The Virgin’s Bucket List – Episode 24
Wayne called the number again, but every attempt went directly to voicemail. Jamie had either blocked him or turned off the phone. The silence felt deliberate, and Wayne placed the device on the table before frustration tempted him to break it.
Lindsay reminded him that Jamie had received the call without warning. Learning that a stranger might be his brother would frighten anyone, especially if Mara had told him a different version of the past. Wayne agreed, though patience was difficult after seventeen years of ignorance.
Julie searched public records and confirmed that Mara Bennett had raised a son named James. His birth date matched the toddler’s likely age in the photograph, but the records did not identify his biological parents. The evidence remained persuasive rather than conclusive.
Mike advised them not to travel to Cedar Ridge uninvited. If Jamie felt threatened, appearing at his home could destroy any possibility of trust. Wayne heard the wisdom but resented receiving it from the man who had hidden the secret.
An email arrived that afternoon from an address bearing Jamie’s name. It contained only a photograph of the missing half pendant and a demand: Stop looking for me.
The image proved Jamie had taken the keepsake from Mike’s desk. He had been inside the Johnson house, yet none of them recognized him on the visitor list. Lindsay enlarged the porch footage until the repair technician’s face became clear.
The cap and work shirt had disguised him, but the eyes matched the toddler in Catherine’s photograph. Jamie had come to Maple Hill before Wayne knew he existed, located the pendant, and disappeared without confronting anyone.
Wayne felt betrayed by a brother he had not met. Lindsay saw something else in the message. Jamie could have destroyed the pendant; instead, he sent proof that he possessed it. Some part of him wanted Wayne to understand the connection.
She replied without asking another question. Lindsay apologized for forcing contact and promised they would respect his space. She also attached the childhood photograph so Jamie could decide what it meant for himself.
No response came. Wayne tried to focus on practice for the regional championship, but missed routes and late throws betrayed him. Mike called a break rather than humiliating him in front of the team.
In the empty locker room, Mike admitted he had searched for Evelyn after Catherine died. Every address led nowhere, and he eventually stopped because he believed continued pursuit might expose James. Wayne asked whether Mike had also stopped because the search reminded him of Catherine.
Mike did not deny it. Grief had turned difficult tasks into impossible ones, and he had allowed fear to decide that silence was safer. He apologized for leaving Wayne to inherit the consequences.
Wayne returned to the field with a clearer mind. He could not force Jamie to accept him, but he could choose what kind of brother he would be if another opportunity came. He finished practice without another missed pass.
That evening, Lindsay found him studying the old photograph. She sat beside him and admitted she feared their relationship had begun beneath too many obligations—her dare, his childhood promise, and now their mothers’ secret.
Wayne told her that history explained why he had searched for her, but it did not explain why he fell for the person she had become. Lindsay’s courage was no longer a memory; he saw it every time she defended someone or told an uncomfortable truth.
Their second kiss happened without glasses, a crowd, or a wager. Wayne touched her face and waited, and Lindsay closed the distance herself. The quiet certainty of it mattered more than every cheer at the stadium.
The doorbell rang before the kiss could deepen. Lindsay laughed at their talent for being interrupted, then went downstairs with Wayne. She expected Julie or one of Mike’s players.
Jamie stood on the porch holding the completed silver compass. He looked directly at Wayne and said he had not come to reunite. He had come to warn him that Evelyn Adams was already in Maple Hill—and she was searching for both of them.
