Chapter 8 - Spring in ManhattanThree months later.
Central Park was blooming with the vibrant pink and white petals of spring cherry blossoms. The bitter winter snow had melted entirely, washing away the blood, the fear, and the ghosts of our past.
I sat on a wooden park bench beneath a canopy of blossoming trees, watching as two healthy, giggling baby girls crawled across a soft velvet blanket, chasing a small stuffed rabbit.
Chloe and Claire were thriving. They had grown chubby-cheeked, bright-eyed, and full of irrepressible life.
Footsteps crunched softly on the gravel pathway behind me.
I didn’t even need to turn around to know who it was. The familiar scent of sandalwood and expensive wool, mixed with the warm breeze of spring, always signaled his approach.
Elias sat down beside me on the bench. He wasn't wearing his heavy tactical vest or his bulletproof wool coat anymore. He wore a simple black cashmere sweater, looking more like a normal man than the terrifying Mafia kingpin who ruled the New York underworld.
“They’re walking soon,” Elias observed quietly, a gentle smile touching the corners of his mouth as he watched the twins.
“They already try to run when I look away,” I laughed softly, leaning my head against his broad shoulder.
Elias wrapped his arm around me, pulling me close against his chest. His embrace felt like home. A place I never thought I would find after being left for dead beneath that freezing overpass.
“The federal trial concluded this morning,” Elias murmured into my hair. “Victor was sentenced to consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole. His assets have been seized, and his name has been permanently scrubbed from the corporate registries.”
I closed my eyes, letting out a long, shuddering breath I felt like I’d been holding for three months.
“And Moretti?”
“Locked away in ADX Florence,” Elias replied calmly. “He’ll never see the sun again.”
I turned my face up, looking into his dark, striking eyes. The silver flecks in them seemed softer now, stripped of the relentless vengeance that had fueled him for over a decade.
“You gave us everything, Elias,” I whispered, emotion tightening my throat. “You gave us a home, safety, and a new life. How can I ever thank you?”
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Elias reached up, his warm fingers gently brushing a stray lock of hair away from my cheek.
“You already did, Ava,” he whispered, his voice thick with unexpressed emotion. “You brought warmth into a house that hadn’t known anything except winter for twelve years.”
