Chapter 9 - Our Children Became Sebastian's Greatest Weakness—and His Greatest Reason to Become a Better ManSebastian changed.
Not overnight.
Not perfectly.
But genuinely.
He learned to make breakfast.
He learned how to braid Ivy's hair.
He learned that Noah hated peas.
He learned that Owen woke up from nightmares during thunderstorms.
He learned bedtime stories.
He learned school schedules.
He learned that children's drawings were worth more than business reports.
He also learned that parenthood was terrifying.
One morning, Owen developed a fever.
Sebastian panicked.
I had to remind him:
“You're not negotiating with a hostile witness.”
“He's burning up.”
“He'll be okay.”
Sebastian stayed beside the bed all night.
At sunrise, Owen woke.
“Daddy?”
Sebastian immediately sat up.
“I'm here.”
Owen smiled.
Then he asked:
“Were you scared?”
Sebastian looked at me.
“Yes.”
“Why?”
“Because I love you.”
Owen reached for him.
Sebastian picked him up.
I turned away.
I didn't want him to see me crying.
But he did.
He smiled.
“Mama's crying again.”
Sebastian laughed.
“She does that.”
I threw a pillow at him.
The house filled with laughter.
For the first time, the past felt like something behind us.
Then an envelope arrived.
No return address.
Inside was a photograph.
All three children.
Taken that morning.
From outside the house.
On the back was a single sentence:
You escaped the family. You didn't escape the bloodline.
May you like
Sebastian's smile vanished.
The war wasn't over.
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