Haven Harbour: Beyond the Sea • a.i. • (Sequel to Haven Harbour)

Chaper 126

We walked back inside our hotel room silently.

I kicked off my shoes and then laid down on the bed, turning my back to everyone as I clutched the blankets.

I wanted my daughter back.

I felt Ashton sit down on the bed and I closed my eyes.

The way he had cried when Gracie walked out the door was absolutely heartbreaking. We had both heard Gracie calling out for us and as much as I wanted to go get her, there was nothing I could do.

"Dad?" I heard Ender say and I turned around to see him coming over to Ashton and stand in front of him. "Is Gracie going to be okay?"

Ashton sighed.

"Honestly Ender, I don't know, but I'm praying really hard right now that she will be."

Ender nodded before crawling on the bed and over to me where I wrapped my arms around him to not only comfort him but myself.

Ashton, who was still sitting on the side of the bed staring at the ground, was suddenly snapped from his phase by the sound of his phone ringing.

"It's Holly." He turned around and showed me the phone before answering, putting it on speaker. "Hello?"

"Mr. Irwin, I have a question for you and Halle, there seems to be an issue at Gracie's visit." She said and immediately I sat up.

"What's the issue?" Ashton asked in a more stern voice.

"Gracie is at the residence, but she is very upset and is apparently hiding behind a sofa and refuses to come out."

Ashton and I both sighed at the same time.

"Does she have her bunny, or blanket?" I asked.

"Let me find out." Holly said and put us on hold as she went to call the social worker with Gracie.

"I knew this would happen." Ashton muttered.

I reached for his hand and he took it before we heard the click of Holly coming back.

"She has a stuffed bunny in her hands but not a blanket?"

"Okay it's in her suitcase. It's a light blue blanket, it belonged to Ashton when he was a baby, so show her the blanket and say that she can have Daddy's baby blanket and she should come out." I said.

"Alright." She said and put us on hold again.

We waited a few minutes, anxious and nerve ridden until she came back.

"Okay, she's taken the blanket but still won't come out from behind the sofa." Holly said and I felt my heart break even more than it was.

"She's terrified Ashton."

"Holly you're just going to have to either go get her or let her come out on her own. Try and bribe her with something." Ashton said and I frowned deeply.

"I'll pass that along. I'm very sorry about this." She said and then hung up.

"Ash." I placed my hand on his shoulder and he reached one of his own back to hold it. "What are we going to do?"

"Baby, I don't really think there's anything we can do." He said and I dropped my shoulders.

Ashton moved backwards to lean on the pillows and I joined him, leaning into his side as I tried to hold all of my emotions back.

"I miss her." Ender crawled over to us and laid down on Ashton.

"We miss her too bud." Ashton placed a hand on Ender's shoulder.