Epilogue
The twins run through the garden, letting out that beautiful laugh that makes me die of love. Lorenzo and Vincenzo run after them, making them laugh even more when they reach them and lift them into the air. Luca’s arms go around my waist, and I rest my head on his chest.
“I can’t believe it’s their second birthday!” I feel melancholy watching my children grow up; time is passing too quickly.
Luca laughs and nods, letting go of my waist as he watches Vittoria run toward him in steps that are still a little uncoordinated.
“Daddy!” Her voice is loud and cute, making me smile automatically. He picks up our daughter and throws her in the air, making her laugh.
As soon as she descends from the air, she hugs her father’s neck, leaving slobbery kisses on his cheek. “My little princess.” She grins when she hears her father’s voice, looking like the happiest little girl in the world when she hears the nickname.
I look at Matteo and see him tugging lightly at my dress.
I lift him up in my arms and place a kiss on his cheek, feeling him rest his head on my shoulder.
“What’s up, Piccolo? Are you happy?” He looks toward his little sister, sees her giggling on his father’s lap, and nods, giving me a small smile.
Matteo is a small copy of Luca, withblack hair and blue eyes, as handsome as his father.
He’s calm; he doesn’t like a lot of noise, or a lot of people, a lot of commotion; he likes to be alone playing, only allowing his sister to join him when it comes to children; he’s attentive to detail, to people, he seems to be constantly alert, examining everything and everyone around him.
Vittoria, on the other hand, has my blonde hair and blue eyes, looking angelic with her blonde curls around her face. Unlike her brother, Vittoria is social, fidgety, seems to have an inexhaustible supply of energy, is very observant, and loves to be the center of attention.
Every time I look at their hand in hand running around the house and see Matteo protecting and looking after his sister, my heart swells with love.
Seeing Vittoria constantly pushes his brother around other children, bringing them closer to their cousins, I cannot help but think that it could not be otherwise, they had to be born together.
One completes the other, and together, they will be unbeatable; I can already see that.
“Matteo.” Bella’s voice rings out, and she stretchesher arms toward my son.
Although he’s a little shy, he agrees to sit on his aunt’s lap and hugs her while she leaves kisses all over his face.
I follow her gaze as she watches Vittoria dance among her uncles, laughing non-stop.
“Matteo is like Luca and me; he doesn’t like people very much!
” I look at her, seeing her thinking about his words, saying them calmly and softly…
“I have some difficulty with people, with people’s emotions.
Luca and I have always had a hard time understanding feelings; it seems that most people have too many, and we have too little.
I think Matteo might feel the same way; he was like me when I was his age, but he wasstill attentive and observant like Luca.
Vittoria is a combination of you and your brothers; she observes people but doesn’t shy away from them; she’s fun and sociable; she loves attention, although she knows when it’s the right time to demand it for herself. ”
“Mateo is closed off, sometimes too much so, and Vittoria is sociable but sometimes seems a little anxious, like me.” I see her nod out of the corner of my eye.
“Her anxiety isn’t a bad thing; it will help her stay alert, and it will help her realize who to trust in our world.
She’s smart, andshe’ll do fine.” I look at my daughter, smiling at the people around her, observing them.
“And Matteo, he’s going to be a good Capo; sometimes it’s good not to feel too much; he’ll know how to control his feelings and impulses. ”
“Sometimes I really think they complete each other when they’re together the way they act…”
“Yes, I know!” Bella looks at Matteo, who seems attentive to his sister. “They were lucky; they were born and will grow up with each other, one becoming the other’s person.”
Matteo moves until Bella puts him down; he runs toward his grandfather, trying to reach his gun; Don Henrico puts him on his lap, saying something that leaves him mesmerized, seeming to record every word his grandfather says.
“Luca talked to me about the Cosa Nostra proposal.” I glance at her, trying to read her expression, which is useless; Bella is probably the hardest person to read. “Hundreds of enemy soldiers have died since the twins were born.”
