Chapter 187: THE END

Epilogue

Lena’s POV

Three years later.

Sometimes, I still woke up expecting chaos.

Expecting fear to be the first thing I tasted in the morning. Expecting tension to sit heavy in my chest the way it used to—like peace was something temporary, something borrowed, something that could be taken away if I relaxed too much.

But this morning, peace was loud.

It was laughter.

It was the sound of little feet pounding across wooden floors.

It was Naomi’s high-pitched squeal as Nathan chased her with a toy dinosaur twice the size of his head. It was Noah’s deeper laugh—older, steadier—as he pretended to referee their very serious argument about whose turn it was to “win.”

And somewhere in the middle of all that noise, Damien’s voice cut through.

“No running near the glass doors! I mean it—Naomi, sweetheart, slow down!”

I smiled into my pillow.

We were on vacation.

A real one.

Not the kind where Damien brought his laptop and pretended he wouldn’t check emails. Not the kind where I told myself I could relax while mentally drafting articles or managing staff issues in my head.

This was a private cliffside villa in Lake Como, all soft blue water and ancient stone and sunlight spilling into rooms like it had nowhere else to be.

A place so beautiful it almost felt unreal—like something from a magazine spread.

Which was ironic, considering my life now revolved around magazines.

I finally pushed myself out of bed and padded toward the balcony, wrapping a robe around myself as the cool morning air kissed my skin. Below, the lake shimmered, boats drifting lazily across its surface. Somewhere far off, church bells rang.

I breathed in.

This—this was the life I never imagined having.

Naomi and Nathan were three now.

Three years old and unstoppable.

Naomi was all curiosity and dramatic expressions, her dark curls bouncing wildly as she ran.

Nathan was quieter but no less mischievous—always watching, always calculating, then striking with a grin when you least expected it.

Healthy. Happy. Loud.

Perfect.

Noah was older—taller than I sometimes remembered him being. He had grown into himself in ways that still startled me. Responsible, gentle with the twins, protective in a way that reminded me painfully—and beautifully—of Damien.

They were siblings in every sense that mattered.

Family.

I had just poured myself a cup of coffee when my phone buzzed.

The screen lit up with my office number.

I hesitated.

Damien’s voice echoed from the other room. “Lena, do you know where Nathan hid my watch? He told me it was ‘for science.’”

I smiled to myself, then answered the call.

“Lena speaking.”

“Good morning,” Mia said, her voice professional but strained. “I’m sorry to bother you on vacation, but… we have a situation.”

My stomach tightened. “What kind of situation?”

“There’s a company,” she said carefully, “that’s releasing content eerily similar to ours. Layouts. Headlines. Even unpublished pitches.”

I frowned. “That’s not possible.”

“That’s what I said,” Mia replied. “But it’s happening too often to be a coincidence.”

A familiar edge of tension slid into my chest.

“Are you suggesting someone inside Cruz Papers is leaking information?”

“I don’t want to jump to conclusions,” she said quickly. “But we need to consider it.”

“No,” I said firmly. “No one would do that.”

Silence crackled on the line.

“Lena,” Mia said gently, “I trust our people. You trust them. But something is wrong.”

I leaned against the counter, staring out at the lake. “Quiz everyone,” I said finally. “Audit access logs. See who’s touching what and when.”

“And you?” she asked.

“I’m on vacation,” I said, frustration creeping into my voice. “I can’t fix this from another country. Handle it until I get back.”

There was a pause. “Alright,” Mia said. “We’ll get to the bottom of it.”

I was still staring at my phone when arms wrapped around my waist from behind.

Damien.

Warm. Solid. Familiar.

“You’re frowning,” he murmured into my hair. “That usually means someone dared to stress you.”

I laughed softly. “Work drama.”

He reached around and took the phone from my hand. “You’re on vacation.”

“Damien—”

“We’ll call you later,” he said calmly into the phone, then ended the call before I could protest.

I spun around. “Why did you do that?”

He raised an eyebrow. “Because you’re on vacation.”

I crossed my arms. “You can’t just hang up on my executive manager.”

“I absolutely can,” he said smoothly. “Especially when my wife is supposed to be resting.”

Before I could argue further, a small tug interrupted us.

Naomi stood there, lower lip pushed out dramatically. “Mama,” she said accusingly. “You’re not playing.”

My heart melted instantly.

“Oh no,” I gasped. “Is that why you’re sad?”

She nodded solemnly, then immediately smiled when I scooped her up.

“I’m so sorry,” I said, tickling her sides until she squealed. “How could I forget my favorite girl?”

“She’s your only girl,” Damien corrected lightly.

“For now,” I teased.

Nathan’s laughter echoed from the other room, followed by Noah’s voice. “Dad! He’s hiding the dinosaur again!”

Damien sighed theatrically. “I’m being summoned.”

He leaned in, kissed my forehead, then disappeared down the hall.

I held Naomi close, pressing my cheek to hers.

Life felt full.

Later that evening, after the twins were asleep and Noah had finally surrendered to exhaustion, Damien and I sat on the balcony, wine glasses in hand.

“I talked to Marcus today,” I said casually.

Damien smiled. “Still smitten?”

“Completely,” I laughed. “He and Abby are officially together.”

He nodded. “Took him long enough.”

“I’m happy for him,” I said softly.

“So am I.”

I turned to Damien, studying him in the dim light. “Thank you,” I said suddenly.

“For what?”

“For being an incredible husband. An incredible father.”

My voice wavered. “For standing by me through everything.”

He reached for my hand. “You stood by me too.”

We sat in silence for a moment, the lake stretching endlessly before us.

“I wouldn’t change anything,” I whispered.

“Neither would I.”

Third-Person Perspective

Lena and Damien’s marriage had begun as a contract—cold, calculated, rooted in business and control.

Damien had wanted to know everything about her.

He had never imagined that the boy he felt inexplicably drawn to—Noah—was his son. Even when suspicion flickered, even when instinct whispered, the truth had remained buried beneath fear and circumstance.

They had faced betrayal.

Threats.

Manipulation.

Enemies determined to tear them apart.

Vivian’s actions had left scars no one could deny.

Her eventual sentencing—years in prison without bail—had marked the end of one chapter and the beginning of another.

Damien still visited her occasionally, not out of obligation, but out of closure. She had learned, slowly and painfully, that love could not be twisted into possession.

Through it all, Lena and Damien had chosen each other.

Again and again.

And in choosing each other, they had built something stronger than fear.

A family.

A future.

And as the sun set over Lake Como, laughter spilling from the villa behind them, it was clear—

Their story had not ended in survival.

It had ended in love.