Chapter 12
Nora did not move into Roman’s estate.
She did not resume a romance.
She did not forgive him because he had also been deceived.
That frustrated Roman at first.
Then he understood why.
“You had resources,” Nora told him one evening.
They were sitting at her kitchen table after Sophie fell asleep.
“I had a fake legal letter.”
“You had lawyers.”
“I used them.”
“Family lawyers.”
Roman said nothing.
“You had investigators.”
“Who were given false records.”
“From your family.”
“Yes.”
“You trusted the system that benefited from keeping us away.”
That one hurt.
Roman looked down.
“I thought respecting your letter was respecting you.”
“I know.”
“And that wasn’t enough.”
“No.”
Nora softened slightly.
“You weren’t supposed to break into my life because you didn’t like my answer.”
“I know.”
“But after a year? Two?”
Roman nodded.
“I could have verified through somebody nobody in my family knew.”
“Yes.”
There it was.
His failure did not equal Helena’s.
It did not equal Marco’s.
But it existed.
Roman had spent his life building structures where everything important flowed through people loyal to him.
He believed that created security.
It also created one point of failure.
His own family.
With Sophie, he moved slowly.
No sudden estate bedroom.
No public family portrait.
No expensive gifts used to compensate for time.
He visited.
Read books badly.
Learned which cup she wanted at breakfast.
Discovered she hated peas but would eat almost anything if Nora called it “tiny pizza.”
Sophie asked repeatedly whether Roman might die again.
Her therapist helped him answer.
“I’m alive now.”
“Tomorrow?”
“I plan to be.”
“Grandma said dead.”
“I know.”
“Grandma lie?”
Roman looked toward Nora.
She nodded.
“Yes,” Roman said. “Grandma told a very big lie.”
“Why?”
“Because she made a bad choice when she was scared.”
Sophie thought about that.
Then asked:
“Is she still Grandma?”
Roman closed his eyes briefly.
“Yes.”
“Can she come?”
“No.”
“Why?”
May you like
“Because being family doesn’t mean someone gets to come near you whenever they want.”
Sophie accepted that faster than most D’Angelo adults would have.
