Here is part 1 of the story. Seanna's life is turning in a whole new direction, one that leads to many wonderful possibilities.

**********

Seanna moaned, then blinked twice to clear her vision before looking around to see where she was. Within seconds, it became very clear that she was lying on the couch in what had been Sue's apartment. Suddenly, she remembered what she had heard Tamara say a short while before while they were chatting on the phone, and wanting confirmation, she looked around her for her cell phone. While looking for the phone, she noticed that she felt a bit woozy; running her hand along the right side of her head, she found a nasty bump just over her ear.

After a brief moment of looking around, she saw the cell phone lying on the coffee table. She picked it up, hit her numbered autodial for Tamara, and listened to the phone as it rang once, twice, three times, before being picked up on the fourth ring.

"Hi, sis," Tamara shouted down the phone line, "are you okay? When I told you earlier about Sue, you stopped talking, then a moment later I heard a big crash and the phone cut off not long after that."

"Hiya, Tam, I think I'm okay, I might have a bad headache later; I seem to have a bump from hitting whatever I ran into when I fell, I'm assuming it was the coffee table although it doesn't look like anything landed on it. Maybe JJ and Pat had time to clean it up after putting me on the couch, I have no idea; anyway, that doesn't really matter, what I want is for you to tell me again what you told me earlier."

"Oh, boy, Seanna, are you sure you're ready for this? I wouldn't want you to hurt yourself again."

"Tam, I should be fine, I'm half-lying on the couch right now, so if I fall back, I'll just land on it, not anything hard."

"Okay, then," Tamara took a deep breath before continuing, "oh, boy, this'll be a shock, I bet. Mom was at the hospital earlier today when Sue had the second cardiac arrest. Like the first time, she was asked to leave so they could help Sue as efficiently as possible. Anyway, just after 10 AM, one of the docs that had been working on Sue came to Mom and told her Sue had died, all recovery efforts had failed. Mom had a reaction a lot like yours earlier from what she told me, except she didn't end up with a goose egg on her head. She woke up on a hospital bed a few hours later, let them know she was fine, then left the hospital and called me, after trying to get you."

"Oh, crap, sis, that must have been hard on Mom, she and Sue have always been close, not like the old fossils from her father's first marriage just after the Second World War ended. Just a sec, let me check my phone for any missed calls, okay?"

After getting a positive reply from Tamara, Seanna quickly skimmed through her phone's systems, eventually finding that she had missed two calls from her mother and one from a friend, all of which had occurred while she and Leilani were having fun at the park.

"Back, sis, yeah, Mom apparently tried to call me twice, it seems my phone missed it, I took Leilani to the park a few blocks from Sue's apartment so she could have some fun and not think about her momma; it worked out pretty well, by the time we were coming home, she was snoozing on my shoulder, I put her down for a nap once we were home, as far as I know, she's still sleeping."

""I'm glad to hear that Leilani had some fun today, I hope she's okay. Anyway, now you know the facts, Sue died thanks to what that jerk did to her. I called the station the cops that arrested him were from and let them know Sue had died from her injuries. I'm sure they'll be more than happy to add a charge of at least second degree murder, or if they can't reasonably get that, manslaughter."

"I hope they nail him good and hard, sis, Sue didn't deserve to be attacked like that, or to die because of it. Damn, now I need to think about what to say to little Leilani, gods, she's going to take this hard, her momma will never be coming home again."

At that moment, the pattering of little feet could be heard entering the living room, then they stopped. Seanna, turning and looking over the back of the couch, saw Leilani standing there, a look of horror on her face, then Leilani was on the floor, crying and screaming unintelligibly. Seanna yelled to her sis that she needed to deal with Leilani, then ended the call, pushed herself up from the couch and ran to the child.

**********

Little Leilani continued to cry and scream wordlessly for several minutes while Seanna held her, trying to soothe her. "I'm really sorry you had to hear me say that, sweetie, I had no idea you were awake at that point." Seanna began crying herself, knowing she had caused Leilani to become upset. JJ and Pat, hearing the commotion, rushed into the living room, noticed Seanna and Leilani sprawled on the floor, one crying, the other crying and screaming, and shook their heads, knowing quite well what had caused them to be there in that state.

