Chapter 10 - A Clean Slate
Six months later,
the world was a different place.
I sat on the porch of a small,
sun-drenched cottage in a quiet neighborhood miles away from the vineyard.
Leo was sitting on a blanket on the grass,
laughing as he tried to catch a butterfly,
his cheeks chubby and his eyes bright.
He was healthy,
happy,
and completely unaware of the storm that had surrounded his birth.
I had a new job now,
still with the state,
but focusing on policy rather than undercover auditing.
The trial had been a sensation,
ending in lengthy sentences for Regina and Derrick.
Regina had been sentenced to twenty years for racketeering and fraud.
Derrick had received twelve,
a "reward" for his cooperation that still didn't excuse his cowardice.
Kayla had lost everything and was working a retail job in another city,
struggling to pay back the taxes she owed.
Highland Ridge Vineyard had been sold to a group of honest farmers,
its name changed to "Justice Springs."
I looked at the morning paper,
seeing a small blurb about the final liquidation of the Highland estate.
The chandeliers,
the mahogany desks,
the marble floors...
it was all gone.
The spotlight had finally burnt out.
But here,
in this quiet garden,
the sun was just coming up.
I walked out onto the grass and picked up my son,
feeling the solid weight of him against my chest.
"We did it,
Leo,"
I whispered,
kissing his forehead.
He babbled something incoherent,
a sound of pure,
uncomplicated joy.
I realized then that Regina was right about one thing.
The baby did take the spotlight.
Not by ruining a wedding,
but by showing me what was truly worth fighting for.
He was the light that had guided me through the darkness of that bathroom,
and the strength that had helped me take down a family of wolves.
I wasn't the "little accountant" anymore.
I was a mother.
I was a survivor.
And my books were finally,
perfectly,
May you like
balanced.
The end.
