"Now that Amy and I have completed our investigations, we are ready to reveal our findings to each other and to our clients for the first time." Steve DiSchiavi, the Dead Files

The Reveal

A table had been set up within the Alamain parlor. Steve DiSchiavi, Amy Allan, and Lawrence and Carly Alamain were seated around the table, waiting for the reveal. Steve spoke up. "Amy, I'd like you to meet Dr. Carly Alamain and her husband Lawrence Alamain. They are the parents of a son, Nicholas. They have been living here for about one year, although this mansion has been in Alamain family for several decades. In fact, Lawrence lived in this house as a child. This is a photo of Lawrence and Carly with their son."

Steve passed Amy a family photo of The Alamains with their adorable son Nicky. "Basically since they moved here after living in Paris for a while, their lives have been turned upside down," Steve stated. "Their son is sad and scared. He's been hanging out in the family cemetery, hearing voices, and seeing apparitions When they were in Paris, they had a happy life together. They had a great marriage. What has been happening in the mansion has been a huge strain on the family, because Lawrence doesn't believe in the paranormal, yet his wife and son have been hearing and seeing strange things. And to tell you the truth, something happened to me when I first got here to interview the family. I saw something on the porch. It frightened me so much, I wanted to leave... but I stayed, because I wanted to help this family. I wanted to solve the mystery, so I began collecting evidence."

As he was speaking, Amy got a great look of pain upon her face as though she might burst into tears at any second. "They want to know what's here... so they can kick it the hell out... and start living again. They'd like to get back to their normal, happy lives," Steve continued.

Then Steve turned to Lawrence and Carly and said, "Now that Amy knows a little bit about what's going on, I am gonna ask her to tell us about her walk."

Now it was Amy's turn. "As soon as I approached the mansion, I got a feeling of great pain in the middle of my skull. It was agonizing. A woman was weeping; she was devastated, because her child had just died. When I came in, I entered this room and I saw the image of child... a little ghost girl. She said her name was Lucy," Amy stated as the Alamain's looked at her with wide eyes.

"Little Lucy asked me to help her. I was lead outside by the spirit to the family's swimming pool..." Amy went on.

Suddenly Lawrence gasped, a look of horror upon his face. Carly took his hand, trying to comfort him. "It was YOU in the pool with the little boy," Amy said as she placed her gaze upon Lawrence. "You were only eight years old. Sadly, you were blamed for your younger brother's death. You need to know - you did nothing wrong. It wasn't you that harmed your little brother. You are not to blame. There is someone else... a woman who lives now in your house. She is responsible for the deaths of both children, Lucy and Forrest, and SHE is the one to blame for all of the heartache."

"Vivian?" Carly cried out. She had always known that Vivian had a screw loose. After all, she had taken her child, declared him dead, and raised him as her own, keeping him from his parents. Vivian had also injected Carly's patients with cleaning fluid and later she had buried Carly alive! The woman was demented and belonged back in the mental hospital!

"She's a red-haired woman..." Amy explained. "I saw her as a child, strangling her little sister with coat hanger. I also saw her as a young woman, holding the little boy under the water and drowning him in the pool. She's mentally ill. She needs to be locked up ... FOREVER."

"My aunt left the mental hospital a little over a year ago. They said she had recovered," Lawrence spoke up.

"She's definitely not recovered... and we have proof," said Amy.

Carly and Lawrence looked at each other in surprise as Amy and Steve stood up from the table. "Are you aware that there is a hidden room within this house?" Amy questioned.

Both Carly and Lawrence shook their heads. "No, not at all," said Lawrence. "Will you show us the room?"

Amy walked over to the fireplace, triggering the hidden knob that opened the door leading to the secret room. When the door slid open with a loud scraping noise, Lawrence and Carly looked on in awe. "My God!" Lawrence exclaimed.

"What is this?" Carly asked, shaking visibly as she walked into the little room, seeing a nursery set up with a crib as well as other baby equipment.

She stood over the crib as she saw a little pink bear setting upon a delicate pink coverlet. Thinking of the daughter she had lost, Carly began to cry. She looked at Lawrence with tear-filled eyes.

"What has Vivian done?!" she cried out to her husband.

Just then, Matt entered the parlor, carrying a tiny little girl in his arms. She looked to be near one year of age. She had silky dark hair and gorgeous blue eyes, the same eyes as Nicholas, Lawrence and Carly's son.

"Who is this child?" Lawrence questioned.

"Late last night, your aunt and her loyal servant Ivan were arrested. She admitted that she snuck into the hospital in Paris, France after your daughter's birth. She switched your daughter with the corpse of an infant she had taken from the morgue. She staged your daughter's death, then she brought the baby back here to the states. With the help of her servant, she's been keeping the child in this hidden room, right under your noses," Steve explained.