JJ walked over to where Seanna was holding little Leilani tight, knelt down beside Seanna and told her, "Just keep holding her and talking to her, you're doing the best thing you can for her right now," then stood again and went back into the kitchen with Pat.

Slowly, bit by bit, the onslaught of tears wound down to sobs, then trickles as Leilani lay on Seanna's lap. With a few tears still sliding down her cheeks, Leilani looked up at Seanna and asked her if what she had heard her say on the phone was true.

When Seanna nodded that it was, Leilani's tears erupted again, Seanna's hadn't stopped. Both held on tight to each other for a few more minutes, then Seanna told Leilani what she had just been told by Tamara, using terms a young child could understand.

After about another ten minutes or so had passed, Seanna gently picked Leilani up and held her close in her arms, then walked slowly into the kitchen area. "JJ, Pat, could one of you make some hot drinks for us, I need a coffee, maybe Leilani could have a hot chocolate?" When JJ nodded agreement and said she would prepare the drinks, Seanna responded that they would be in Sue's bedroom.

**********

JJ eventually brought the hot drinks into the bedroom, and found Seanna sitting at the top of the bed, holding Leilani on her lap, Seanna quietly singing something soft and soothing to Leilani. JJ placed the drinks on coasters on the night table, then turned and left the room.

A few minutes later, they both caught the scents of the hot drinks on the night table, Leilani slid down from Seanna's lap to sit beside her on the bed; Seanna handed the cup containing hot chocolate to Leilani, asking that she be careful because it was hot, then picked up the cup with coffee in it and took a sip, sighing softly to herself as the hot liquid slid down her throat.

Seanna and Leilani continued to relax as much as possible on the comfortable bed, yet thoughts about Sue kept intruding, Leilani knowing that her mother was gone forever, a few new tears sliding down her cheeks, Seanna wondering how Sue's death would affect Leilani. Seanna understood intellectually, if not emotionally, the impact a parent's loss can have on a very young child, and she wanted to do everything she could to help Leilani through the process of coping with it and eventually moving on from the loss.

Seanna and Leilani spent the next little while enjoying their hot drinks and talking about inconsequential things.

**********

JJ and Pat, meanwhile, had been in the kitchen of Sue's apartment, checking what was available to make a meal; finding some frozen chicken cutlets, fresh veggies and half a 5 lb. bag of potatoes, they went to work on preparing the meal. Just as Seanna and Leilani were finishing their hot drinks, JJ tapped on the bedroom door to let them know supper would be ready in thirty minutes.

**********

After JJ had informed them that the meal would be ready eventually, Seanna and Leilani continued to relax on the bed, both having put their empty cups on the coasters on the night table before Leilani crawled back onto Seanna's lap and snuggled with her. They relaxed enough that they were both startled at another knock on the door and an announcement that the food was waiting on the table. Leilani slid off of Seanna's lap, then carefully let herself down to the floor before stretching herself up onto her toes, arms out as far as they could go. Seanna also stretched a bit once she had left the bed, then they used the washroom to quickly wash up before heading into the dining room/kitchen.

The four of them consumed the meal, there wasn't much chatter between them, as they all were thinking about the day's events. After the meal had ended, Seanna asked JJ and Pat if they could watch Leilani for a few hours, as she wanted to meet with her mom and sister.

When they agreed, Seanna called her mom and arranged to meet her mother and sister at her mother's house in an hour.

**********

Seanna had called a taxi as she didn't want to drive by herself after acquiring the goose egg on her head earlier. On the way out the door, she asked JJ and Pat to keep an eye on Leilani, and let them know that she would likely be back by about 11:30 PM or so.

A horn honked, Seanna looked out, saw a taxi waiting, waved to JJ and walked out of the house to the taxi.

**********

About fifteen minutes after Seanna left, JJ and Pat had Leilani get ready for bed, then tucked her in and read her a bed time story. They stayed in the room with her until it was clear that she was sleeping, then they quietly left, returning to the kitchen/dining area.

