The Curious Case of Natalia Grace (2023) s02e06 Episode Script
One Door Closes
1
[music playing]
Every lie, there is a truth
that always comes to light.
Like, there'll not be anything
said in the darkness
that I will not shout
from the rooftops
and the mountaintops
in the light.
[Natalia] But you wanna know
something else, though?
Admitting those
is a whole other story.
I know it's not easy.
But that's what sets us free.
I have been
on a roller coaster
with this case, right?
I had been up and down,
one side, the other side,
seeing things from both sides,
trying to figure out
who is telling the truth.
Is Michael lying?
Is Natalia lying?
Or maybe they are both victims
of the same monster.
[exhales]
I didn't do anything wrong.
I know I didn't
do anything wrong.
I have a jury
that has affirmed that I
didn't do anything wrong.
I'm not hiding.
I I'm not criminal.
Uh, I'm not ashamed.
I'm not gonna listen to it.
I'll hit play.
I'll hold it up
and show it to you.
So, it truly doesn't affect me
what Kristine
tells random people
in the public about me.
Kristine told me
in a series of messages
Natalia ruined her life
in so many ways.
Kristine basically
said that
Natalia started
[bleep] her husband.
She had either caught Natalia
-having sex
with her husband
-Say what?
or became aware of it.
-And then apparently,
Natalia also tried to
-[Natalia] Are you serious?
[bleep] one of the
neighbors' husbands
or one of the neighbors.
-Wait. Hold on.
-[Freddie] I specifically
remember Kristine
just telling me
how heartbroken she was over
the situation with Natalia
sleeping with her husband.
No! Are you crazy?
That is a total lie.
So to answer to simply
say it on camera.
Absolutely not.
I have never at all
touched Natalia
in an inappropriate way.
I have never had
any kind of sexual relations
with Natalia.
Unequivocally, absolutely,
One hundred percent,
hell no.
At the same time
that's Kristine.
She will make up whatever
crazy loud lie she can
and if you don't believe her,
then she'll take it
up a notch.
Michael really wants
some resolution
in his one-on-one
with Natalia.
But he also wants her
to believe and understand
that he was victimized
by Kristine too.
Natalia wants answers
and she wants justice.
The Barnetts think
that it's over, but it's not.
It is far from over.
[Beth] And maybe they both
still need to come clean
because maybe
everybody is hiding something.
[sniffles, sighs]
If the truth does set us free,
and we have told as much truth
as we can, have we not?
Hopefully,
me showing up here
should let you know I harbor
no ill will for anything.
I'm not trying
to hide from anything.
[sighs]
Did you know
she pepper-sprayed me?
I learned that
about a year ago.
-[Natalia] Do you know--
-Jacob told me.
Do you know
how many times she did it?
[Michael] Jacob told me once.
Granted, Jacob wasn't going
to be around
every second of the day.
It was twice.
I can remember her getting
a can of the pepper spray.
I remember her
having it on her keys.
-[sighs]
-[Natalia] The first time
she did it,
it was just to show me
what it was gonna be like.
-I remember she took me
to the back porch.
-[exhales]
[sniffles] She told me
to keep my eyes open.
And the first time,
I closed 'em
right as she was spraying,
and she got mad
and was like, "You need
to keep your eyes open."
[Michael] You know what?
It's just too bad nobody
ever got to show her.
'Cause, you know,
if you have to know
what it's gonna be like,
doesn't she need to know
what it's gonna be like?
[voice shaking]
And after she did it,
she wouldn't even
let me clean my eyes
for like five minutes.
And I remember crying.
[sobbing] She wouldn't
help me.
[sniffles]
The second time she did it,
it was actually
at Jacob's school.
-All because
I was walking too slow.
-[Michael sighs]
[sobbing]
[Natalia continues sobbing]
I don't know nothing
about statutes of limitations
or anything but
[sighs wearily]
that sounds like
[beeping] to me.
[Natalia] Did you know
that she pepper-sprayed me?
[Michael] I learned that
about a year ago.
Wait a second,
the pepper spray?
Okay. No, no.
He didn't just learn about it.
He told us in 2022
in an interview
that Kristine told him
about it at the time.
[Michael] Natalia wasn't
telling her who she was,
so Kristine told me, one day
I came home from work,
that she tried something new.
We had a pink
cannister of pepper spray
that was on Kristine's keys.
"Tell me who you are
or I'm gonna spray you
in the face with this."
No, I don't think
he just learned about it
because he told us
he knew about it in 2022.
Kristine's telling me this
happily and proudly
like it's no big deal.
"Michael, I
I even tried
pepper-spraying her today.
She still won't admit
the truth."
Michael needs
to admit to Natalia
that he knew about it.
You can't tell her
you just learned about it
when you told us
and it's recorded.
Just admit it.
It hurt, you know,
the fact that [sniffles]
the fact that she just did it,
like, just to do it.
That first time was and I
didn't want her to do it.
Like, I told her,
you know, I don't want
to do it. [sniffles]
And she did it the first time
and I closed my eyes
before it got in my eyes
and she told me to keep
Kristine told me
to keep my eyes open.
It hurt so much and the fact
that she didn't care
was the worst part of it.
Looking back and talking
to Natalia and
reflecting and asking her
if anything had happened
in the Barnett home,
um, physical abuse,
she didn't say anything.
What Natalia is saying
in this video clip
I had never heard that before.
She never said anything.
And knowing what I know
with my experience
in interviewing children
and working with families
over the years,
it doesn't surprise me
that she didn't say anything.
[crying]
[Sheriff Bob] There's some
trauma there.
What they did
that's not love.
Not even close.
That's hate.
What are the things
that Kristine made up?
[Michael] Um
I so many things.
What did she make up about me?
You were going
to kill everybody.
You were gonna kill her,
you were gonna kill the boys.
And again, I don't wanna talk.
I don't wanna I don't wanna
go down this road.
[Natalia] Kristine is the one
that told me
to tell them that I wanted
to hurt you guys,
that I wanted
to poison Kristine,
that I wanted to just
that I was hiding knives.
What is that story even?
What was what story?
-Hiding knives?
-[Natalia] Yeah.
I was never alone.
What is that story about?
I would come home from work.
There was a couple of times,
during a period of time,
that Kristine said
she found knives
under your bed.
There was one time that I
found a knife under your bed.
And there was one time
you were holding a knife
in our bedroom.
That's what that's about.
I was never in y'all's room
with a knife.
I remember you being in there.
I couldn't even
look at over y'all's bed.
I barely even climbed over it.
I understand that.
