Elena took the hand. Hesitantly. Like she wasn't sure it was real. That this offer could be genuine.

"Okay. I'll come. Just to visit. See what it's like."

"That's all we're asking."

They arranged everything. Travel documents. Visas. The logistics of bringing a legally dead woman to Portugal.

Lucia handled the legal complexities. "We'll need to resurrect her identity. File documentation proving she's alive. It'll take time but it's doable."

Two months later, Elena flew to the Azores. Nervous. Uncertain. Carrying a small bag. Twenty-five years of isolation making every social interaction difficult.

The kids met her at the farmhouse. Curious. Cautious. Dante had explained who she was. Lorenzo's daughter....