**********

A few minutes before 8:30 PM, the taxi pulled up in front of Seanna's mom's house, she paid the fare, exited the car and walked up onto the porch. Just as she went to reach for the doorbell, the front door opened, her sister let her in, hugging her briefly, then both headed to the living room where their mother was waiting, cups of coffee or tea already sitting on the coffee table with sugar and cream on the side.

"Hi, momma, I'm glad to hear that you didn't end up with a goose egg after hearing about Sue dying," Seanna remarked as she approached her mother and hugged her closely, "I know how strongly you and Sue loved each other, you must miss her terribly."

"That I do, my dear, that I do," replied her mother, "Sue wasn't my twin, we were born almost four years apart, but for all of that, she might as well have been my twin, we were that close to each other for all these years. I do miss her very much."

Tamara joined in, "I know you do, momma, but do we have any news on the jerk that hurt her so badly and caused her to die?"

"Grrrrr!!! It seems he was being paid to beat her, he hadn't named any names as far as I know, but it wouldn't surprise me if the coldblooded pseudopersons that claim to be my Daddy's first wife's children had something to do with it, all they care about is money. When Daddy's first wife died, he was so lonely for a while, then he met my momma and he was happy again, they didn't like that at all!"

Seanna shook her head and replied, "Your daddy marrying your momma must have put a bee in their bonnets, I suppose. I seem to vaguely recall you telling us at some point that his first wife was from a Southern society family, old money or something like that."

"Yes, Seanna, that was it, their family owned a bunch of plantations down in the South, then the Depression hit and they lost about half of what they had before things settled down. Daddy met her a few years after World War II ended, they married a couple of years later, and the children, five girls and two boys, were born pretty much a year apart except for when he served two years in Korea. Their mother was reputed to be very frigid to just about everyone, so I have no idea how Daddy managed to convince her to marry him. From what I've seen and what I've been told, the children from that marriage are very much like their mother toward the people around them."

"That still doesn't explain what has been going on with the family company, money, or the attack on Sue," Seanna commented.

"Well," mom continued, "those seven children grew up to be very much like their mother as I said, with one difference, between the seven of them, only one has never married, the youngest; four of the other six have been married at least three times, one five times, every single marriage ending in a divorce within two or three years, if not much sooner, no children at all. Not one has managed to make a marriage last as long as their own mother had, or my momma had before she and Daddy were killed in that plane crash nearly six years ago.

"Anyway, they grew up with money being given to them for whatever they wanted, and they took that into their adult years. Every single divorce those people went through ended up with the other partner being left penniless or nearly so, while they cleaned up on them and added to their own personal family funds. That part of their life was changed significantly when Daddy and my momma died. None of them wanted to run Daddy's company at all, they all loved the life of the idle rich, so eventually they hired Sue to do that job for them.

"Well, this is where it starts to get interesting, I suppose. About two years after Sue took over the company, one of the accountants came to her, saying he was seeing things in the books that didn't match the actual accounts. After discussing it with someone the accountant knew, they were told they should hire a good private investigator, and were given the names of a few reputable people in the area.

"Sue and the accountant checked them all out, settled on the one they wanted to hire, then talked to him. He in turn suggested that they let him talk to a friend or two of his on the police force; he had, he said, been a police officer for a few years, but had decided he wanted to work for himself, so he had gone back to college, taken several courses and acquired a license as a private investigator. He would see if his friends on the force would be able to help at all, and he would do his utmost to discover if anything illegal was being done.

"So the private investigator and his police friends started digging. They spent about four years doing that, building up a large amount of evidence, keeping Sue and the company accountant informed as new information became available. The amount of information became significant enough that they decided it was time to plan the actual arrests, so the legal wheels started rolling at high speed.

"I don't know for sure, but I think one of Daddy's first wife's children may have caught on that something was happening, as it seems there were more 'business' meetings between the seven over the last year or so than there had been for the four or five years before that.