"WHAT?!" Lawrence gasped as he looked at the baby girl with longing. Could this REALLY be he and Carly's child, the one they had been mourning? Was his aunt actually that insane that she had staged their little girl's death? Had Vivian kept their daughter in a sound-proof, hidden room for a little over one year?!

"My baby... my baby!" Carly sobbed as she reached out for the tiny girl. She took the little one in her arms, hugging her as she cried. "My sweet little Lucy."

Lawrence was still trying to take everything in as he watched his wife hold the child as she was weeping. For months, they had mourned their baby daughter. How could Vivian have been so cruel to have taken Lucy from them, replacing their child with the body of a dead infant? How could she have done so many deplorable acts?!

"The spirit of Lucinda and Forrest Alamain were trying to get your attention. They wanted you to find this little girl," said Amy. "They wanted to protect her from any harm. But I want you to know, now that this little girl is safe and all the mysteries have been solved, the spirits are at peace and they have left this mansion. They've went into the light."

"What we've discovered that is even more creepy is that we think this same hidden room was used by Vivian all those years ago when she entrapped her sister Lucinda for over a month before she strangled her," Steve added.

"I hate her even more now," Carly said with gritted teeth as she and Lawrence cuddled their sweet little daughter.

"Thank God we got our precious little girl back. Wait until Nicky meets her," Lawrence said to Carly.

At the conclusion of the reveal, Carly and Lawrence thanked, Amy, Steve and Matt for all they had done. "We don't know what we can do to repay you..." said Lawrence. "How does 1 million dollars sound?"

Amy shook her head. "I'm just glad that Vivian was caught, your daughter is safe, and that the spirits of Lucinda and Forrest can finally be at rest. You don't have to worry about thanking me. That is truly thanks enough."

The Dead Files team said goodbye to Lawrence and Carly. After they had left, Lawrence and Carly marveled over their beloved daughter, Lucy. "She's incredible," Lawrence said. "She looks just like you, Katerina."

"We made two beautiful kids," she said as she reached up to give him a kiss.

"Would you like to return to Paris... or maybe even Italy? This mansion creeps me out... after all the awful things Vivian has done here."

"I was hoping you would say that," said Carly. "We'll reunite with Nicky, pack up a few things, and then we'll board your private jet."

"I can't wait," he said as he tugged her close to kiss her deeply. The baby reached out, touching his cheek. Lawrence's heart melted.

His daughter was ALIVE. He couldn't be more happy. And finally, after so many years of torture and anguish, he had finally gotten rid of his psychotic aunt.

Meanwhile, Matt, Amy and Steve were saying their goodbyes as they got into their separate cars. "Another successful investigation," Matt said as he drove away from the mansion.

"We make quite a team together," Amy said as she smiled at him.

"That we do," he agreed. "Hey, I was thinking, what happened back there was draining on all of us... would you like to take a a little vacation?"

"Where would we go?"

"Somewhere romantic... how about the beach?"

"You and me?"

"Of course," said Matt. "If we took Steve with us, it would be awfully crowded in our bed."

"Matt!" Amy gasped.

"Amy, I want to try again. You and me. I never got over you. Why do you think I tag along with you on all these creepy cases?"

"Because I am rich in character and I have great boobs?" she said teasingly.

Matt laughed. "Well, that helps... but I am doing it because I am madly in love with you. I follow you because I can't bear to be without you."

"Why did we ever divorce?" Amy asked with a hint of sadness.

"For the life of me, I really don't know- but I do know that it was a mistake. Amy, tell me, do you still love me? Is there a second chance for us?"

Amy thought for a second. She was so deep in thought that she had that grimace on her face again. Soon it faded into a gorgeous smile. "Matt, I haven't dated a single guy since we split up. There's no one like you..."

"I want to pull over so I can kiss you," he said breathlessly.

"Just drive us to the Salem Inn... We can kiss and fondle there," Amy stated.

"And then we'll go on that vacation?"

"Of course, I want to see you in some skimpy swimming trunks."

"And I want to see you in a barely-there bikini."

"Drive faster, Matt!" Amy suddenly exclaimed.

Matt put the pedal to the metal as he hurried toward their hotel. His heart was beating so fast within his chest. With each pulsating beat, it was calling out, AMY!

THE END

Author's Note: I hope you like the ending. My kids kept interrupting and I got incredibly frustrated. It seems to be lacking something, but I am not sure what. Are you surprised by how the fic turned out? I would love to hear your thoughts.