That doesn't change the fact
that you were in the room
holding the knife
that direction.
[Natalia] Michael
I remember
the knives were always
put up where I couldn't
even reach 'em.
I would've had
to drag a chair.
Y'all would've heard me.
And I was never alone.
Kristine was always there,
-so how could I have got 'em?
-[Michael] I don't know.
There was a night,
you were standing
not the very foot of the bed,
but, like, six, seven,
eight feet back
holding a medium-size knife.
And there was one time
I found one under your bed.
Now, were there things
going on that was
making it really hard
for you to keep
things straight? Maybe,
but I remember that.
I couldn't even reach
that fridge even with a chair.
So how could I have got them?
I don't know how.
I know what I saw.
I was never alone.
Kristine was always there.
And yet I remember
seeing that.
[Michael] It's okay, we don't
have to focus on that.
[Beth] I don't know
what the truth is.
But at the beginning
of this face-off
between Natalia and Michael,
you look at her
body language, right?
She is, like, not happy
and is like "Okay,
what do you got?
But Michael sounds
pretty truthful.
I know what I saw.
[Beth] Michael seems
pretty credible.
And then Natalia starts
to relax her posture.
So if you're reading
her body language,
one has to wonder.
Does Natalia
remember everything
back in those days?
[interviewer] Mmm-hmm.
[interviewer] Tell me
about that.
[interviewer] Well,
what was happening
with the knife?
[Beth] Was Natalia
a dangerous person?
Did she or didn't she
hold a knife
at the end of their bed?
And why did
so many other people
report that Natalia
was violent
and acted out sexually?
It is one of those
unanswered questions
in this case.
[Terrance] Every family
she's been with
has given the identical story
of her behavior.
And that story
is, "Natalia harmed
one of our family members."
There is a pattern here.
And the Barnetts
experienced this pattern.
That raises questions.
[Beth] After hearing
about the way Natalia
Natalia was treated
inside the Barnett home,
all the beatings,
it sheds a different light
on these allegations
that Natalia
was hoarding knives
and putting them
under her bed,
if she ever was.
Because maybe,
she had these knives
for self-defense.
And also,
there is another explanation
for Natalia's behavior.
In 2010, Natalia was diagnosed
with reactive
attachment disorder.
And that's a diagnosis
though, apparently,
it's kinda common
with orphans.
Maybe international
orphans too.
Reactive attachment disorder
is a rare condition
that prevents children
from bonding
with their family members.
And the number one cause
is trauma.
[Nicole] I think that
Natalia did have her trauma.
'Cause who wouldn't?
I think that the Barnetts
were pushing her daily
to do things
that were probably making her
very, very uncomfortable.
I think she was in pain,
chronic pain, miserable.
And if she was acting out
whether it'd be a knife,
whether it'd be whatever,
she was a child
who was disabled
who needed help.
[Natalia] Says that
I was diagnosed
with psychosis, bipolar,
schizophrenia,
attachment disorder
and mood disorder.
You can ask my parents.
Never once have I showed
any signs of bipolar,
and my parents have seen
bipolar before.
Like, they've seen a whole lot
of mental illnesses.
So they know.
And they will
let you know that
I've never showed
anything like that.
The reactive
attachment disorder,
I can say there probably was
a little bit before.
The only thing
I had was reactive
attachment disorder.
Which is understandable.
I've seen so many people
that didn't want me.
So, of course,
I'mma be scared to get
attached to you.
But I'm also scared
to get attached to you
because of what you're doing.
Why would I wanna get
attached to you?
If anything,
I wanna get as far away
from you as possible.
But I couldn't do that
'cause I was a kid.
And I do remember having
some behavior issues
when I first met my parents.
When Natalia
first got with us,
there would be moments that
she would just be so broken
and just feel like,
"How do I deal with this?"
You know?
Wassup?
-[Natalia chuckles]
What's up, people?
-[child speaking indistinctly]
[Cynthia] Natalia's been
with us all these years.
And let me tell you,
we have corrected Natalia.
And she's never came at us
with a knife
or put thumb tacks
up on our stairs
or tried to hurt our children.
I was lying all the time,
stealing all the time,
I cussed.
I probably did say
some sexual stuff
that I should not have.
Um, they probably remember it
more than I do.
[chuckles softly]
I'm sorry, Mom and Dad,
I'm sorry.
'Cause I didn't know.
I was really little,
being exposed to so much stuff
that I didn't know was bad.
But I don't like to think
about my past.
Natalia's been asked
about her memories of Ukraine.
And we know that
survivors of trauma
often block memories
as a coping mechanism.
[Veronica] She had these
traumatic events in her past.
And her childhood
was so difficult
and so many sporadic traumas.
It doesn't surprise me
that Natalia was acting out.
I've always tried to remember
certain things.
[dog barking]
I don't know
what happened to me
while I was in the Ukraine.
That is one big part
of the puzzle
that has still got
a lot of holes in it.
[investigator] All right,
so you were in Ukraine
and, and has anybody
ever told you
how long you were in
the orphanage?
[investigator] You think
you were only there
for a year.
[Natalia] The time
I was in the Ukraine
in the orphanage,
there's a lot of fuzziness
with it.
One thing
I do remember though,
I remember, I--
It might've been
like a foster family
or like a mom.
Like, I remember being there
for honestly,
I don't even know how long.
Like, I just remember
waking up
and it was totally different.
I don't know how I got there.
I don't know what happened.
And I don't remember how
I came to the United States.
Like, that whole thing
is just blank.
There's still a lot
of mystery that, uh,
surrounds Natalia's adoption
in Ukraine.
And the records that were lost
in a sewer incident
at the hospital
that we're aware of,
where she was born.
The judge that handled
the adoption proceeding
was terminated for corruption
a month or so
after Natalia was adopted.
And that the file,
the records
of Natalia's adoption
were missing.
Did you ever see
that birth certificate before?
-[speaking Ukrainian]
-[Kenneth] You did-- Did you--
[speaking Ukrainian]
-[speaking Ukrainian]
-[Kenneth] No. Okay.
[translator] She didn't know
about her whereabouts.
They only told her
she was relocated
to the United States,
and she doesn't know
what happened to her
after this.
Would I be surprised
that Natalia was handed off
to different people
for nefarious reasons?
Maybe, you know, trafficked.
I wouldn't be surprised
by anything.
[investigator] Do you know
which parts of the body
people aren't supposed
to touch?
-[investigator] Private areas.
-[Natalia] Yeah.
[investigator] You know where
your private areas are?
[investigator] Okay.
There are a lot of real sickos
out there.
