I don't think I'm gonna wake up again. Will you give this to Juliet and Ron so they can remember me? Tell them the story about it so they know what to do...for other kids, OK?" Seth asked, shoving something into Maggie's hand.

"I love you too, baby. I'm going to make you very proud. Having you made all the bad things worth it. I'm going to miss you so much. A day won't go by that I won't wish we were together," she said.

A tender peacefulness came over Seth as he listened to Maggie and believed that through her, he would never be forgotten. Seth closed his eyes, and Maggie rested her loving hand over his heart. Less than a minute later, Seth was gone.

Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Five.

Maggie clung to Seth with all her might as if she might keep him from dying.

"No, oh God, no. Seth. Please come back. Just for a little longer. I'm not ready yet," Maggie cried.

She was lying on the mattress holding Seth's dead body. Her grief exploded as her chest heaved, expanding and contracting violently. After a few minutes, Juju walked over to the mattress and pulled Maggie from Seth.

"Come here, Maggie," Juju said, giving her a bear hug to settle her trembling body.

Maggie reached over and pulled Joey into them. The thirteen-year-old girl felt as though she was falling into an endless black hole. Her loss was unbearable. Seth was her best friend, and she loved him. Joey's face and neck were blotchy, and the tears dribbled off her chin.

"What are we gonna do now?" Joey asked.

"I don't know," Maggie blubbered. "I just don't know."

Ron and Juliet Frey were huddled on the other side of the room. This was the second time they were grieving the loss of their child. It was an agonizing bereavement, and neither of them could believe what had happened. They were so grateful to be able to see their son again. But losing him again forever was a terrible blow.

Maggie came to her senses and felt something pricking the palm of her hand. She uncurled her fingers, and there sat the miniature, plastic, soldier. The toy Maggie and Juju had given to Seth when he was living with Thelma.

Maggie walked over to the Freys and held her hand out, palm up. "This is for you. Seth wanted you to have it. It was given to him several years ago. He had been living with that horrible woman I told you about, and his spirit was very broken at the time. I told him this soldier was a war hero, and I bought it for him because he was so brave. He wanted you to have it; he wanted you to be brave. This is Seth's only possession, and he picked you two to keep it for him...a sign that Seth loved you," Maggie offered. "He wouldn't ever give this away to just anyone. It was his way of saying that he was happy that you found him. He told me it's for you to remember him and to help other kids."

Juliet and Ron looked at the cheap toy soldier. It was Seth's only possession, kept bouncing around in Juliet's mind. It's for you to remember him and to help other kids.

Juliet grabbed Maggie around the waist and pulled her close. "Dear God, Maggie. You were a wonderful mother to our son. Ron and I, well, we want you to know it gives us comfort that you were with him when we couldn't be. We'll always be grateful for what you did for our baby."

Three days later, a group of people gathered at a gravesite in New Jersey, close to where Juliet and Ron lived. To avoid making Rock suspicious, Colby had given other undercover agents money to pay to be with Maggie for the entire afternoon. He couldn't risk Rock finding out that he and Maggie were working together.

Maggie, Juju, and Joey stood together on the side of Seth's coffin with their heads hanging low. The Freys stood next to them, with twenty other family members and friends. As the priest said his final blessing, Juliet handed Maggie a single white rose. Maggie looked confused.

"Place the rose on top of the coffin," Juliet whispered, her eyes teary.

Maggie stepped forward and gently placed the rose where she imagined Seth's heart lay inside the gray box. She placed her hand on top of the coffin and said a silent prayer.

God, please keep Seth safe in your arms. He's a good boy and didn't deserve all the bad things that happened to him. And God, please make John William and Myles suffer agonizing deaths. So many have been lost because of them.

Maggie turned and took her place, watching as others put red roses on top of the coffin and headed back to their cars. She noticed Juju grab a woman's hand. The woman put her arm around Juju, giving her comfort, and Maggie knew she was Juju's girlfriend. It was so nice of her to come here for Juju, Maggie reflected. The crowd had thinned, and Juju pulled on Maggie's arm.

"Maggie, this is my girlfriend, Rory," Juju said quietly.

Maggie turned to the tall, blond-haired, brown-eyed woman. "Hi," Maggie managed. "Thank you for coming."

"Hi. I'm sorry we have to meet under these circumstances. I wanted to be here for Juju," Rory explained.

"That's great. It's nice to meet you, and thanks again for coming," Maggie said absentmindedly.

When it was only the Freys, Maggie, Joey, Juju, and Rory left, Maggie asked all of them for a moment alone. She stared at the name on the shiny rock. Seth. No last name, no date of birth or death, only his name.

Maggie felt as gloomy as the overcast, sunless sky was. She didn't want to leave Seth there alone and imagined him when he was well. Her heart ached at the thought of going on without him. With her chin against her chest, she allowed herself to wail in the privacy of her own space and time. Her stomach twisted at the loss of Seth as her sorrow pressed in on her. She wrapped her arms tightly around herself. Then there was a gentle hand on her shoulder, and she turned to see Colby standing behind her.

"I'm so sorry, Maggie," Colby said in a solemn voice.

Maggie and Colby had only seen each other a couple of times at Doubles during the final weeks of Seth's life. While the Freys sneaked into the apartment every night, it was just too dangerous for Colby to be there too.

"Come on," Colby urged her, "it's time to go. You gave him all that you had, and he loved you more than he loved anyone else."

Maggie nodded. "I know. It's just that I never expected...I mean he always had bouts of coughing and...maybe if I had paid more attention, I could have saved him...gotten him medical attention before the disease took hold. I'll never forgive myself for not knowing, not doing more. He trusted me."

Maggie let out uncontrollable harrowing groans, and Colby snatched her up into his arms. Her body trembled as her despair took root in the center of her heart. She wanted to turn back time, she wanted Seth back in her arms and back in her life.

"N-n-nothing will ever be the same again," Maggie wailed.

"No, it won't," Colby told her with determination. "But you can and will make a difference. I'll see to that."

As Maggie walked toward the car, Colby had her wrapped in his strong arms. Joey scampered toward them as they approached Colby's car.

"Oh, Maggie," Joey whimpered, "what will we do without him?"

Maggie remembered her promise to Seth: to take care of Joey. She opened her arms and clutched the young girl to her. In silence, Maggie, Juju, and Joey slid into the backseat of Colby's car. As they drove away, Maggie took one last glimpse of the fresh gravesite, Seth's final resting place.

Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Six.

The night of Seth's funeral, Maggie was back at Double Visions, working. When she came out on stage, many of the onlookers felt a twinge of sadness as they watched her dance. Shiver had told several of Maggie's regulars that Seth had died. As Maggie went around the bar and collected her tips, many of the men gave her a little more money than usual, tipping her two or three dollars instead of one. At the end of her rounds, Maggie spotted Tony and Vincent watching her. They hadn't been back to Doubles since the police took Emma away. The only reason they had come in was to keep an eye out for Emma-on their boss's instruction.

Seeing them suddenly made Maggie miss Emma, as well, compounding her sense of loss.

"Hi, guys," she said in a low voice.

"Little Maggie, how ya holdin' up? Vincent and me, we heard 'bout what happened to your kid and came by to offer our condolences. Is there anything we can do?" Tony said.

"Thank you for coming to see me," she responded modestly. "It really means a lot. I appreciate everything, but there's really nothing anyone can do."