"What I do know is that, about a week ago, Sue was told that they had everything they needed to get the arrest warrants, they just needed a time and place to make the actual arrests. Sue told them she would arrange a meeting, the one Seanna went to today."

"Ahhhh, yes, thanks for reminding me, momma, Sue had been telling me bits and pieces about what was happening, but I didn't know everything until I skimmed over the documents she had left behind in the bedroom just before I walked into that meeting. The jerk either wasn't the brightest bulb on the tree, or maybe he just didn't care, but the information on their activities was just a few feet away when he was attacking her. Sue had been planning on telling them herself, but the attack on her made that impossible. She did, however, leave some notes in the attache case outlining what had been happening and her plan of attack, so I just went with what she had in mind."

"Holy tamale, you mean to say that Sue had people checking them out over the last few years?" Tamara yelled.

Both Seanna and their mother assured Tamara that that had been the case, the investigations had been over a period of about four years, not only were they embezzling from the company and misusing other company funds, and committing fraud in several ways, but they were apparently also wrongfully terminating some employees on false and spurious grounds, including outright discrimination.

Seanna shook her head at the thought that Sue would no longer be there to guide the company and stated, "All I did was take Sue's place for the announcement that they no longer had access to company or family funds, and their impending arrests. What happened was entirely due to their own actions with the company and with family funds, they made their beds, I hope they like lying in them."

Hmmmm," Tamara mused, "I wonder what will happen with the company now that they've all been arrested. Weren't the seven of them the official company board of directors? If so, that would mean a new board would be needed, as well as a new company leader."

Their mother responded, "I'm sure that will all get sorted out eventually. We have other things to worry about, namely Leilani."

Seanna twisted around in her chair, briefly startled at hearing Leilani's name. "Oh, my, that poor girl, she's only four and her mother is gone. I know we never met before I went there last night, but momma, I feel my heart breaking whenever I see that little girl cry!" Just talking about Leilani brought the memories back, of Leilani just after the attack and again after she found out her mother had died. Seanna curled up in the armchair, initially sobbing quietly, the sobs growing louder as the feelings overwhelmed her.

The next fifteen or twenty minutes passed as Tamara and Momma both helped to calm Seanna down. Eventually, as the sobs weakened to trickles of tears, Seanna turned to her mom and stated quite clearly, "I just don't want her to suffer, Momma, she's such a sweet little girl. She needs a mother who will be there for her, not to be put into a system that just pushes children from one place to another!"

Her momma held Seanna close, "You're quite right, dear, are you suggesting that you want to be responsible for her?"

Seanna's head shot up so fast the crack of her neck could be heard clear across the room. "Do you mean that, momma? Is it really possible for me to be her mother? You know I'm not a biological female, the courts almost always prevent adoptions when transgender or transsexual people are involved. How would we be able to stop them from doing that? She needs a loving home, and she needs it NOW!"

Momma sat there thinking for several minutes, then smiled at her daughter, "I think we might just have a way around that, Seanna. The family has several lawyers for various reasons, we could get one of them to help us on this, saying it is a family issue, and that we would prefer to deal with it within the family rather than having Leilani go through the court system and fostering programs, which aren't necessary."

Seanna smiled back at her momma through her tears. "I truly hope that works out, Momma, I just want to be there for her!"

Tamara bluntly interrupted the two of them, "I've been thinking, Daddy's first wife's kids will likely be looking at prison sentences anyway, but if there is any information that points to any or all of them being involved in arranging the attack on Sue, they could be facing twenty years plus. I know it seems wrong to wish ill on supposed family members, but those people have never treated us like family at all. Momma, could you call up one of the company lawyers and find out about replacing the board and finding a new boss for the company. The company has been in the family since your Daddy started it in 1954, there's no reason it shouldn't remain a family business, is there?"

Momma turned toward Tamara and asked, "Just what do you mean by it shouldn't remain a family business?"

