Chapter 9 - THE FINAL THREAD (The Happy Ending)
The interrogation room was stark, lit by a single buzzing fluorescent bulb.
Lydia sat across the metal table in an orange jumpsuit. Without her emerald gowns and diamond necklaces, she looked small. Old.
Dominic sat down across from her. I stood by the door.
"To what do I owe the pleasure?" Lydia sneered, though her voice lacked its usual venom. "Come to gloat?"
Dominic didn't speak. He simply slid the old, battered leather diary of the safety inspector across the table, along with a photograph of his late mother.
Lydia looked at the photo. Her face twitched.
"You killed her," Dominic said. Not a question. A statement of absolute fact.
Lydia leaned back, crossing her arms. "She was weak, Dominic. Just like Margaret. She wanted your father to go legitimate. She would have destroyed the empire."
"So you suffocated her."
"I protected the family!"
Dominic stood up.
"I just handed the original ventilation blueprints to the federal prosecutor, Lydia. Your insanity plea is dead. You committed premeditated murder. You are going to a supermax prison for the rest of your natural life."
Lydia's eyes finally widened in pure terror. "Dominic! You can't do this! I raised you!"
"No," Dominic said, walking toward the door. "Margaret raised Rose. Elena is raising Sofia. You just ruined lives. Enjoy the concrete, Aunt Lydia."
We walked out of the prison into the bright afternoon sun.
Dominic stopped by the SUV, taking a deep breath of the fresh air.
He looked at me. "It's done."
"It's really over," I smiled.
That evening, the Moretti estate hosted a dinner. But this wasn't a lavish gala with fifty strangers and fake smiles.
It was just family.
Margaret sat at the head of the long dining table, wearing a beautiful new sapphire dress Rose had bought for her. Rose sat beside her, laughing as she showed her mother baby pictures she had missed.
Daniel was there, too, sitting next to Rose, their friendship blooming into something genuine now that the fear was gone.
Elena sat beside Dominic, holding his hand above the table.
And little Sofia was running circles around the chairs, giggling wildly.
I was standing near the kitchen, organizing the dessert trays, when Dominic walked over.
"What are you doing over here?" he asked.
"Just making sure the cake comes out on time, boss."
He gently took the serving tray from my hands and set it on the counter.
"Nora, you are the executive assistant of the Moretti Trust. You are not serving cake."
He placed a warm hand on my shoulder and guided me toward the dining room.
"There's an empty chair right next to Margaret," he said. "Sit down."
I looked at the table. They were all smiling at me.
"Go on," Elena encouraged.
I sat down, feeling a warmth in my chest I hadn't felt since my own father died.
Margaret reached over and squeezed my hand.
"If you hadn't stopped in the hallway that day," Margaret whispered, "I would never have gotten my daughter back. You are my angel, Nora."
Rose raised her glass of wine. "To Nora. And to truth."
"To truth," Dominic echoed, raising his glass.
I looked around the table. The secrets were gone. The blackmail was destroyed. The villain was locked away forever.
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Sofia climbed into Dominic's lap, burying her face in his chest. He kissed her forehead, looking at Elena with a love so profound it made my heart ache in the best way possible.
The main conflict was truly over. The family was whole.
