Chapter 9 - The Restructuring
Six months later.
The Tribeca penthouse had been completely remodeled. The cold, sterile white marble had been replaced by warm oak floors, colorful rugs, and walls lined with Leo’s finger paintings. The old staff were gone, replaced by people Cameron had personally vetted from her old neighborhood in Queens—honest, hard-working people who looked at the boy with smiles instead of calculations.
Cameron’s mother was living in a beautiful brownstone in Brooklyn, her cancer in full remission, her medical bills paid for life by the Duca foundation.
It was a quiet Sunday afternoon. The sun was streaming through the massive windows, casting a golden glow over the living room.
Leo was sitting on the floor, building a massive train track out of the very wooden blocks he had once thrown at Cameron. He was talking constantly now, his voice a bright, musical chatter as he narrated the journey of the little locomotive.
"The train goes to the station, Daddy!" Leo shouted, pointing at the door.
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Matteo walked into the room, wearing a simple sweater instead of his usual armored suits. He sat down on the floor next to his son, helping him guide the wooden train along the tracks.
"You're doing a great job, buddy," Matteo said, a genuine, warm smile on his face.