Tamara looked up at her, "Well, Momma, you know I work for the publishing company as an editor, my pay is quite decent, but little sis here is stuck working long shifts in that shoddy supermarket on the other side of town for little more than a pittance. Why don't we talk to the company lawyers about having her take over the job of running the company? When she stepped in for Sue today, she did quite well. It seems Uncle Tony saw her driving past his house this morning, followed her there and heard everything she said to them in the meeting. We all know that he's doing quite well with his business building top end cars for several car companies around here. Tony's son, Tony, Jr., works with him. You aren't working, Momma, but you help with several different community organizations that keep you busy helping the people in our city. Since Uncle Tony, Tony, Jr., and I already have good jobs, and you're busy with your community organizations, that just leaves Seanna."

Seanna sat there, stunned, no flabbergasted, that her sister was suggesting that she run the family company. Momma stood up and began to pace back and forth across the room, obviously working her way through the suggestion Tamara had just made.

Eventually, Momma came to a decision, the pacing stopped. She turned to face us and smiled at me, "You know, Tamara, I think you're right. The job Seanna has now will never help her beyond having the barest necessities of life, whereas running the company, she would have a solid income and a long term job that would help her much, much more, especially if, no when, she adopts Leilani."

Listening to them discussing her future, running the company, adopting Leilani, was just too much, Seanna passed out in the chair. When she came to a moment later, both Tamara and Momma were standing over her, looking at her with worry in their eyes. She shook her head to hopefully clear it, wincing briefly when the goose egg made itself evident, and looked back up at them with a small smile.

"Tamara, you're saying that I should step in as the head of the company? And Momma, you mentioned me adopting Leilani? The way I'm hearing things, you two are in the process of planning the rest of my life, right down to the nitty gritty!" Seanna started to shake her head again, then stopped, remember what happened a minute or two before when she did that. "Are you two being serious? Do you really think, Tamara, that I have what it takes to run the company? And yes, Momma, if there's any way I can adopt Leilani, by the gods, yes, I will!"

The discussion about the company and other family matters continued for another hour, then Seanna announced that she needed to be returning to Sue's apartment and Leilani. "Momma, sis, you've given me a lot to think about, let me know what happens."

Seanna's mother and sister waited with her for the taxi to arrive, then walked her to the door before saying their goodbyes.

**********

While sitting in the taxi on the way back to Sue's apartment, Seanna thought about the conversation that had just finished. She wondered briefly if she had what was needed to run the company, then decided there were ways to learn those things if it became necessary. She was far more concerned with how Leilani was coping with the loss of her mother, and was happy to finally see the taxi stop at the building. She checked the amount on the meter, then pulled out enough cash to pay that and a tip, wishing the driver a good night.

She exited the taxi, walked to the buzzers at the front entry, and pushed the one for Sue's apartment. When Pat responded, she said she had just returned from her mother's, Pat hit the buzzer, the door opened and Seanna took the steps two at a time to the upper floor.

Once in the apartment, JJ surprised her, tossing a set of keys toward her, saying, "These were Sue's, since you seem to be spending most of your free time here and wanting to be with Leilani as much as possible, I figured it would be easier on you to have easy access."

JJ and Pat started walking toward the door, intending to leave, then JJ turned back and said, "Just take care of that little girl, okay? Nothing else matters as much in this world as being sure that a child has a loving home to grow up in, I'm sure you know what I mean."

Seanna smiled back, "Yes, I do, Tamara and I had a wonderful home throughout our childhood, the only thing that was hard for any of us to deal with was Momma's and Sue's husbands being killed by a drunk driver while we were in our teens. Momma, Sue, their brother Tony and his wife and son are all as close as only good family can be, I'm glad to have been raised in that kind of family."

JJ nodded, "I'm glad to hear that, you just help that little girl all you can, get your family involved. We'll talk to you soon."

**********

Seanna watched as JJ and Pat exited the apartment, then paced across the living room for several minutes before wandering into Sue's bedroom to check on Leilani. It was obvious that Leilani was used to going into her mother's bedroom to sleep with her, but it must have been at least a bit distressing on this night, as Leilani was visibly tossing and turning under the light duvet.