Talk about diabolical.
They exist.
Tell me about that.
[investigator] Mmm-hmm.
-[investigator] Which guy?
-[Natalia] Um
[Nicole] Our social worker
had taught us.
A child that comes
from an orphanage
that was abandoned as a baby,
is gonna have some trauma.
If Natalia is now
your daughter,
and she's been diagnosed with
reactive attachment disorder,
you have to accept that.
You have to be prepared.
[Cynthia] Natalia's been
through a lot.
And so how we coped with it
was lots of family love.
Like, we would
all get together
and we would pray together,
to show her that
she is a good person
and she is able to be loved.
[Michael] Your therapist
believed
that reactive attachment kids
needed to be boot camped.
That you needed to treated
like you were in the military.
He shared a couple words
with Kristine,
and she took 'em
and ran with 'em.
She loved the idea
of bootcamp.
And at-- And suddenly,
everything was a privilege
or a consequence.
I had privileges
and consequences.
Abusers want you to feel like
not only you're the only one,
-but they want you to feel
like you can't tell anyone.
-[Natalia crying]
[Michael] I am thankful
you and I are alive today.
Oh, my God. [sighs]
[crying softly]
She tried everything
to try to make me
into a monster.
[Michael] She did
the exact same to me.
November 2013,
uh, we had just moved
to Canada.
And she and I
had the-- [sighs]
probably the fight
to end all fights.
We're in a car.
There's me, there's her.
Wesley and Ethan
are in the back seat.
[sighs]
[exhales sharply]
Instant screaming,
blood curdling, top-of-lungs.
"Everything's mine,
nothing's yours.
These people are mine.
The things are mine,
the children are mine,
the money is mine,
friends are mine.
You have nothing."
And she's just going on
and on and on
and she just keeps saying,
"Mine."
My success, my money,
my Hollywood.
And she keeps going
and she keeps going
and she keeps going.
And I had enough.
And both hands on the wheel,
I shouldn't have said
what I said.
I regret saying what I said.
I told her,
"Shut up or I'll kill you."
So she keeps yelling,
yelling, yelling,
gets her phone out,
secretly hits "record"
and then stops screaming.
So now, the only person
screaming is who?
-You.
-Me.
And what am I saying?
"Shut up or I'll kill you."
So she records that,
and while it's happening
she turns to the boys,
"Boys, Dad's gonna
kill you both.
But Mommy's gonna protect you.
I'll save you.
He's gonna kill everyone.
I'll save you."
So, she records it. [sighs]
I can't tell you
how many times
she's played that
back to them.
It's a lot.
She played that back to them
over and over
and over, allegedly
so they would be afraid
of their dad.
All I wanted to do
was get away from her.
They spent
the next nine months,
all three boys,
staying up all night,
at the window of the farm
in the middle
of nowhere, Canada,
with knives
waiting for their dad
to come home.
Because she had convinced them
he's gonna come back
and get you.
He's going to come back
and kill you.
You've gotta tell the judge
in our divorce
that you've gotta come
with Mom,
'cause Dad's gonna kill you.
The boys relayed to me
that she would pull up
on the computer,
every story of every father
that ever killed their child.
And she convinced them
I was gonna do it to 'em.
Suddenly, they're terrified.
And she takes them to
a battered women's therapist
in the middle of nowhere.
And tells the battered
women's therapist,
"I'm a monster,
I'm gonna kill everybody,
please save me."
She gets me to agree that
whatever the therapist
thinks is best
for the kids, I'll do.
[clicks tongue]
Next thing I know,
what the therapist thinks
is best for the kids
is they should--
they should never talk
to their dad.
[cries softly]
I didn't see my sons.
[sniffles]
[softly] She took 'em.
[sniffles]
I-- I-- I don't--
I don't have my sons.
January 15th, 2014
is the last time I saw them.
[crying softly]
I've seen Jacob.
And he and I
have worked on things
and tried to repair
some things. [sniffles]
But I missed everything.
[sniffles] I missed
the rest of him growing up,
I missed
things like his first date,
his first dance.
I
I've-- I've-- I've missed--
I've-- I've-- I've missed--
I've missed every--
everything. [sniffles]
I haven't
I've-- I-- I haven't seen
Wesley and Ethan.
My sons are gone. [sniffles]
[Natalie] I can tell
he's struggling.
I feel like part of it
is guilt.
The things
that Michael has done,
that Kristine has done,
they were not right.
It should've never happened
in the first place.
[Antwan] I think there's
always time for redemption.
It's never too late
to do the right thing.
But you need to give
a full confession
of what you've done.
[Beth] Michael and Natalia
both want
some kind of closure.
This was
an important confrontation,
face-off, meeting, whatever.
Michael is still
making excuses,
instead of taking
responsibility himself
for some of the abuse.
And time is running out.
I've had nightmares
about this stuff.
[sighs]
[Natalia] I want it to stop.
And I want a full apology.
[Michael sighs]
Did you ever think how
it would affect me?
You remember your cross
that's got the-- the--
your little name "Grace" on it
that we used to have?
[crying] Yeah.
I have like, six things
left from my old life,
that's one of 'em.
It's hanging up on the wall
in the middle
of the living room.
So, yes, I think about it.
And I think about
all the time
[crying softly]
The cross with your name on it
is positioned in a,
in a spot in my living room
where I have to see it.
I've never tried to forget
Natalia in general.
Natalia deserves
to not be forgotten.
Yes, I think of it.
And I beat myself up
over it all the time
for not being stronger.
I could've easily
killed myself
ten times
in the last year alone.
[sighs]
[Natalia] And
I hate
the things that
they've had to go through.
[sniffles]
[Michael] They're gonna
be gone forever.
I need a I need a miracle.
I I need
I I need a miracle.
[sniffles]
And I just want everyone
to find some peace in that.
Being so terrified of
what she'll do next.
[sniffles]
Are you sorry?
-Yeah.
-Are you sorry
about what she did to me?
[sniffles]
I'm overly sorry
about what she did to you.
I am horrified by what she
has done to you. [sniffles]
I am sorry I wasn't stronger
and didn't stop her. I
[sobbing]
[Michael] I wasn't
I
I just wasn't.
I don't think
I'm strong enough now
to do it.
But I'm doin' it anyway.
'Cause the truth deserves
to be told complete.
Not a little snippet.
Here's everything.
[sobbing]
[Natalia] Michael
I forgive you.
You don't have to.
I don't forgive me.
I just couldn't.
I just couldn't.
I just couldn't.
[sobbing]
Michael.
[Michael] I [sniffles]
-Michael.