“And they will continue to die if they come near our family; we will do whatever it takes to keep them safe.”
“As it should be, we should eliminate any threat. I should help.”
“What do you mean?”
“Luca has protected me all my life, and every time I look at those children, I feel it’s my duty to protect them, too. Maybe I can do something to help.”
I raise my eyebrow, examining Bella; she looks anxious.
I know she feels what she’s saying, but I also know she’s not ready to take action on it.
“You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to or that might make you unhappy!
We can protect them; we’ve been doing so, and we will continue to.
They’re lucky to have you in their lives; you don’t need to give more than that; it’s enough, Bella; your love for them is enough! ”
Bella doesn’t say another word, following me toward the table in the center of the garden, picking up my son on the way and handing him into my arms; I place him in his chair facing the table, next to his sister.
They both seem caught up by the colors of the large birthday cake in front of them.
The birthday song goes across the garden, and I smile as I see Vittoria grab her brother’s hand; knowing that he doesn’t like attention, she pulls him toward the cake, and they both blow out the candles with their hands still joined.
Everyone claps, and although Vittoria is loving it, the discomfort is noticeable on Matteo’s face.
I watch him carefully, waiting for some negative reaction, but nothing; he just stands there still and stares at the people around him, waiting for them to stop making a fuss.
The fireworks are heard, and I pick him up, seeing him look more relaxed, not having everyone’s attention on him. Vittoria claps her hands and smiles in her father’s lap, looking ecstatic.
“Matteo!” Grandma came toward me with her arms outstretched and the most loving smile I know on her face. “Come and sit on Grannie’s lap, will you?” Matteo nods, stretching out for her to take him and finding in her the same comfort that I find.
Vittoria runs toward me with chocolate all over her beautiful face; I smile at her and take her in my arms, spinning her in the air; she laughs, and I squeeze her against my body. “Happy, Principessa?”
“Yeah!” She stretches out her arms as far as she can. “This much!”
I put them to bed, watching Vittoria move closer to her brother.
She always needed physical contact to sleep, and she felt safer having him close.
I read them the story they had chosen, watching my daughter’s eyes close little by little while her brother is paying attention to every word that I say.
“Good night, miei amori !” I leave a kiss on each of their foreheads and slowly walk away with light steps, trying not to wake them up.
I feel Luca stop behind me at the door to our children’s room. I see their serene faces, their little hands clasped together, their light breathing and I can’t take my eyes off them both. I amcompletely caught up in that scene, trying to imprint it in my mind so that I never forget these moments.
“They’re perfect, everything I ever dreamed of!”
Luca hugs me from behind, leaving a light kiss on my neck. “It seems a miracle that these human beings could be my children. Look at them; they seem too good, and I have a large quota of sins behind my back.”
“Our life can’t be all blood and struggle; they are the light! Our sins do not define them.”
“And they never will; I won’t let our past haunt them.” I look at our babies, knowing that sooner or later, no matter how hard we fight it, our pastandour lives will catch up with them; they have no choice; they were born in the blood and will have to live that way all their lives.
“They will have to live with our choices; their destiny is set, they won’t be pure forever. Eventually, the blood will get to them.”
“They’ll be strong, and they’ll know how to deal with it; they’re our children, the next leaders of the Camorra.”
I nod, letting Luca lead me toward the garden; for a moment, my heart skips a beat. I look around, seeing little lights floating in the air and a table with candles and flowers in the center, a perfect recreation of our wedding reception.
“What?” I look at Luca and see him holding out his hand toward me.
“Will you dance with me, amore?” I let my hand meet his, and his body cling to mine.
I let my face rest against his strong chest, and I can’t help but smile like a teenager in love, hopelessly in love. Luca spins me, and I let out a laugh, seeing a smile on his face. I watch him, feeling his firm hands on my waist as he sways our bodies from side to side in slow dance steps.
“I love your laugh; seeing the happiness on your face, on the faces of our children, gives me a satisfaction I’ll never be able to describe.”
