Chapter 20 - The Unbroken CircleThe sun was just beginning to peek over the New York skyline when our convoy returned to the stone estate.

The air was crisp, smelling of rain and fresh asphalt. The federal task force had already swept the Brooklyn docks, taking care of the remaining cleanup without needing my direct involvement.
Inside the grand living room, Sofia was sitting on the Persian rug, coloring with a new box of crayons while Thomas sat nearby, watching her with a quiet, fragile smile of healing grief.
I walked in, unbuckling my shoulder holster and tossing it onto the mahogany table—permanently.
Sofia looked up, her big brown eyes lighting up as she saw me. She dropped her crayon, scrambled across the rug, and wrapped her small arms tightly around my knees.
"Mr. Daniel!" she cheered. "You're back!"
I knelt down, wrapping my arms around her, burying my face against her small shoulder for a brief, quiet second, letting the tears I hadn't shed since I was six years old finally fall—not in sorrow, but in absolute, unbreakable peace.
Thomas walked over, placing a hand gently on my shoulder. "What happens now, boss?"
May you like
I stood up, looking around the grand living room, then toward the open iron gates outside where the morning sun was flooding the courtyard with golden light.
"Now," I said, smiling down at Sofia as she went back to her drawing, "we start living."