Chapter 5: A Different Future

Six months later—
We stood in a small garden.
No chandeliers.
No marble floors.
No lies.
Just sunlight.
And peace.
Sophie wore a simple white dress again.
But this time—
No blood.
Only laughter.
“Ready?” I asked.
She nodded.
We walked forward together.
Not into a ballroom—
But into a new life.
A new home.
A new beginning.
Far away from the Hale name.
Far away from everything that tried to break us.
As we reached the gate, Sophie squeezed my hand.
“Mommy?”
“Yes?”
She smiled.
“We’re not going back, right?”
I looked down at her.
Then ahead.
At everything waiting for us.
“No,” I said softly.
“We’re not going back.”
May you like
And for the first time in years—
I meant it.