Chapter 10 - CHAPTER 9: A NEW DAWN
Two months later.
Spring had arrived in Chicago. The ice on Lake Michigan had melted into shimmering blue water, and the cherry blossoms in Millennium Park were in full bloom.
At Chicago General Hospital, inside a sunlit private room on the maternity floor, a soft, beautiful cry echoed through the air.
"She’s here, Sophia," the doctor smiled, placing a tiny, beautiful baby girl wrapped in a pink blanket onto my chest.
I wept tears of pure, overwhelming joy, pressing my lips against her soft forehead. She had dark hair, bright curious eyes, and a strong, healthy cry that filled the entire room.
My three brothers—Ethan, Matthew, and Lucas— stood around the hospital bed, weeping openly, hugging each other like young boys.
"She’s perfect, Sophia," Lucas sobbed, wiping his eyes with his sleeve. "She’s absolute perfection."
"What are you naming her?" Matthew asked, leaning down to let the baby wrap her miniature fingers around his pinky finger.
I looked toward the doorway.
Gabriel Vance stood near the entrance, wearing a clean charcoal suit, holding a massive bouquet of yellow sunflowers—the same flowers my late husband used to bring me when we were young.
"Her name is Maya," I said softly, my eyes fixed on Gabriel. "Maya Faith Bennett."
Gabriel walked slowly into the room, setting the flowers on the table. He looked down at the tiny baby girl in my arms, an expression of profound, tender awe filling his eyes—a face that had seen so much war and violence, now filled with complete peace.
"Hi, little Maya," Gabriel whispered, gently touching her tiny hand with his thumb.
May you like
"Thank you, Gabriel," I whispered, holding his gaze. "For breaking through that door. For saving my life. For bringing my brothers back to me."
"I promised to protect you, Sophia," Gabriel said softly, a genuine, warm smile breaking across his scarred face for the first time in five years. "And I always keep my promises."
