I'm sorry It's taken me so long to wrap up this story. It's been a busy year, full of changes and above all having huge writers block don't help matters either. However, that being said, I hate unfinished business, so I've decided to tie up the story with an Epilogue to answer all the unanswered questions.

Thanks to everyone who has ever followed and commented on the story in the past- and to show my sincere gratitude, this epilogue is for you.

I'm Ready

Epilogue

"You're two weeks late…" Eli remarks, giving his daughter a brief hug despite visiting regulations. As always the prison guard watches on closely, on the verge of reminding them of the rules; no physical contact allowed, but they part before he gets the chance.

Eli gestures towards the table and chairs, in a silent invitation for Olivia to take a seat, which she does so gratefully. In her current condition the journey to see her father was exhausting.

"I'm sorry Dad, did you not get my letter, I did write to explain."

"Oh I got it, but that doesn't mean I didn't miss you… You know how much I look forward to our visits."

"Even though most of them end up in disputes."

"Hey, what can I say, 10 years down the line, and I still find myself disliking the man."

"He has a name Daddy". She replies in exasperation.

"Hmmm… And don't I know it… Anyway, never mind him, give me the latest run down, how's my grandbabies doing?"

She smiles wistfully… "Maya is thriving in school; did I tell you she got the lead part in the Thanksgiving memorial play…"

Eli grins from ear to ear… "That's my girl, always aiming for the top…"

"That she does, she's such a good girl…." Liv gushes with pride.

"Any more bullying from that red neck kid?" Eli enquires, with his eyebrows furrowed in disdain, he's been worrying about her ever since Olivia had mentioned it in the last visit.

"No, thank goodness… After our joint parent teacher conference, he's backed down completely…"

"Lucky for him, because I was about to call on some favours on the outside…"

"Dad, I swear you're becoming more and more institutionalised, you're starting to sound like the Mafia… I think you need to stop hanging out with the Latino's in here."

Eli can't help but laugh; chuckling as he replies… "Well, apart from the black inmates, they're the only other group I can bring myself to socialise with…"

Olivia always hated it when her father made references to race, particularly when it was clear that his dislike for the whites was still so apparent… "Really Dad, could you be any more prejudice; you seem to forget that your grandchildren are half white."

"Believe me Olivia, that is something I can NEVER forget… but at least for their sake they are half Pope too, so it balances things out in one's favour."

Unimpressed, she makes a point to rolls her eyes, honestly, if she wasn't so certain about her father's love towards her children, she would refuse to entertain these visits on a regular basis... But the truth was, he had saved her life, and if it weren't for him her children wouldn't even exist today, and above all he did love them; Eli loved them with every breath he had in his body, and she could tell he had already pinned all his hopes and dreams he once held dear for her, on them instead. After all, they were his legacy. Sadly, his personal ambitions for the future had been shattered the day he pulled that trigger and killed those two white men, and in many ways he felt Olivia's prospects had been obliterated the day she fell for Fitzgerald… So those grandbabies were the only hope he could cling on to when it came to securing and making a mark on the world as an honouree member of the Pope family.

"It still displeases me that you gave them his name though…" he continues, not even attempting to hide his disappointment or complaint in his voice.

"Seriously Daddy, are we doing this again, I don't wish to argue about this…"

"Who said anything about arguing? I'm just expressing my opinion… I have never, and will never be happy about the fact that you gave them his surname."

"It's my surname too remember, Fitz is my husband, and they're his children, so of course they should carry his name…"

"Well you weren't married to him when you had Maya…" he counters, "therefore technically she should be called Pope…"

That's the final straw she thinks, and deciding that she's heard enough, wordlessly, she picks up her handbag and rises to her feet, ready to depart… but he quickly reaches out to her to stop her… "Hey stop, don't go, please…"

She looks at him with tired eyes, she's tired of going over the same old ground with him.