-I should've stopped her.
[Natalia] Michael. Look at me.
I forgive you.
[Michael sniffles]
-Please?
-Sure.
[sniffling]
In the name of Jesus,
thank you for protecting me.
Thank you
for giving him
a second chance.
Thank you for saving him
from the pills that he took.
Thank you, Lord Jesus.
All that you've done,
Lord Jesus,
'cause we know
that you have a plan for him.
I just pray, Lord Jesus,
that you would
just touch his heart.
Please. God, I just pray to
[sniffles]
give him a new mindset.
Give him a new heart.
He can be stronger than this.
I pray [sniffles]
He can be better
than who he is.
God, I just pray
that you would just
-just help him, Lord Jesus.
-[Michael sobbing]
Please just help him.
Please.
Lord Jesus in Eden.
Thank you.
This is how we get free.
[Natalia] I just want you
to know something else.
It was not easy
to forgive you.
It wasn't.
That
That is a really
powerful scene.
I mean, the
I think the tears are real.
I think this is
what each side was hoping for,
forgiveness and an apology.
But
One of the unresolved issues
is that Natalia wants to know
why she was re-aged.
It's still so painful for her.
But it's one area
that Michael says
is completely off limits.
So
Did Natalia
really forgive him?
Or is it a ruse
to get information
for a possible civil suit
and trial down the road?
[Michael sighs]
This was hard.
But
I'm willing to do it.
'Cause everybody deserves
a second chance.
Everybody deserves a time
to admit their faults
and be forgiven.
I appreciate that.
I hope you have nothing
but a happy existence
and it seems like
you have that.
I am okay.
I'm glad you're okay.
Ever since I met my parents,
they let me have
the childhood that I needed.
They're the ones
that got me through
the things
that I went through.
And I pray that
your life gets easier too.
Gotta do this
I can't bend.
-I can't put my
-I know you can't.
Or we We can just
Watch this.
Do that and then
we're in here,
and then we're there.
And I'll slap that for ya.
[chuckles] Thanks.
At first, like, I was
very upset with him
and, you know,
it was just very hard
to be able to forgive Michael.
And honestly, I wish
I could've been able
to talk to him more
about the re-aging.
But at the end of the day
he apologized.
Everybody deserves peace
in their life.
[Michael] It's extremely nice
to know
that there is
no mental daggers
coming from her side to me.
[sighs]
Forgiveness is good.
Forgiveness wipes it all away.
All right.
[rock song
playing indistinctly]
Until you care about ♪
Care about ♪
You care about ♪
Care about ♪
[music recedes]
[chuckling]
It's my adoption day
and I'm so excited.
Um
It's been a long time coming.
This
is my adoption board.
Let's do a countdown.
[laughs] It's great.
I mean, I'm at 0 days.
[giggling]
It's official.
It has been
a really long journey.
[grunts]
I have always wondered
if I would ever be able to
find someone
that would actually love me.
But then
I met my parents and
it's been different
ever since.
It's been a good different.
This is the day that I close
the door on the Barnetts
and never open it again.
I was the girl
who came from Ukraine
and a lot of stuff happened
that I wish didn't.
But, I just want people
to remember me as
someone who
was able to overcome
what they went through.
I was able to still move on
and just grow.
All right. Up the ramp we go.
[Cynthia] It's adoption--
-[Antwon] It's adoption time.
-[Natalia] Okay.
[Cynthia] Adoption day.
You ready
to make this official?
I'm very ready
to make this official.
-Yes.
-Are you sure
you wanna do this?
-Because you're stuck with us.
-Yeah.
-Yes.
-You know what?
Y'all stuck with me, so
-Yeah. [chuckling]
-We appreciate that.
Yes.
-I love y'all so much.
-All right.
-Let's go do this, baby.
-Let's do this.
-[Cynthia] Come on.
- [Antwon] Let me get the door.
Oh, my gosh.
I'm about to be adopted.
Oh, my gosh.
This is matter of the adoption
of Natalia Grace Barnett.
Natalia, can you raise
your right hand to be sworn?
Do you swear
or affirm the testimony
you're about to give us
the truth, the whole truth,
and nothing but the truth?
-I do.
-[Judge Barajas] You
may be seated.
Trusting is not easy.
Especially when
you've been hurt.
But
being adopted is
is an awesome thing.
It really is.
Especially when you find
that perfect family.
You understand adoption
is supposed to be forever.
-Yes.
-[Peter] Okay. Do you wish
that this adoption be forever
-as you sit here
in court today?
-Yes, I do.
Okay. So there's a discrepancy
in your legal age
and your biological age.
Can you explain that to me?
Um, the adopted family
that was before,
they changed my age.
Uh, they was trying to claim
that I was an adult
even though I wasn't.
[Judge Barajas] Okay.
So legally you are
33 years of age.
Yes.
[Judge Barajas] Okay.
So you're born in Ukraine.
And what date does that show
that you were born?
September 4th, 2003.
Okay, so either way
you're an adult.
You're either 19 years old
or some other number.
-Yes.
-Okay. You may sit down.
[speaking indistinctly]
[Judge Barajas]
The court will find
that Natalia Grace Barnett
consents to the adoption
in open court today.
And that the petition
should be granted
that the adult's name
should be changed
to Natalia Grace Rene Mans.
And that the petitioners
Antwon Cori Mans
and Cynthia Marie Rene Mans
from this day forward
shall be known as her parents.
[squealing, giggling]
[Natalia] I love you.
[laughs]
Daddy.
[sobbing]
Finally being adopted
to my family who has loved me
and gone through
every roadblock
and every stepping stone
and never gave up on me
is the greatest feeling
in the world to me.
Oh, my gosh. I love you.
That's literally, like,
the happiest moment
of my entire life.
[Cynthia] I am the mommy.
-I am the mommy. [laughing]
-[Antwon] Come on, buddy.
Oh, my gosh. It's official.
I have the adoption decree
right here.
It's official!
[laughing]
My life, ever since
I was really little,
I felt like, uh,
written out for me.
Just like
a crazy, curious story
of just, like,
many twists and turns.
And I had
no control over that.
I had to learn
a lot of life lessons
at a early age.
But I will
forever embrace my past
because I feel like
it made me stronger.
I just wanna
stay focused on now
'cause I have a lot
of big plans for my life.
I'm gonna get my age changed
back to the way
it's supposed to be.
Go to school,
get my high school diploma.
This is a new chapter
in the story
with just
endless possibilities.
Book two is about
to be written by me
and that book is gonna
be an amazing book.
