Chapter 8 - The Rooftop Garden
Six months after the night the crystal shattered, life had settled into a beautiful, mundane rhythm. Mariana was enrolled in evening classes, and the girls were thriving in a local private school.
To celebrate Maya’s fifth birthday, Leo arranged a small party on the building's private rooftop garden. The city skyline sparkled around them as the sun set. The girls ran through the manicured greenery, chasing fireflies and laughing freely.
Mariana stood by the edge of the terrace, a glass of cider in her hand, the evening breeze catching her hair. Leo stepped up beside her, leaning against the glass railing.
"They look happy," Leo noted, watching Sofia help Lily catch a bug.
"They are," Mariana replied, turning to look at him. "We all are. I never thanked you properly, Leo. Not just for getting us out, but for giving us a place to land."
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"You did the hard part, Mariana. You survived her. You kept their spirits alive."
She reached out, gently placing her hand over his on the railing. He didn't pull away. Instead, he turned his hand over, interlacing his fingers with hers. They stood there in comfortable silence, watching the girls play under the stars. The Alcazar name was a ghost of the past, and the future they were building was entirely their own.