"Look, I'm sorry, it's not my intention to upset you, I just can't help the way I feel… I only ever wanted what's best for you, and yes it's no secret that I believe you sold yourself short by being with that man, but that doesn't mean I don't love you, or care about you… God, the fact that I've spent 10 years behind bars, for saving your life, is that not testament alone?"

"Of course it is," she whispers, feeling the guilt seep back in, as it always does when she comes to visit him, just the thought in knowing that her father wouldn't be here, if it weren't for her actions and her love for Fitz.

He can see she's relenting… "Please, I don't want you to go- I'll even lay off Grant, just as long as you'll stay."

"Fine," she agrees and takes up her seat again. He sighs in relief, before quickly changing the subject to something more neutral… "So, how's Joshua getting on?"

Like his sister, Joshua was a little angel. He was inquisitive in nature and bright as a button, even as a toddler he always had a thirst to learn and explore; to be honest he reminded her of her dad in that way. Joshua, came along a year after she and Fitz tied the knot. He was an unexpected gift, seeing as she had suffered two miscarriages following the birth of her daughter. The doctors had advised that due to her injuries sustained in the attack, she was unable to carry to full term again. In many ways, the fact she didn't miscarry with Maya was a miracle in itself, which they held dear and remained grateful that at least they had been able to conceive one child together in love. At the end of the day they also had Jerry and Karen to bestow all their love on too, and although their family were far from conventional they were happy. Of course having Joshua, a mere three years later, which had been completely unplanned and totally unexpected, as husband and wife they felt they had reached the pinnacle of domesticated family bliss. Having said that, life had a funny way of taking them for a spin; filled with surprises, unbeknown to them all, 6 years after the birth of their son Joshua, Olivia was now carrying their third child; which despite a rocky start to the pregnancy, where she experienced some heavy spotting in her first trimester, he or she was thriving well, and was expected to make an appearance in 5 weeks' time.

They find themselves thanking God every day for his many blessings; for it had always been Fitz's dream to have a big family, and he now had that in abundance, in which they both felt truly blessed.

Fitz had been right, the move to Vermont had been the making of them, and after the trail where Big Jerry and Mellie were sentenced to 30 years, and 25 years in prison respectively, they found that living at an unknown location, far away from the limelight meant the media circus died down pretty quickly after too. A year and a half after her attack, sooner than they could have ever possibly imagined, the couple were finally left alone in peace. Fitz went on to lecture Law and Politics at a local University, and Olivia decided to remain at home with the children. After all they had been through, she felt the children deserved to have her love and attention full time. Becoming a mother of three in such a short space of time had inevitably put a different perspective on her life's ambitions. Not only was she a mother to a young baby, she was also having to be a substitute parent to two children that had just lost their own mother. Anne and Fitz had been right however, despite her fears, little Jerry and Karen had taken to her like a duck to water, and in turn their innocence and vulnerability made it so easy for her to love them. Obviously, as the years stretched on, and they got older and wiser, Jerry and Karen eventually grew to understand why their own mother was not around. And whereas Jerry seemed disheartened by his mother and grandfather's actions and wanted nothing to do with them; Karen not only struggled with the knowledge of what her mother and grandfather had done to Olivia, she also expressed resentment towards Fitz and Olivia for their actions too. It was expected of course; Olivia always knew she would be made accountable for the role she played in them losing their mother. After finding out why her mother was in prison, whilst on the verge of adolescence- Karen acted out for a bit, both at home and at school. Understandably, she found it hard to get her head around the fact that the own father and Olivia, who she loved immensely, were partially to blame for all this. At the end of the day it stands to reason that if her father hadn't cheated on her mother with Olivia, she would still have Mellie in her life. It was a difficult time for all of them, and Fitz and Olivia did their up most to support Karen through it, but in fact it was with the help of Uncle Huck, who remained loyal to the family and in more ways than one became an extended member, that Karen was finally been able to unpick it all in her head, and learned to accept what had happened and move on.

