Epilogue
Amelia nodded to herself while tears flowed.
Adesua hugged her tightly, and each of her brothers bid a silent farewell.
Kavita stood there for a moment, observing the goodbyes.
They could each feel their hearts getting lighter with every word that brought them closer to walking away from the life they once knew.
There was a certain beauty in the ignorance of not knowing what would happen next.
Each of them had had calendars planned out for their lives since the moment they’d set foot on the estate.
Now the only thing that was dragging them away from their desires was no longer a factor.
“I am lucky to share a name with you all. I always wanted a family, and my heart is breaking at the thought of us separating, but I know God will somehow bring us back together,” Kavita said with haste, gasping and in tears. They circled for one last group hug.
Wei kissed Adesua on the forehead, then bumped her arm with his fist, a little roughhousing after everything they had been through together.
“To the Seven Wonders,” he whispered confidently as they all brought their fists together in one circle, then broke away solemnly. They all had a role to play in this new hand life had dealt them.
Kavita and Adesua held hands in the back seat as Amelia looked out the window.
The estate seemed so much smaller to her now as they drove away.
Her brothers all waving goodbye felt so final to her.
She was terrified of having made this decision, sure it was out of desperation and would leave her feeling a little empty.
But for the first time, she could feel the fear escaping her lungs, a release of the pressure of what her life was no longer.
The sun started to rise as they approached New York Harbor. The SS Paris stood in the water as a haven for the girls. Adesua and Kavita squealed excitedly as they looked at Amelia.
“We are doing this!” Kavita yelped in joy, looking in awe at the magnificent ship.
Adesua smiled. The stars were aligning for the Ridley sisters.
The gangway was filled to the brim with crew and passengers, but the sisters felt like they were finally on the right path.
All their fears melted away with each step they took as they got closer to the inside of the ship.
As the ship set sail, Amelia smiled in wonder, taking in the views of New York getting smaller and smaller through the grand windows as she walked the promenade.
Seven Days Later
Paris, France
The days blurred together as they sailed across the Atlantic Ocean.
The ship came to a stop, to the Ridley sisters’ surprise.
They had made it to the Port of Le Havre.
Amelia got a taxi for the girls, and they made their way to the Transatlantique Express.
Paris was one step closer, and so were their new lives.
Adesua had imagined what the streets of Paris would be like in contrast to New York.
She hoped that maybe she, too, would find her family here in artists.
Adesua silently thanked Joseph as she watched the small fishing villages and large cliffs go by.
The Normandy countryside seemed so full of life, which was so different from New York’s vast skyscrapers.
She caught a glance of Kavita resting with a serenity she hadn’t seen since they were children.
Kavita slept for the first time in weeks.
Adesua and Amelia smiled at the fact that their little sister had found some peace.
Amelia thought momentarily about how her plan had turned out to be bigger than she’d expected—in a good way.
Having her sisters by her side made it all feel complete.
The train began to slow, but her body pulsated with anticipation. She was home.
Amelia walked hand in hand with her siblings into the Paris she had once known. They marched with excitement, uncertainty, but most of all, freedom. Something they hadn’t tasted in too long.
The sisters gawked at their surroundings.
Adesua noticed a woman with bright-red lips painting to her heart’s desire.
Amelia pulled a slip of folded paper out of her pocket.
It was the last thing holding her back from this new world.
It was her confession that she was Dale’s murderer.
At one point, she was going to release it and deal with the consequences of her choices.
Instead, she was able to help her sisters, and especially brothers, start anew one last time before she focused on becoming a better version of herself.
This was a goodbye to New York, a goodbye to upholding her family’s reputation. A goodbye to the kind of control that had choked their lives of any magic.
Le Monde Parisian Lundi, 23 Janvier 1928
Ridley Empire in Shambles: Heiresses Flee as New Scandals Emerge
Allegations of corruption rattle the Ridley Line, while Edward Ridley’s three young daughters have gone missing from New York.
The difference between New York and Paris was that the secrets were sweeter and deadlier. Amelia tore up the paper and released the pieces to the wind, watching as the wind carried them along the Seine until they gracefully vanished like the secrets of their past.
Well, at least that was what the Seven Wonders hoped for.