Chapter 14 - THE PROMISE ON THE BLUFF
Six months later.
A warm summer evening on the bluffs of Lake Michigan.
The sun was sinking below the western horizon, painting the sky in breathtaking strokes of violet, rose, and burnished gold.
On the wide wooden veranda of the Bianchi lake house in Highland Park, a gentle breeze rustled the wind chimes.
Amelia sat on the cedar porch swing, wrapped in a light knit shawl.
She looked healthy, radiant, her cheeks pink with the summer sun.
Footsteps sounded on the wooden boards behind her.
Lorenzo stepped out onto the porch through the French doors.
He carried two mugs of iced chamomile tea.
He wore comfortable linen pants and a soft gray sweater, looking completely relaxed, ten years younger than the grim mafia boss who had stood in a tense cathedral six months ago.
He set the mugs down on the wicker table and sat beside Amelia on the swing.
He wrapped his strong arm around her waist, pulling her flush against his chest.
“How was the foundation meeting today?” Amelia asked, resting her head on his shoulder.
“The Clara Brooks Memorial Scholarship was approved by the board,” Lorenzo said, kissing her temple.
“Fifty young women from the south neighborhoods are going to college on full tuition this autumn.”
“And the port authority?”
“The docks are fully unionized,” Lorenzo replied with a proud smile.
“Every contract is public.”
“Every worker has health insurance.”
“The Bianchi family is officially legitimate, Amelia.”
Amelia smiled, looking out over the vast, calm waters of the lake.
Down on the private beach below the bluff, Mia and Clara were walking along the shoreline, collecting smooth river stones, their laughter floating up on the summer breeze.
“Sometimes I look at all of this,” Amelia whispered, “and I think about that freezing alley in Gary.”
“When you tore my coat.”
Lorenzo turned his head, his amber eyes looking into hers with an intensity that had only deepened with time.
“There was never anyone else, Amelia,” Lorenzo said softly.
“The moment I saw that brand on your skin,”
“I knew you were the only true thing in my life.”
He reached out and took her left hand in his.
The platinum diamond band sparkled warmly in the dying sunlight.
“You gave me my family back, Amelia.”
“You gave me my soul.”
Amelia leaned up and kissed his lips.
The kiss was sweet, warm, filled with the certainty of a love that had survived fire, betrayal, and blood.
The sun dipped below the water, leaving a path of golden light across the lake.
The stars began to appear in the velvet sky above Chicago.
May you like
And as Lorenzo held his wife close against his chest,
he knew that the shadows would never return.
