{ Flashback / Third Person POV }

The years went by quick. Full of nothing but pure unconditional love in the Castellanos house hold.

There was always laughter.

At nights while Athena and Scarlett cooked dinner, they let a very little and yet smart Andrea help them. They would turn on music, and dance with each other in the kitchen.

Their life wasn't perfect, but it was as close as they could possibly get. They were always very grateful for the life they had. They knew they were lucky to have each other, and the amazingly beautiful life they shared.

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All of that changed on Andrea's forth birthday.

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Athena got some of her older friends to come over for a small party, Andrea had never had a real one before.

About an hour into the party there was a knock on the door, and Scarlett went to answer it with her daughter Andrea following behind her like the mini me she was.

When Scarlett got to the door, Alastair was standing in the doorway. Andrea hid behind the corner wall so that the scary man couldn't see her. She didn't do the best with men, she never trusted them.

"I'm here to see my child." Alastair says

"You have a child, a son actually, and he is at your house..wherever it is, with your wife. You have no reason to be here." Scarlett says strongly to Alastair

"Let me meet my child!" Alastair demands

"You don't have a child here, you wanted me to have an abortion remember?" Scarlett replies not having his demands. He had no right.

"You'll regret this, you can't keep a father from his child." Alastair spits out at Scarlett

"Again she isn't yours. I can do whatever it is that I want. Because as far as we are concerned you don't exist, and we are doing just fine. So go back to your wife and son, don't ruin your relationship with them." Scarlett tells him

Scarlett tries to shut the door, but Alastair won't let her. Instead he stops the door with a shocked expression totally overwhelmed with emotion.

"I have a daughter." Alastair says more to himself

"No I have a daughter, you have a son, at your house, please go there or anywhere else." Scarlett says forcing the door shut

She had asked some of her mothers family to find information on Alastair through out the years. She knew he had ties in the mafia, but Scarlett's mother Athena had more. Scarlett also started to remember more from that night, she learned he took advantage of her.

When she saw him she felt sick.

It didn't help that she had heard he had started cheating more on his wife throughout the years. Making her feel worse for being stupid, and feeling sorry for his wife and son.

But Scarlett wouldn't let herself regret that night anymore.. Every time she blamed herself or felt like a victim... she would look at her daughter.

Maybe it all happened for a reason. Andrea didn't know for sure. But she loves her daughter more than anything in the world, and would forever be grateful for her.

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That same night after the party was over, and everyone had left including Athena ; who went to walk one of her much older friends home.

A now drunk and angry Alastair started banging on the door yelling. Demanding he be let in. Scarlett got scared, so she called the police.

"Mommy I'm scared." Andrea whimpered as she started shaking when Alastair's yelling got louder as he said he was going to kick the door down.

"I know baby, I know you are.. and I'll tell you a secret, mommy is too.. and that's okay. It's normal to be scared.. but we have to try and be the bravest and strongest that we can be, like superwoman." Scarlett says trying to calm her daughter and herself.

Scarlett knew Alastair was about to kick the door down, and there was a pit in the bottom of her stomach. She knew something was going to go terribly wrong. So she did the only thing a mom could possibly think of doing in that moment.. she protected her child. She hid Andrea under the couch sofa. It wasn't much protection, but it was the best and quickest plan she had.

"Baby girl, I know that you're scared but I need you to stay here. Don't come out or make a sound until me or Nana come to get you." Scarlett calmly tells her daughter

"Just like hide and seek?" Young Andrea asks turning her head to the side.

"Yes, just like hide and seek." Scarlett says smiling at how smart, and understanding her four year old daughter is even when she's shaking in fear.

That's when Scarlett and Andrea jump when they hear a bang. Alastair in his drunken state had managed to kick down the door in anger.

Scarlett quickly stood up, and acted like she was coming down the stairs just in case he went looking for Andrea.

"I'm taking my daughter!" Alastair says with anger as he gets in Scarlett's face.

"She isn't yours. She isn't some jewel or toy to add to your collection... she's a little girl. My little girl. Even if I agreed to let you see her, it's not going to be tonight when your drunk and angry." Scarlett tries to reason

Alastair just gets angrier, he hits Scarlett so hard on her face that she lands on the floor.

Andrea being the curious and nosey child she was ...she was peaking the whole time. She covers her mouth so she doesn't make a sound, like she was told by her mother. She didn't want the scary man to find her.

Alastair starts yelling at Scarlett who is still on the floor as he starts kicking her in a blind rage.

"YOU BITCH!! SHE'S MY DAUGHTER! SHE WOULDNT BE HERE IF IT WASNT FOR ME!! I AM HER FATHER! I DESERVE THE RIGHT TO TAKE HER WITH ME!! YOU CANT KEEP ME FROM HER!!" Alastair keeps yelling

Andrea is silently crying still trying not to make a sound, but praying for her mother to be okay, and for someone to come and save them.

To say she was scared would be an understatement.

Alastair finally stops beating Andrea when he hears sirens.. he curses and runs out the house.

Andrea waited a second. Until she saw her mother trying to crawl her way over to her, but Scarlett couldn't she was already to weak. Andrea crawled from under the couch, and ran to her mother kneeling beside her.

"Mommy." Andrea cried softly

"Baby girl...always..remember..that..I love you...and that...I'm always..with..you..in..your heart." Scarlett says slowly feeling herself fade as tears fall from her eyes

"I love you too. Mommy. Stay wake." Andrea cried trying to wipe her tears along with her mothers. Scarlett's eyes closed, and Andrea laid her head on her mother's chest, and continued to softly cry like a broken angel.

"Mommy..please..wake up..I love you too...wake up for me mommy. Please wake up." Andrea kept crying on her mother's chest.

The police arrived at the same time Athena got back from walking her friend home. Athena started running inside her home, when she realized the police were arriving at her home.

They took Scarlett to the hospital immediately, but she never woke up again. She was gone.

And the world was a darker place, at least to Athena and Andrea.

The police couldn't get Andrea to talk to them, but after they left Athena called in a favor.

Athena had a feeling, and after she heard Andrea tell her a scary angry man wanted to take his daughter and kept hitting her mommy.

Athena knew.

And Athena had already lost her daughter, and she wasn't about to lose Andrea too..

So Athena did what she had too.