Chapter 13 - On the Anniversary of Adrian’s Death, Elsie Found the Last LetterElsie was ten when she found it.
She had been cleaning the attic with Sienna.
She came downstairs holding an old envelope.
"Mister Alessio?"
I looked up.
"What is it?"
She handed it to me.
My name was written across the front.
Adrian's handwriting.
Again.
Inside was a letter written only days before his death.
He had written about me.
About how he had watched his little brother grow.
About how proud he was.
About how sorry he was that fear had kept us apart.
Then one final sentence.
You were always the brother I wanted to protect.
I broke down.
I had spent years thinking Adrian had abandoned me.
He hadn't.
He had been protecting me.
Elsie hugged me.
"Don't cry."
I laughed through tears.
"These are happy tears."
"Good."
She hugged me tighter.
"Nero says you're his family."
Nero was lying beside the fireplace.
Older now.
His muzzle almost completely gray.
I walked over.
He lifted his head.
I knelt.
"You're getting old."
He licked my hand.
Elsie smiled.
"He says you're old too."
I laughed.
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For the first time, the Russo name didn't feel like a curse.
It felt like something we had finally transformed.
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