I already know. [laughs]
[intense music playing]
[Cynthia] Yeah.
[music playing]
Every lie, there is a truth
that always comes to light.
Like, there'll not be anything
said in the darkness
that I will not shout
from the rooftops
and the mountaintops
in the light.
[Natalia] But you wanna know
something else, though?
Admitting those
is a whole other story.
I know it's not easy.
But that's what sets us free.
I have been
on a roller coaster
with this case, right?
I had been up and down,
one side, the other side,
seeing things from both sides,
trying to figure out
who is telling the truth.
Is Michael lying?
Is Natalia lying?
Or maybe they are both victims
of the same monster.
[exhales]
I didn't do anything wrong.
I know I didn't
do anything wrong.
I have a jury
that has affirmed that I
didn't do anything wrong.
I'm not hiding.
I I'm not criminal.
Uh, I'm not ashamed.
I'm not gonna listen to it.
I'll hit play.
I'll hold it up
and show it to you.
So, it truly doesn't affect me
what Kristine
tells random people
in the public about me.
Kristine told me
in a series of messages
Natalia ruined her life
in so many ways.
Kristine basically
said that
Natalia started
[bleep] her husband.
She had either caught Natalia
-having sex
with her husband
-Say what?
or became aware of it.
-And then apparently,
Natalia also tried to
-[Natalia] Are you serious?
[bleep] one of the
neighbors' husbands
or one of the neighbors.
-Wait. Hold on.
-[Freddie] I specifically
remember Kristine
just telling me
how heartbroken she was over
the situation with Natalia
sleeping with her husband.
No! Are you crazy?
That is a total lie.
So to answer to simply
say it on camera.
Absolutely not.
I have never at all
touched Natalia
in an inappropriate way.
I have never had
any kind of sexual relations
with Natalia.
Unequivocally, absolutely,
One hundred percent,
hell no.
At the same time
that's Kristine.
She will make up whatever
crazy loud lie she can
and if you don't believe her,
then she'll take it
up a notch.
Michael really wants
some resolution
in his one-on-one
with Natalia.
But he also wants her
to believe and understand
that he was victimized
by Kristine too.
Natalia wants answers
and she wants justice.
The Barnetts think
that it's over, but it's not.
It is far from over.
[Beth] And maybe they both
still need to come clean
because maybe
everybody is hiding something.
[sniffles, sighs]
If the truth does set us free,
and we have told as much truth
as we can, have we not?
Hopefully,
me showing up here
should let you know I harbor
no ill will for anything.
I'm not trying
to hide from anything.
[sighs]
Did you know
she pepper-sprayed me?
I learned that
about a year ago.
-[Natalia] Do you know--
-Jacob told me.
Do you know
how many times she did it?
[Michael] Jacob told me once.
Granted, Jacob wasn't going
to be around
every second of the day.
It was twice.
I can remember her getting
a can of the pepper spray.
I remember her
having it on her keys.
-[sighs]
-[Natalia] The first time
she did it,
it was just to show me
what it was gonna be like.
-I remember she took me
to the back porch.
-[exhales]
[sniffles] She told me
to keep my eyes open.
And the first time,
I closed 'em
right as she was spraying,
and she got mad
and was like, "You need
to keep your eyes open."
[Michael] You know what?
It's just too bad nobody
ever got to show her.
'Cause, you know,
if you have to know
what it's gonna be like,
doesn't she need to know
what it's gonna be like?
[voice shaking]
And after she did it,
she wouldn't even
let me clean my eyes
for like five minutes.
And I remember crying.
[sobbing] She wouldn't
help me.
[sniffles]
The second time she did it,
it was actually
at Jacob's school.
-All because
I was walking too slow.
-[Michael sighs]
[sobbing]
[Natalia continues sobbing]
I don't know nothing
about statutes of limitations
or anything but
[sighs wearily]
that sounds like
[beeping] to me.
[Natalia] Did you know
that she pepper-sprayed me?
[Michael] I learned that
about a year ago.
Wait a second,
the pepper spray?
Okay. No, no.
He didn't just learn about it.
He told us in 2022
in an interview
that Kristine told him
about it at the time.
[Michael] Natalia wasn't
telling her who she was,
so Kristine told me, one day
I came home from work,
that she tried something new.
We had a pink
cannister of pepper spray
that was on Kristine's keys.
"Tell me who you are
or I'm gonna spray you
in the face with this."
No, I don't think
he just learned about it
because he told us
he knew about it in 2022.
Kristine's telling me this
happily and proudly
like it's no big deal.
"Michael, I
I even tried
pepper-spraying her today.
She still won't admit
the truth."
Michael needs
to admit to Natalia
that he knew about it.
You can't tell her
you just learned about it
when you told us
and it's recorded.
Just admit it.
It hurt, you know,
the fact that [sniffles]
the fact that she just did it,
like, just to do it.
That first time was and I
didn't want her to do it.
Like, I told her,
you know, I don't want
to do it. [sniffles]
And she did it the first time
and I closed my eyes
before it got in my eyes
and she told me to keep
Kristine told me
to keep my eyes open.
It hurt so much and the fact
that she didn't care
was the worst part of it.
Looking back and talking
to Natalia and
reflecting and asking her
if anything had happened
in the Barnett home,
um, physical abuse,
she didn't say anything.
What Natalia is saying
in this video clip
I had never heard that before.
She never said anything.
And knowing what I know
with my experience
in interviewing children
and working with families
over the years,
it doesn't surprise me
that she didn't say anything.
[crying]
[Sheriff Bob] There's some
trauma there.
What they did
that's not love.
Not even close.
That's hate.
What are the things
that Kristine made up?
[Michael] Um
I so many things.
What did she make up about me?
You were going
to kill everybody.
You were gonna kill her,
you were gonna kill the boys.
And again, I don't wanna talk.
I don't wanna I don't wanna
go down this road.
[Natalia] Kristine is the one
that told me
to tell them that I wanted
to hurt you guys,
that I wanted
to poison Kristine,
that I wanted to just
that I was hiding knives.
What is that story even?
What was what story?
-Hiding knives?
-[Natalia] Yeah.
I was never alone.
What is that story about?
I would come home from work.
There was a couple of times,
during a period of time,
that Kristine said
she found knives
under your bed.
There was one time that I
found a knife under your bed.
And there was one time
you were holding a knife
in our bedroom.
That's what that's about.
I was never in y'all's room
with a knife.
I remember you being in there.
I couldn't even
look at over y'all's bed.
I barely even climbed over it.
I understand that.
That doesn't change the fact
that you were in the room
holding the knife
that direction.
