Then at me.
“Look at her,” he whispered. “She is proof that you never know when life will give you another chance.”
“I know.”
“Promise me you won’t be afraid.”
Tears streamed down my face.
“I promise.”
He smiled.
Then he closed his eyes.
After the funeral, we returned home.
The house was quiet.
But it wasn’t lonely.
Emilia ran through the hallway with a little stuffed bear. Silvia made tea. Mikhail fixed a broken cabinet handle without anyone asking him to.
I looked at them.
My children.
The big ones and the little one.
My family wasn’t perfect.
It had been through court, lies, fear, and anger.
But it had survived.
Not the way I once imagined.
More complicated.
More real.
And when Emilia came to me, took my hand, and asked:
“Mommy, where is Daddy Todor?”
I knelt in front of her.
“Daddy is somewhere he will always be watching over you.”
“Like the stars?”
“Yes. Like the stars.”
She thought for a moment.
Then pointed out the window.
“Then I’ll wave to him at night.”
I hugged her.
And I realized that it is never too late for love.
But there is always time for the truth.
