Chapter 7 - THE MOTHER WHO CAME HOME
Sofia returned to Chicago under police protection.
The investigation into Gabriel's crimes had expanded.
Authorities were reviewing financial records, threats, and the circumstances of her disappearance.
Roman arranged for Ethan to meet his mother in a quiet, supervised setting.
Not at the mansion.
Not at Cardinale.
A small room at a family services center.
There were comfortable chairs.
Books.
A window overlooking a garden.
Ethan stood beside Maya.
His hands trembled.
"What if she doesn't remember me?"
Maya crouched.
"She remembers you."
"How do you know?"
Maya smiled.
"Because she asked about you first."
Ethan swallowed.
The door opened.
Sofia entered.
She looked thinner than Roman remembered.
Her hair was shorter.
There were lines around her eyes that had not been there five years earlier.
But when she saw Ethan, her face changed.
"Ethan."
The boy froze.
Sofia stopped several feet away.
She did not rush toward him.
She waited.
Ethan stared.
Then whispered:
"Mom?"
Sofia nodded.
Tears ran down her cheeks.
"Hi, sweetheart."
He took one step.
Then another.
Then he ran.
Sofia dropped to her knees.
Ethan threw himself into her arms.
They held each other.
Five years of grief broke open.
Roman stood near the doorway.
He watched his wife and son.
His eyes filled.
Maya stood beside him.
Neither spoke.
After a while, Sofia looked up.
Her eyes met Roman's.
He approached slowly.
"Sofia."
She stared.
"Roman."
He swallowed.
"I'm sorry."
She shook her head.
"You didn't know."
"I should have."
She looked down.
"Gabriel made sure you wouldn't."
Roman nodded.
There was no immediate embrace.
No easy reunion.
Five years had changed them.
They needed time.
Trust.
Answers.
May you like
But their son was holding his mother.
And for that moment, it was enough.