[Natalia] Michael
I remember
the knives were always
put up where I couldn't
even reach 'em.
I would've had
to drag a chair.
Y'all would've heard me.
And I was never alone.
Kristine was always there,
-so how could I have got 'em?
-[Michael] I don't know.
There was a night,
you were standing
not the very foot of the bed,
but, like, six, seven,
eight feet back
holding a medium-size knife.
And there was one time
I found one under your bed.
Now, were there things
going on that was
making it really hard
for you to keep
things straight? Maybe,
but I remember that.
I couldn't even reach
that fridge even with a chair.
So how could I have got them?
I don't know how.
I know what I saw.
I was never alone.
Kristine was always there.
And yet I remember
seeing that.
[Michael] It's okay, we don't
have to focus on that.
[Beth] I don't know
what the truth is.
But at the beginning
of this face-off
between Natalia and Michael,
you look at her
body language, right?
She is, like, not happy
and is like "Okay,
what do you got?
But Michael sounds
pretty truthful.
I know what I saw.
[Beth] Michael seems
pretty credible.
And then Natalia starts
to relax her posture.
So if you're reading
her body language,
one has to wonder.
Does Natalia
remember everything
back in those days?
[interviewer] Mmm-hmm.
[interviewer] Tell me
about that.
[interviewer] Well,
what was happening
with the knife?
[Beth] Was Natalia
a dangerous person?
Did she or didn't she
hold a knife
at the end of their bed?
And why did
so many other people
report that Natalia
was violent
and acted out sexually?
It is one of those
unanswered questions
in this case.
[Terrance] Every family
she's been with
has given the identical story
of her behavior.
And that story
is, "Natalia harmed
one of our family members."
There is a pattern here.
And the Barnetts
experienced this pattern.
That raises questions.
[Beth] After hearing
about the way Natalia
Natalia was treated
inside the Barnett home,
all the beatings,
it sheds a different light
on these allegations
that Natalia
was hoarding knives
and putting them
under her bed,
if she ever was.
Because maybe,
she had these knives
for self-defense.
And also,
there is another explanation
for Natalia's behavior.
In 2010, Natalia was diagnosed
with reactive
attachment disorder.
And that's a diagnosis
though, apparently,
it's kinda common
with orphans.
Maybe international
orphans too.
Reactive attachment disorder
is a rare condition
that prevents children
from bonding
with their family members.
And the number one cause
is trauma.
[Nicole] I think that
Natalia did have her trauma.
'Cause who wouldn't?
I think that the Barnetts
were pushing her daily
to do things
that were probably making her
very, very uncomfortable.
I think she was in pain,
chronic pain, miserable.
And if she was acting out
whether it'd be a knife,
whether it'd be whatever,
she was a child
who was disabled
who needed help.
[Natalia] Says that
I was diagnosed
with psychosis, bipolar,
schizophrenia,
attachment disorder
and mood disorder.
You can ask my parents.
Never once have I showed
any signs of bipolar,
and my parents have seen
bipolar before.
Like, they've seen a whole lot
of mental illnesses.
So they know.
And they will
let you know that
I've never showed
anything like that.
The reactive
attachment disorder,
I can say there probably was
a little bit before.
The only thing
I had was reactive
attachment disorder.
Which is understandable.
I've seen so many people
that didn't want me.
So, of course,
I'mma be scared to get
attached to you.
But I'm also scared
to get attached to you
because of what you're doing.
Why would I wanna get
attached to you?
If anything,
I wanna get as far away
from you as possible.
But I couldn't do that
'cause I was a kid.
And I do remember having
some behavior issues
when I first met my parents.
When Natalia
first got with us,
there would be moments that
she would just be so broken
and just feel like,
"How do I deal with this?"
You know?
Wassup?
-[Natalia chuckles]
What's up, people?
-[child speaking indistinctly]
[Cynthia] Natalia's been
with us all these years.
And let me tell you,
we have corrected Natalia.
And she's never came at us
with a knife
or put thumb tacks
up on our stairs
or tried to hurt our children.
I was lying all the time,
stealing all the time,
I cussed.
I probably did say
some sexual stuff
that I should not have.
Um, they probably remember it
more than I do.
[chuckles softly]
I'm sorry, Mom and Dad,
I'm sorry.
'Cause I didn't know.
I was really little,
being exposed to so much stuff
that I didn't know was bad.
But I don't like to think
about my past.
Natalia's been asked
about her memories of Ukraine.
And we know that
survivors of trauma
often block memories
as a coping mechanism.
[Veronica] She had these
traumatic events in her past.
And her childhood
was so difficult
and so many sporadic traumas.
It doesn't surprise me
that Natalia was acting out.
I've always tried to remember
certain things.
[dog barking]
I don't know
what happened to me
while I was in the Ukraine.
That is one big part
of the puzzle
that has still got
a lot of holes in it.
[investigator] All right,
so you were in Ukraine
and, and has anybody
ever told you
how long you were in
the orphanage?
[investigator] You think
you were only there
for a year.
[Natalia] The time
I was in the Ukraine
in the orphanage,
there's a lot of fuzziness
with it.
One thing
I do remember though,
I remember, I--
It might've been
like a foster family
or like a mom.
Like, I remember being there
for honestly,
I don't even know how long.
Like, I just remember
waking up
and it was totally different.
I don't know how I got there.
I don't know what happened.
And I don't remember how
I came to the United States.
Like, that whole thing
is just blank.
There's still a lot
of mystery that, uh,
surrounds Natalia's adoption
in Ukraine.
And the records that were lost
in a sewer incident
at the hospital
that we're aware of,
where she was born.
The judge that handled
the adoption proceeding
was terminated for corruption
a month or so
after Natalia was adopted.
And that the file,
the records
of Natalia's adoption
were missing.
Did you ever see
that birth certificate before?
-[speaking Ukrainian]
-[Kenneth] You did-- Did you--
[speaking Ukrainian]
-[speaking Ukrainian]
-[Kenneth] No. Okay.
[translator] She didn't know
about her whereabouts.
They only told her
she was relocated
to the United States,
and she doesn't know
what happened to her
after this.
Would I be surprised
that Natalia was handed off
to different people
for nefarious reasons?
Maybe, you know, trafficked.
I wouldn't be surprised
by anything.
[investigator] Do you know
which parts of the body
people aren't supposed
to touch?
-[investigator] Private areas.
-[Natalia] Yeah.
[investigator] You know where
your private areas are?
[investigator] Okay.
There are a lot of real sickos
out there.
Talk about diabolical.
They exist.
Tell me about that.
