Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 53693 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 268(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 179(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 53693 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 268(@200wpm)___ 215(@250wpm)___ 179(@300wpm)
There was a long trial, during which we had to be moved to a safe house. Besides my father, there were a few Bratva members who were unhappy with our actions, and they wanted to make it known. We chose a hard path, but we had to put family above everything.
It was a sacrifice for Johnny, giving up everything he’d worked so hard for, but he was willing to do it out of his love for our family. It wasn’t even a question for him. He told me in no uncertain terms that he would give up everything he owned if it meant keeping our girls safe. Keeping me safe.
Thankfully, he had plenty of legitimate assets that the government couldn’t seize. Plus, the income from my software company alone keeps us living in the lap of luxury. Our girls don’t want for anything. They’re in the best private schools in San Francisco, and we’ve already set aside considerable amounts of money to pay for their future education.
Lily is a natural leader, and I would not be a bit surprised if she comes home one day and tells me she wants to be the president of the United States. She certainly loves bossing around her little sisters. Autumn is a creative thinker and loves art. Our fridge is covered with her drawings, which I believe are highly advanced for her age.
Then there’s Aubrey, my little mini-me. She loves all things science and computers. I swear she knows how to do things on my tablet that I don’t even know how to do, and she loves coming to work with me when her school has holidays. The other two prefer to stay home with the babysitter, but my little Aubrey lights up in a room full of computers.
Our girls are happy and well-adjusted, and that’s all I could want as a mother. I know that when the teenage years come around, we’re in for a rude awakening, but right now I’m content with our life. I feel safe in my husband’s arms, assured no one will take away this slice of paradise we’ve created for ourselves.
My phone chimes, and I hold it up to see it’s my brother, thanking me profusely for coming to his wedding. When we moved out to California, he decided to come with us, claiming he needed a fresh start away from our parents. He was an invaluable resource when Johnny and I decided to pursue legal action against our father. He helped me organize all the evidence I had against him.
Steve has been a rock for me, and I’m so glad someone in my family ended up loving me. Our mother has disowned us, refusing to speak to us since Papa went to prison. I don’t even know where she is these days or what she’s doing with her life, and it makes me sad.
Despite all her flaws, she was my mother. She devoted her entire life to a man who ended up imploding his life and hers. He was so desperate and power-hungry, so jealous of the life that Johnny gave me. When he tried to hurt our family a few years ago, enough was finally enough.
She’ll never understand that, though, because she was groomed to be a trophy wife. It’s all she ever wanted, but now her husband is serving two life sentences. My heart aches when my girls ask about their family tree, but I have to tell them the truth that I’ve come to accept. I don’t have parents anymore.
Even so, I’ve never been happier in my entire life. Between having Lily and the twins, I started working on impenetrable cybersecurity software. When Johnny told me all the ways my father had tried to attack his business in the past, I got to work creating firewalls that couldn’t be hacked.
It took years, but the software took off, and now my company is the foremost cybersecurity software company in the world. I created it from the ground up, and it’s as much my baby as my biological children. Steve came on as my CFO, and together, we’re building a new legacy, breaking the negative association that our family once carried.
The Bratva itself has been falling apart since my father went to prison. Johnny was an integral part in making that happen. Once he made sure all of his men were safely off the FBI’s radar, he started working with State Attorney’s office. Over the years, he’s brought them critical information to bring down the organization, and my father’s arrest was just the lynchpin.
I sleep better at night knowing there’s nothing he can do to hurt our family. He’s gone for good, and our lives are no longer in danger from his tyranny. I’ve seen my brother become a new person, his anger dissipating as he’s found a purpose in life. I even introduced him to his now-wife. He’s a new man now that he’s been given the freedom to live the way he wants.