Chapter 10 - The Promise of Tomorrow
The sun began to set over Lake Michigan, casting a brilliant orange and pink hue across the sky.
Elena and I stood on the edge of the water, the cool evening breeze ruffling her hair. The triplets were a few yards away, heavily supervised by Marcus, building what looked like an aggressively abstract sandcastle.
“Do you ever miss it?” Elena asked suddenly, leaning into my chest. “The power? The grid of the city bowing to your will?”
I looked out at the water, thinking of the cold, sterile penthouse and the lonely, hollow man who had lived there. I thought of the crushing weight of Arthur’s expectations and the ice in my veins.
Then I looked at the birthmark on my wrist, perfectly matching the three tiny crescents on my children's wrists.
May you like
“No,” I said, pulling her closer, feeling the steady, warm beat of her heart against mine. “I thought I ruled the world from up there, Elena. But I didn't have anything. This right here?” I kissed her forehead as the kids cheered at a collapsing sand wall. “This is the only empire that matters.”
She smiled, a brilliant, unrestrained expression of pure love. As the last rays of the sun dipped below the horizon, washing the world in gold, I knew my calculations were finally correct. I had lost a fortune, but I had won everything.
