Chapter 216: Chapter Two Hundred and Sixteen

Chapter Two Hundred and Sixteen

Malachi’s POV

The call came at seven in the morning.

I was making coffee while Alicia fed Lia, both of them still in pajamas, the early morning light soft through the kitchen windows. My phone buzzed and I saw Travis’s name on the screen.

"It’s Travis," I told Alicia.

"This early? That’s unusual."

I answered. "What’s wrong?"

"Nothing’s wrong. Actually, everything’s right." He sounded happy, genuinely happy in a way I hadn’t heard from him in years. "Emily and I set a date. For the wedding. Two months from now. December fifteenth."

"That’s soon."

"We’ve been together almost a year. We’re both sober. We’re both in a good place. Why wait?" He paused. "I’m calling to ask if you’ll be my best man."

The request caught me off guard. I looked at Alicia, who was watching me with curiosity while Lia continued eating, oblivious to the conversation happening around her.

"You want me to be your best man," I repeated.

"I know it’s complicated. I know the history. But you’re my brother, Malachi. The only real family I have left besides Pa’s relatives who barely speak to me. And you’ve been there for me in ways I didn’t deserve. Helped me get sober, didn’t judge me for my mistakes, let me be part of your life even after everything I did to Alicia."

"I didn’t help you get sober. You did that yourself."

"You didn’t give up on me. That counts for something." His voice got quieter. "I want you there. Standing with me. Showing that we’ve moved past all the ugliness, that families can heal, that second chances are real. Please."

I thought about it. About Travis and everything that had happened between us. About Alicia and how he’d hurt her. About how far we’d all come from those dark days.

"Yes," I said finally. "I’ll be your best man."

"Really?"

"Really. You’re right. We’re family. And families show up for each other, especially for the good things."

"Thank you. God, thank you. Emily’s going to be so relieved. She was convinced you’d say no."

"Tell Emily congratulations from both of us. We’ll be there."

After I hung up, Alicia looked at me with an expression I couldn’t quite read. "You said yes."

"Was that wrong?"

"No. I just didn’t expect it. After everything."

"He’s changing. Really changing. And he deserves support for that. We all deserve support when we’re trying to be better."

"You’re a good man," she said softly. "A better man than Travis ever was to you."

"I’m trying to be. Trying to be the kind of man who breaks cycles instead of perpetuating them. The kind of father who shows Lia that forgiveness is possible, that people can change, that holding grudges doesn’t serve anyone."

Lia finished eating and let out a satisfied burp that made us both laugh. Alicia shifted her to her shoulder, patting her back gently.

"Two months," she said. "That means we’ll need to fly back to Dark City again. Find childcare for Lia during the ceremony."

"Or bring her with us. She’ll be seven months old by then. Old enough to travel."

"You want to bring a seven-month-old to a wedding?"

"Why not? She’s family too. And I want her there. Want Travis to see what real family looks like, what he’s building toward with Emily."

"You’ve gotten sentimental."

"I’ve gotten honest. There’s a difference."

She smiled, that soft smile she reserved for moments when I said something that surprised her in a good way. "Okay. We’ll bring Lia. Make it a family trip."

"A family trip to watch my brother marry the woman who tried to destroy us. Life is strange."

"Life is full of second chances. For Emily, for Travis, for all of us. That’s not strange. That’s grace."

I moved closer, kissed the top of her head while she held our daughter. "How did I get so lucky to find you?"

"You walked into a dark room at exactly the right time."

"Best decision I ever made. Coming back that night. Finding you there."

"Best decision I ever made was staying when you walked in instead of running away."

Lia squirmed, ready to be put down. Alicia set her in the bouncer seat we kept in the kitchen, and she immediately grabbed for the toys hanging above her, making happy gurgling sounds.

"I need to tell you something," Alicia said, her tone shifting to something more serious. "About yesterday. About Maria."

"Did something go wrong with the extraction?"

"No. Everything went perfectly. She and the kids are safe in the house. Her husband doesn’t know where they are. The restraining order has been filed. Everything is proceeding exactly as planned."

"Then what?"

"When I was talking to her, helping her plan her escape, I realized something. I realized how close I came to never getting out. How easily I could have been her, still trapped with Travis, still convinced I had no options. If you hadn’t walked into that room that night, if you hadn’t seen me and made me feel like I mattered, I might never have found the strength to leave."

"You would have found it eventually. You’re strong, Alicia. You always were."

"Maybe. But maybe not. Maybe I would have stayed until he killed me. Or until I killed myself trying to survive him." She looked at me directly, her eyes intense. "You saved my life. Not just by helping me escape, but by making me believe I deserved to escape. That I deserved better. That I was worth saving."

"You saved mine too. By being exactly who you were. By showing me that there was more to life than power and violence and the endless cycle of the Blackwood empire."

"We saved each other then."

"We did. And now we’re saving others. You through the foundation, me by walking away from the family business and showing that change is possible."

"Do you ever regret it? Walking away from all that power?"

I looked at Lia, happily playing with her toys, completely unaware that her father had once been someone who inspired fear in powerful men. Looked at Alicia, this woman who’d chosen to love me despite knowing exactly what I was capable of.

"Not even for a second. That power cost too much. Cost my soul, my humanity, any chance at real happiness. This life, this family, this is worth more than any empire."

"Good answer."

"It’s the truth."

My phone buzzed again. This time it was Maurice. I answered on speaker since Alicia was already privy to most of my business dealings anyway.

"Travis called me," Maurice said without preamble. "Told me about the wedding. Told me you agreed to be best man."

"I did."

"That’s big of you. After everything."

"It’s not big. It’s just right. He’s family and he’s trying to be better. That deserves support."

"The family’s talking about it. About you going back for the wedding. Some think it’s weakness, you maintaining ties to Dark City after walking away."

"Let them think what they want. I don’t answer to them anymore."

"And some think it’s strength. Showing that you can engage with your past without being controlled by it." Maurice paused. "For what it’s worth, I think it’s the right call. Travis needs this. Emily needs this. And the family needs to see that there’s a path forward that doesn’t involve cutting everyone off completely."

"How’s the business?"

"Thriving. Better than when you were running it, if I’m being honest. Less violence, more legitimate operations. The family’s reputation is improving. We’re becoming respectable."

"Good. That’s what I wanted. What Pa never could have achieved because he was too attached to the old ways."

"He’d be proud of what you built though. Of what you walked away from to build something better."

After Maurice hung up, Alicia came to stand beside me, leaning into my side while we both watched Lia play.

"Two months until the wedding," she said.

"Two months until we go back to Dark City and face everything we left behind."

"Nervous?"

"A little. What if being back there brings out old habits? Old instincts? What if I see the mansion and remember who I used to be and can’t shake it off?"

"Then I’ll remind you who you are now. Who you chose to be. That’s what partners do."

"You make it sound easy."

"It’s not easy. But it’s simple. You just keep choosing us. Keep choosing this life. Keep choosing to be the man Lia needs you to be."

Lia dropped one of her toys and immediately started fussing. I retrieved it, handed it back to her. She grabbed it with both hands and stuffed it in her mouth, problem solved.

"See? Problem solving. She definitely gets that from you," Alicia said.

"She gets her stubbornness from you."

"She gets it from both of us. Poor kid doesn’t stand a chance."

I pulled Alicia closer, pressed a kiss to her temple. "She’s going to be perfect. Stubborn and determined and absolutely perfect."

"Just like her parents."

"Better than her parents. She gets to grow up loved and safe and knowing she matters. That’s more than either of us had."