Page 123 of Of Lies and Shadows

Lucia jumps from her chair and runs to her, flinging her arms around her waist. “Thank you, thank you, thank you! I’ve been asking and asking!”

Alessio stares at me across the table, wide-eyed. “I’m going to be a big brother?”

“You are,” I say. “You’re gonna have to help us. Teach them all your tricks. The good ones.”

He grins slowly, proud but also… protective. “I will.”

Lucia pulls back, her face radiant. “I hope it’s a girl. And I hope she has red hair like you, Mama.”

I slide my arm around Francesca’s shoulders and press a kiss to her temple. She leans into me, glowing indeed, with love, with life.

This house, this kitchen, this moment is messy, loud, utterly imperfect… and it’s mine.

They’re all mine, and I’ll spend the rest of my life proving I deserve them.

What started as revenge ended up being my salvation.

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