Seanna stripped down to her underwear, then gave herself a quick wipe with a washcloth and towel before donning one of Sue's nightgowns and sliding in next to Leilani. Once she had snuggled up close to Leilani, the change in Leilani's emotional state was obvious, she immediately settled down and entered a deeper level of sleep. Seanna smiled and stayed close to Leilani as she herself fell asleep.

**********

The new day came soon enough, Seanna woke as the first light entered the room through the partially closed curtains, then as she shifted in the bed, Leilani woke up, turned over and hugged her, whispering a quick thank you.

Seanna understood right away that Leilani was thanking her for having slept with her, in essence, helping her to sleep as peacefully as possible considering Leilani had just lost her mother; it still surprised her, though, as so many kids nowadays acted as if they were owed anything and everything they could get their paws on, with no consideration at all for others, just for their own benefit.

Seanna smiled and returned the hug, they stayed snuggled together for a few more minutes before a stray ray of sunshine poked through the curtains, shining right into Seanna's eyes. "Come on, Leilani, time to get up, we can talk about what to do for the day."

Seanna padded into the bathroom, used the toilet, washed up, then exited to find Leilani waiting by the door for her turn. Seanna wandered out of the bedroom, heading for the kitchen to see what might be available for breakfast. She opened the cupboards, poking around here and there, checking the contents, then the fridge, before deciding to start with cold cereal for Leilani while she made some omelettes. Seanna filled a bowl with Shreddies, then handed it to Leilani, who added sugar and milk to taste before sitting down at the table.

Seanna eventually found some bacon, some green onions, a tomato, a few mushrooms and some eggs, and spent the next several minutes whipping up an omelette for Leilani before serving it to her and starting on one for herself, finishing it a few minutes later.

She sat down beside Leilani at the table, watching the child devour the omelette, before digging into her own, savouring the taste.

Once the meal was finished, she rinsed the plates off and put them in the dishwasher before cleaning the frying pan and returning it to it's hook on the wall beside the cupboards. She washed her hands under the tap, dried them, then sent Leilani to brush her teeth.

When Leilani returned, they talked for a few minutes, discussing what to do for the day, before deciding on a popular children's museum. Seanna sent Leilani off to the bathroom, following a minute or two later to watch as the tub filled, adding a small amount of a scented bath oil, then helped Leilani to take off her nightgown before lifting her into the bath.

Seanna grinned as she began to wash Leilani, remembering when she was young and her momma had enjoyed washing her in the tub. Seanna was quite thoroughly enjoying herself, and soon Leilani was as well, splashing Seanna from inside the tub. Seanna giggled, and decided that since she was already getting wet, being in the bath made more sense, so she took off her nightgown and hopped in.

They spent the next twenty or so minutes playing and washing themselves thoroughly, then got out as the water turned cold.

Seanna sent Leilani into her room to find something to wear, while laughing at her own predicament, she was stuck with the same set of clothes for what would be the second full day in a row, as well as part of a night. Seanna decided that she was going to have to hit one of the stores downtown for some clothes first, the company could pay for them, then they could go and have fun at the museum.

Seanna quickly dressed in the sweat suit, then padded into the living room, picked up her phone and called her Momma. They spent a few minutes discussing the situation before Momma assured her she would be able to use a company credit card, then Momma informed her that she had contacted one of the company's lawyers already that morning. He had told her that there shouldn't be a problem with Seanna taking over the responsibility of raising Leilani, especially as the family was quite well off and Seanna would soon be working for a reputable company with a very decent yearly income and most likely access to the income from the rest of the family's many residential properties.

After chatting for a few more minutes, Seanna said goodbye to her mother, ended the call and wandered into Leilani's bedroom, just in time to get caught by a flying tartan patterned skirt landing over her head. Seanna broke out in a giggle, which alerted Leilani. Leilani turned her head, looked up, saw the skirt draped over Seanna's head and she started giggling as well.

Eventually, the two of them settled on a dress suitable for early winter weather, a pair of white tights and a pair of Mary Jane shoes. Leilani tried to dress herself, but needed some help with the tights, doing up buttons and buckling the shoes before she was ready.

Seanna made sure she had her purse and wallet, and the keys for the apartment, before locking it and leading Leilani down the stairs.