[investigator] Mmm-hmm.
-[investigator] Which guy?
-[Natalia] Um
[Nicole] Our social worker
had taught us.
A child that comes
from an orphanage
that was abandoned as a baby,
is gonna have some trauma.
If Natalia is now
your daughter,
and she's been diagnosed with
reactive attachment disorder,
you have to accept that.
You have to be prepared.
[Cynthia] Natalia's been
through a lot.
And so how we coped with it
was lots of family love.
Like, we would
all get together
and we would pray together,
to show her that
she is a good person
and she is able to be loved.
[Michael] Your therapist
believed
that reactive attachment kids
needed to be boot camped.
That you needed to treated
like you were in the military.
He shared a couple words
with Kristine,
and she took 'em
and ran with 'em.
She loved the idea
of bootcamp.
And at-- And suddenly,
everything was a privilege
or a consequence.
I had privileges
and consequences.
Abusers want you to feel like
not only you're the only one,
-but they want you to feel
like you can't tell anyone.
-[Natalia crying]
[Michael] I am thankful
you and I are alive today.
Oh, my God. [sighs]
[crying softly]
She tried everything
to try to make me
into a monster.
[Michael] She did
the exact same to me.
November 2013,
uh, we had just moved
to Canada.
And she and I
had the-- [sighs]
probably the fight
to end all fights.
We're in a car.
There's me, there's her.
Wesley and Ethan
are in the back seat.
[sighs]
[exhales sharply]
Instant screaming,
blood curdling, top-of-lungs.
"Everything's mine,
nothing's yours.
These people are mine.
The things are mine,
the children are mine,
the money is mine,
friends are mine.
You have nothing."
And she's just going on
and on and on
and she just keeps saying,
"Mine."
My success, my money,
my Hollywood.
And she keeps going
and she keeps going
and she keeps going.
And I had enough.
And both hands on the wheel,
I shouldn't have said
what I said.
I regret saying what I said.
I told her,
"Shut up or I'll kill you."
So she keeps yelling,
yelling, yelling,
gets her phone out,
secretly hits "record"
and then stops screaming.
So now, the only person
screaming is who?
-You.
-Me.
And what am I saying?
"Shut up or I'll kill you."
So she records that,
and while it's happening
she turns to the boys,
"Boys, Dad's gonna
kill you both.
But Mommy's gonna protect you.
I'll save you.
He's gonna kill everyone.
I'll save you."
So, she records it. [sighs]
I can't tell you
how many times
she's played that
back to them.
It's a lot.
She played that back to them
over and over
and over, allegedly
so they would be afraid
of their dad.
All I wanted to do
was get away from her.
They spent
the next nine months,
all three boys,
staying up all night,
at the window of the farm
in the middle
of nowhere, Canada,
with knives
waiting for their dad
to come home.
Because she had convinced them
he's gonna come back
and get you.
He's going to come back
and kill you.
You've gotta tell the judge
in our divorce
that you've gotta come
with Mom,
'cause Dad's gonna kill you.
The boys relayed to me
that she would pull up
on the computer,
every story of every father
that ever killed their child.
And she convinced them
I was gonna do it to 'em.
Suddenly, they're terrified.
And she takes them to
a battered women's therapist
in the middle of nowhere.
And tells the battered
women's therapist,
"I'm a monster,
I'm gonna kill everybody,
please save me."
She gets me to agree that
whatever the therapist
thinks is best
for the kids, I'll do.
[clicks tongue]
Next thing I know,
what the therapist thinks
is best for the kids
is they should--
they should never talk
to their dad.
[cries softly]
I didn't see my sons.
[sniffles]
[softly] She took 'em.
[sniffles]
I-- I-- I don't--
I don't have my sons.
January 15th, 2014
is the last time I saw them.
[crying softly]
I've seen Jacob.
And he and I
have worked on things
and tried to repair
some things. [sniffles]
But I missed everything.
[sniffles] I missed
the rest of him growing up,
I missed
things like his first date,
his first dance.
I
I've-- I've-- I've missed--
I've-- I've-- I've missed--
I've missed every--
everything. [sniffles]
I haven't
I've-- I-- I haven't seen
Wesley and Ethan.
My sons are gone. [sniffles]
[Natalie] I can tell
he's struggling.
I feel like part of it
is guilt.
The things
that Michael has done,
that Kristine has done,
they were not right.
It should've never happened
in the first place.
[Antwan] I think there's
always time for redemption.
It's never too late
to do the right thing.
But you need to give
a full confession
of what you've done.
[Beth] Michael and Natalia
both want
some kind of closure.
This was
an important confrontation,
face-off, meeting, whatever.
Michael is still
making excuses,
instead of taking
responsibility himself
for some of the abuse.
And time is running out.
I've had nightmares
about this stuff.
[sighs]
[Natalia] I want it to stop.
And I want a full apology.
[Michael sighs]
Did you ever think how
it would affect me?
You remember your cross
that's got the-- the--
your little name "Grace" on it
that we used to have?
[crying] Yeah.
I have like, six things
left from my old life,
that's one of 'em.
It's hanging up on the wall
in the middle
of the living room.
So, yes, I think about it.
And I think about
all the time
[crying softly]
The cross with your name on it
is positioned in a,
in a spot in my living room
where I have to see it.
I've never tried to forget
Natalia in general.
Natalia deserves
to not be forgotten.
Yes, I think of it.
And I beat myself up
over it all the time
for not being stronger.
I could've easily
killed myself
ten times
in the last year alone.
[sighs]
[Natalia] And
I hate
the things that
they've had to go through.
[sniffles]
[Michael] They're gonna
be gone forever.
I need a I need a miracle.
I I need
I I need a miracle.
[sniffles]
And I just want everyone
to find some peace in that.
Being so terrified of
what she'll do next.
[sniffles]
Are you sorry?
-Yeah.
-Are you sorry
about what she did to me?
[sniffles]
I'm overly sorry
about what she did to you.
I am horrified by what she
has done to you. [sniffles]
I am sorry I wasn't stronger
and didn't stop her. I
[sobbing]
[Michael] I wasn't
I
I just wasn't.
I don't think
I'm strong enough now
to do it.
But I'm doin' it anyway.
'Cause the truth deserves
to be told complete.
Not a little snippet.
Here's everything.
[sobbing]
[Natalia] Michael
I forgive you.
You don't have to.
I don't forgive me.
I just couldn't.
I just couldn't.
I just couldn't.
[sobbing]
Michael.
[Michael] I [sniffles]
-Michael.
-I should've stopped her.
