THE NEW NURSE RIPPED THE MAFIA BOSS’S WATCH OFF IN FRONT OF HIS FAMILY—THEN SAW WHAT SOMEONE HAD TAPED UNDERNEATH IT “Take your hands off my brother.”

Six weeks later.

The leaves in Chicago had turned a brilliant, burning gold.

I walked up the stone steps of the Romano estate, holding a small cardboard box. The guards at the front gate didn't ask for my phone this time. They just tipped their hats and smiled.

"Morning, Mrs. Hayes," Frank's replacement, a quiet, giant of a man named Marcus, said as he opened the front doors.

"Good morning, Marcus."

I walked through the grand foyer and headed toward the back gardens.

A lot had changed in six weeks. Vitiello's son had severely underestimated a unified Romano family. Without the internal division between Luca and a fake Elena, the Romano organization dismantled the New York threat with terrifying efficiency. No bullets were fired. Luca simply used the ledgers to freeze every shell company Vitiello owned.

The threat was neutralized.

I stepped out onto the patio.

Teresa and Elena were sitting at a wrought-iron table, drinking tea and arguing happily over fabric swatches for the upcoming holiday gala.

"It has to be burgundy, Elena," Teresa insisted. "Navy is too corporate."

"Navy is elegant, Mama," Elena replied, rolling her eyes affectionately.

Down on the grass, Luca was throwing a baseball with Leo. The boy’s laughter echoed across the manicured lawn. He looked healthy, vibrant, and completely unafraid.

Sofia was sitting on a blanket nearby, reading a book. She looked up and smiled when she saw me.

"You're late," Sofia teased.

"Traffic on the 90," I replied, setting the box down on the patio table.

Luca jogged up the steps, tossing the baseball into his glove. He looked younger than when I first met him. The deep lines of stress around his eyes had faded.

"Did you get it?" Luca asked.

I nodded. I opened the box and pulled out a thick stack of manila folders.

"The private investigators finished the background checks," I said, handing the files to Luca. "David's son is twenty-two now. He's living in Seattle. He's an engineering student."

Luca flipped open the first file. He smiled. "Looks like a good kid."

"He doesn't know anything about David," I said softly. "The mother changed his last name before he started school."

"Are you going to go see him?" Elena asked, placing a hand on my shoulder.

I looked at the files. Then I looked at the estate, at the family that had somehow become intertwined with my own broken life.

"Not yet," I said. "I'm going to write him a letter first. Tell him about his father. The good parts. And send him the drawing."

"Let us know if you need anything," Luca said, closing the file. "Flights, accommodations, whatever you need. You're family now, Rebecca."

I looked at the man half of Chicago was terrified of. Then I looked at the patch-free wrist he extended to me.

I shook his hand. "Thank you, Luca."

I turned and walked back through the house, feeling the weight of the last three years finally lift off my shoulders. My mother's care was fully funded. My husband's secret was out in the light. And a little boy named Leo was safe.