Chapter 12
553words
I stood on the balcony of a villa by Lake Geneva, looking out at the Alps in the distance. The air was so clean it almost made me want to cry.
News alerts kept popping up on my phone.
"Falcone Pharmaceutical Engulfed in Scandal, Stock Plunges 40% in a Single Day"
"Dr. Olivia Ricci Exposed for Academic Fraud, American Medical Association Revokes Board Candidacy"
"IRS Confirms Ricci Foundation Embezzled Over Ten Million Dollars, Suspected Money Laundering"
"FBI Investigates Falcones for RICO Violations and Medical Negligence Resulting in Death"
I read the headlines calmly.
There was no rush of satisfaction as I had imagined, just a quiet sense that it was finally over and that I could finally begin a new life.
I bought this villa with the money from selling off my assets.
Three stories, a garden, a garage, and a full view of Lake Geneva.
It was quiet, far from all the noise.
It was exactly the life I wanted.
The doorbell rang. It was my newly hired housekeeper, a kind Swiss elderly woman named Emma.
"Ms. Rossi, the medical books you requested have arrived," she said in English with a German accent, a gentle smile on her face.
I took the package from her and thanked her.
All these years, for Dante and for the sake of fitting into that world where high society and organized crime intertwined, I had given up my research and my dreams.
Now, I was taking them back.
I had applied for a researcher position at one of Geneva’s top medical research centers, the biomedical laboratory affiliated with CERN. Based on my previously published papers and research results, they accepted me quickly.
This was despite Olivia stealing those achievements after that. Fortunately, I had kept the complete original data and experimental records that truly belonged to me.
That evening, I sat in my study, surrounded by walls of medical books and laboratory equipment.
For the first time, I felt that this was the life I was meant to live; not the cold mansion on Beacon Hill, where I tiptoed through each day, carefully playing the role of a proper mafia wife.
My phone rang again.
It was a message from Rachel.
"Sofia, everything here has blown up. The family elders removed Dante as CEO. Massachusetts General Hospital fired Olivia, and she is facing federal criminal charges. Twitter is tearing them apart. You finally got your revenge."
I looked at the message and typed back, "I don’t feel like I got revenge. I just wanted justice. Now, I just want to live well."
Rachel replied with another message, "Oh, by the way, Dante’s been looking for you. He’s called me several times asking where you are. I hear he’s close to losing his mind."
I thought for a moment, then replied, "Don’t tell him. I don’t want any contact with him ever again. And thank you for supporting me all these years."
Rachel sent back a hugging emoji.
I turned off my phone and stepped back onto the balcony.
Night had fallen, and the stars were brilliant. This was a sky I had never seen in Boston. There, the night sky was always swallowed by city lights and smog, just like my heart once was, obscured by pain and despair.
Nonetheless, now everything had passed.