[Natalia] Michael. Look at me.
I forgive you.
[Michael sniffles]
-Please?
-Sure.
[sniffling]
In the name of Jesus,
thank you for protecting me.
Thank you
for giving him
a second chance.
Thank you for saving him
from the pills that he took.
Thank you, Lord Jesus.
All that you've done,
Lord Jesus,
'cause we know
that you have a plan for him.
I just pray, Lord Jesus,
that you would
just touch his heart.
Please. God, I just pray to
[sniffles]
give him a new mindset.
Give him a new heart.
He can be stronger than this.
I pray [sniffles]
He can be better
than who he is.
God, I just pray
that you would just
-just help him, Lord Jesus.
-[Michael sobbing]
Please just help him.
Please.
Lord Jesus in Eden.
Thank you.
This is how we get free.
[Natalia] I just want you
to know something else.
It was not easy
to forgive you.
It wasn't.
That
That is a really
powerful scene.
I mean, the
I think the tears are real.
I think this is
what each side was hoping for,
forgiveness and an apology.
But
One of the unresolved issues
is that Natalia wants to know
why she was re-aged.
It's still so painful for her.
But it's one area
that Michael says
is completely off limits.
So
Did Natalia
really forgive him?
Or is it a ruse
to get information
for a possible civil suit
and trial down the road?
[Michael sighs]
This was hard.
But
I'm willing to do it.
'Cause everybody deserves
a second chance.
Everybody deserves a time
to admit their faults
and be forgiven.
I appreciate that.
I hope you have nothing
but a happy existence
and it seems like
you have that.
I am okay.
I'm glad you're okay.
Ever since I met my parents,
they let me have
the childhood that I needed.
They're the ones
that got me through
the things
that I went through.
And I pray that
your life gets easier too.
Gotta do this
I can't bend.
-I can't put my
-I know you can't.
Or we We can just
Watch this.
Do that and then
we're in here,
and then we're there.
And I'll slap that for ya.
[chuckles] Thanks.
At first, like, I was
very upset with him
and, you know,
it was just very hard
to be able to forgive Michael.
And honestly, I wish
I could've been able
to talk to him more
about the re-aging.
But at the end of the day
he apologized.
Everybody deserves peace
in their life.
[Michael] It's extremely nice
to know
that there is
no mental daggers
coming from her side to me.
[sighs]
Forgiveness is good.
Forgiveness wipes it all away.
All right.
[rock song
playing indistinctly]
Until you care about ♪
Care about ♪
You care about ♪
Care about ♪
[music recedes]
[chuckling]
It's my adoption day
and I'm so excited.
Um
It's been a long time coming.
This
is my adoption board.
Let's do a countdown.
[laughs] It's great.
I mean, I'm at 0 days.
[giggling]
It's official.
It has been
a really long journey.
[grunts]
I have always wondered
if I would ever be able to
find someone
that would actually love me.
But then
I met my parents and
it's been different
ever since.
It's been a good different.
This is the day that I close
the door on the Barnetts
and never open it again.
I was the girl
who came from Ukraine
and a lot of stuff happened
that I wish didn't.
But, I just want people
to remember me as
someone who
was able to overcome
what they went through.
I was able to still move on
and just grow.
All right. Up the ramp we go.
[Cynthia] It's adoption--
-[Antwon] It's adoption time.
-[Natalia] Okay.
[Cynthia] Adoption day.
You ready
to make this official?
I'm very ready
to make this official.
-Yes.
-Are you sure
you wanna do this?
-Because you're stuck with us.
-Yeah.
-Yes.
-You know what?
Y'all stuck with me, so
-Yeah. [chuckling]
-We appreciate that.
Yes.
-I love y'all so much.
-All right.
-Let's go do this, baby.
-Let's do this.
-[Cynthia] Come on.
- [Antwon] Let me get the door.
Oh, my gosh.
I'm about to be adopted.
Oh, my gosh.
This is matter of the adoption
of Natalia Grace Barnett.
Natalia, can you raise
your right hand to be sworn?
Do you swear
or affirm the testimony
you're about to give us
the truth, the whole truth,
and nothing but the truth?
-I do.
-[Judge Barajas] You
may be seated.
Trusting is not easy.
Especially when
you've been hurt.
But
being adopted is
is an awesome thing.
It really is.
Especially when you find
that perfect family.
You understand adoption
is supposed to be forever.
-Yes.
-[Peter] Okay. Do you wish
that this adoption be forever
-as you sit here
in court today?
-Yes, I do.
Okay. So there's a discrepancy
in your legal age
and your biological age.
Can you explain that to me?
Um, the adopted family
that was before,
they changed my age.
Uh, they was trying to claim
that I was an adult
even though I wasn't.
[Judge Barajas] Okay.
So legally you are
33 years of age.
Yes.
[Judge Barajas] Okay.
So you're born in Ukraine.
And what date does that show
that you were born?
September 4th, 2003.
Okay, so either way
you're an adult.
You're either 19 years old
or some other number.
-Yes.
-Okay. You may sit down.
[speaking indistinctly]
[Judge Barajas]
The court will find
that Natalia Grace Barnett
consents to the adoption
in open court today.
And that the petition
should be granted
that the adult's name
should be changed
to Natalia Grace Rene Mans.
And that the petitioners
Antwon Cori Mans
and Cynthia Marie Rene Mans
from this day forward
shall be known as her parents.
[squealing, giggling]
[Natalia] I love you.
[laughs]
Daddy.
[sobbing]
Finally being adopted
to my family who has loved me
and gone through
every roadblock
and every stepping stone
and never gave up on me
is the greatest feeling
in the world to me.
Oh, my gosh. I love you.
That's literally, like,
the happiest moment
of my entire life.
[Cynthia] I am the mommy.
-I am the mommy. [laughing]
-[Antwon] Come on, buddy.
Oh, my gosh. It's official.
I have the adoption decree
right here.
It's official!
[laughing]
My life, ever since
I was really little,
I felt like, uh,
written out for me.
Just like
a crazy, curious story
of just, like,
many twists and turns.
And I had
no control over that.
I had to learn
a lot of life lessons
at a early age.
But I will
forever embrace my past
because I feel like
it made me stronger.
I just wanna
stay focused on now
'cause I have a lot
of big plans for my life.
I'm gonna get my age changed
back to the way
it's supposed to be.
Go to school,
get my high school diploma.
This is a new chapter
in the story
with just
endless possibilities.
Book two is about
to be written by me
and that book is gonna
be an amazing book.
I already know. [laughs]
[intense music playing]
[Cynthia] Yeah.