Chapter 13 - THE FATHER WHO CAME HOME TOO LATE
My father arrived in New York three days after Toby's surgery.
I waited inside a small private room at the hospital.
Mom sat beside me.
Dante stood near the door.
I hadn't slept properly in days.
But I couldn't stop staring at the hallway.
Then footsteps approached.
A man appeared.
He was in his late forties, with dark curly hair and a small scar beside his left eyebrow.
My breath caught.
I recognized him from the photographs.
Adrian Vance.
My father.
He stopped in the doorway.
His eyes found mine.
"Elena?"
I couldn't move.
He took one uncertain step.
"My little girl?"
The words broke something inside me.
I stood.
For twelve years, I'd imagined what I'd say if I ever saw him again.
I'd rehearsed angry speeches.
I'd pictured asking why he abandoned us.
I'd imagined turning away.
But standing there, looking at the man I'd spent my childhood missing, I couldn't remember any of it.
"Dad?"
His face crumpled.
"I'm so sorry."
I crossed the room.
And suddenly I was in his arms.
He held me tightly.
I cried against his shoulder.
Not because everything was forgiven.
Not because twelve years could disappear in one embrace.
But because he was alive.
And because, for the first time, I could ask him the questions that had haunted me.
"Why didn't you come home?"
He pulled back.
His eyes were filled with tears.
"I tried."
"Why didn't you call?"
"I was under a protection order. People connected to Richard Vale were threatening your mother."
I shook my head.
"You could've found another way."
He nodded.
"Maybe I could have. I made mistakes."
The honesty surprised me.
He continued.
"I thought staying away would keep you safe. But I lost years I can never give back."
Mom stepped forward.
Adrian looked at her.
For a moment, neither spoke.
Then he whispered, "Catherine."
She began crying.
He reached for her hand.
"I'm sorry."
She nodded.
"So am I."
I watched them.
There was love in their eyes.
But there was also grief.
Time had changed them.
And I knew nothing could magically restore the marriage they'd once shared.
Adrian asked about Toby.
I took him down the hallway.
My little brother was sitting upright in bed, eating gelatin and watching cartoons.
He looked up.
"Who's that?"
I smiled through tears.
"Toby, this is Adrian."
Adrian approached carefully.
"Hi, buddy."
Toby studied him.
"Are you Ellie's dad?"
Adrian nodded.
"Yes."
Toby grinned.
"Then you have to be nice to her."
We all laughed.
Adrian's eyes filled with tears.
"I will."
Then Toby looked at Dante.
"See? I told you Ellie needed a whole team."
Dante smiled.
"Apparently."
For the first time in years, I felt surrounded by family.
Not a perfect family.
Not a simple one.
But people who were finally telling the truth.
That evening, Detective Mitchell called.
Richard Vale had been located.
He was attempting to leave the country using forged documents.
Authorities stopped him at the airport.
When investigators searched his belongings, they discovered a flash drive containing detailed records of the stolen medical funds.
But one document stood out.
It was a contract signed years earlier.
A contract authorizing Gregory Hale to monitor me.
The date was eleven months before I started working at the Velvet Lounge.
May you like
And the person who had approved it was not Richard Vale.
It was Dante's father.