Over the last 10 years Fitz and Olivia were fortunate enough to have a strong support network around them too, between Huck and Anne- they had help with the children at home. Not long after they moved to Vermont, Anne sold her house in DC and moved to Vermont too. Fitz and Olivia had graciously offered for her to move in with them, but she didn't wish to play 3rd wheel to a young couple in love, so she opted to downscale and buy a quaint little log cabin of her own, not too far away from them. By doing so, she was able to offer them all the emotional support that they needed.

And of course Fitz and Olivia also had their trusted friends to lean on too. Quinn, who was still happily married with 2 children of her own, had moved to Canada, where she worked in a small law firm, and Abby who always had her sights on a career in the CIA, finally made it as one of the first women to join this predominantly male field. Free thinking and ambitious Abby was always one for breaking the mould, as indeed she then went on to break another, when she took courage from Olivia's plight and started to openly date Harrison. They had been together officially for 2 years now, and were still going strong. Whilst they supported the family through the trial, Abby and Harrison soon found out they had a lot in common, and had inevitably grown closer through their mutual friendship and love shared for Olivia and her family. Although there had yet to be any mentioning of wedding bells, they seemed content and very much in love.

They only person Liv worried about now, was her father… He had only served 10 years of a life sentence. Despite providing Eli with the finest Criminal Lawyers in DC, naturally Eli declined Fitz's help and opted to remain with Edison's father, who represented him in court instead. To be fair, Davies put up a good fight in his defence, but the law in 1967 was not in favour of a black man taking justice into his own hands, and the most he was afforded, in light of the horrific attack upon his daughter was that he was not sentenced to death. Eli wasn't aware of this but over the last few years, with Fitz's help, Olivia had been looking tirelessly into a means of appealing her father's sentence. It was proving to be difficult, near impossible it seemed, but she refuses to give up the fight. Because for all of Eli's grievances against her relationship with Fitz, she owed him her life, and she would never forget that.

After having a rather pleasant visit with her father, considering how it had almost ended prematurely, with a kiss to her cheek Eli wishes her all the best with the impending delivery of his third grandchild, and makes her promise to send him pictures as soon as the baby is born. For it would be a long while before she can come back out and see him again. The travel on the train from Vermont to DC was a gruelling one, 12 hours each way, and to be completely honest she had just about coped with it at 7 and a half months pregnant, let alone further along, or even worse with a nursing infant in tow. But at least she had company on the journey- because every time without fail, Fitz always insisted on going with her. Talking of which, he there to great her with a warm smile in the foyer of the jail house, arms outstretched, ready to envelope her in a big hug.

"Hi."

"Hi" she sighs, revelling in his comfort as she breathes in the woody scent of his cologne. He always smelt like coming home to her. He was everything to her, he was her best friend, her rock and confidant, and he was the father to her children and despite all the trials and tribulations that they have faced since their romance began, she can honestly say that now that they have come out on the other side of it, she held no regrets in her heart. Fitz had given her so much joy and so much love, that she knows she's one of the lucky ones, she was fortunate enough to have found her soul mate. And for that reason alone, she wouldn't trade him in for the world.

She loves him unconditionally and as long as he stand beside her, as her husband, her lover and her friend, no matter what the universe has in store for them, she has confidence that unitedly they can tackle anything together, whether it be good or bad. At the end of the day they had each other, they had their family, and they had an amazing bunch of friends, and when it came down to it, that was all that mattered.

"You okay?" He asks gently, as he runs her hand over her protruding belly. He was always so attentive to her needs, as well as her emotions.

She simply hugs him to her body tighter (well as close as her tummy will allow), as she nods her head… "Hmmm hmm… I am, but just give me one more minute."

And as she snuggles against him, resting her head upon his firm chest, he leans down and lovingly places a kiss to her forehead… "My sweet baby, after all you've given me, one more minute is the very least I can do."