“Much of my happiness is due to you!”
Luca looks at me, seemingly able to read my soul, lightly holds my chin, and brings his lips to mine.
I feel his soft lips against mine and close my eyes, feeling butterflies fly happily through my stomach.
Luca deepens the kiss by pulling me closer to him, almost like making us one.
I smile between kisses, feeling an unimaginable amount of happiness and love.
Luca pulls away from my lips a little, but I don’t allow it, wrapping my arms around his neck and taking his lips for my own again, kissing him as if it were the first and last time because it will never be enough, when it comes to Luca I always want more, I always need more.
“Ti amo così tanto che a volte penso che questa vita non sia abbastanza! (I love you so much that sometimes I think this life isn’t enough!)” My voice is low and husky, our lips are practically glued together, and Luca looks at me as if I were the only important person in the world, his eyes shining with a mixture of possessiveness and love.
“Sarai mia in questa vida e in tutte le altre! Ti amo amore mio, più di quanto avrei mai creduto possibile! (You’ll be mine in this life and in all the others! I love you my love, more than I ever imagined possible!)”
The music fills the room, and a giant smile takes over my face.
My body is whirled around the garden, pulling me closer to the man I love.
We dance for hoursbecause Luca knows I love doing it, so he does it for me, that and much more; he shows me every day that he loves me, never letting me doubt his feelings for me, not letting our pasts haunt us or define our lives.
***
I wake up being rattled and hear Vittoria’s laughter as she jumps on our bed.
I open my eyes to see Matteo smiling at me, sitting on the end of the bed, letting his sister make all the noise.
Luca picks Vittoria up and sits her on the bed.
He tickles her belly, and she giggles, squirming on his legs.
I call Matteo with my hand, and he crawls toward me, sitting on my lap between my arms; his pretty face has a smile drawn on it, and I kiss his chubby cheek, making him laugh.
Luca reaches out his arm, pulling our son to the lap, and tickles the twins, making them both laugh incessantly.
“Daddy, stop!” Vittoria’s voice is loud and unsteady because of the laughter she lets out. Luca takes them both in his arms, and I lift them downstairs.I look around to see him and the kids playing and smiling while they eat their breakfast.
I never thought that happiness was something constant; I always imagined that it was a feeling that comes and goes; sometimes you feel happy, and sometimes not.
But despite the ups and downs of life, the difficulties we’ve been through over the years, and the difficult and painful moments, looking back on my life now, I feel that it was all worth it, every tear, every difficulty.
I would do it all over again if I were sure that, in the end, I would find myself at this moment because happiness may not be a constant, but my family makes me happy, happier than I ever imagined I would be.
The kind of happiness that I thought I didn’t deservethat I wouldn’t have; never in a million years would I have imagined that a decision made purely out of ambition would lead me to what I had always dreamed of and never dared to say out loud. I never thought that cold man would be my soul mate.
There is a legend called Akai-ito , the red thread of fate, which symbolizes true love and the union of two people who were destined for each other, who are soul mates.
Legend has it that those who are bound by the gods with this thread are destined to be together, regardless of the time, place or circumstances.
An invisible connection, the thread can tangle, it can stretch, but it will never break.
It is the unbreakable bond between two people.
I always thought it was just a nice story for children to give them hope in true love.
But now, after meeting Luca, I know that something like that is possible.
Our thread has stretched and tangled, but even if we didn’t know why it never broke, even before we loved each other, we were already fighting for each other, even without noticing.
Luca is everything I dreamed of: my black prince, my soul mate. “I love you!”
His gaze rises to meet mine, and he smiles in that way that only happens when he’s alone with me and our children, a real smile, covered in love, none of the cold facade I’ve known, this Luca, my Luca, he has warmth and love.
“I love you, Chiara. You and our children are my light, the peace I’ve always needed!” I kiss her lips, watch our children smiling at each other while they play, and know that this is the closest to perfection I will ever get.
The End!