THE AUSTIN SYNDICATE'S VOW

Six months later.

The warm Texas sun beat down on the lush green lawns of the compound. The high steel walls were still there, but now they were covered in creeping ivy and climbing roses. The armed guards still patrolled the perimeter, but they wore polo shirts instead of tactical gear, and they were strictly defensive.

I sat on the expansive back patio, sipping iced tea and watching the chaos unfold on the grass.

“Uncle Thomas! Look!” Maya screamed, running across the yard in a bright yellow sundress. She was chasing a golden retriever puppy we had adopted two weeks ago. Her laughter was the brightest sound I had ever heard.

“I see you, Maya-bug! Don't let him get the flowers!” I called out, smiling broadly.

On the patio next to me, Leo was sitting at a glass table, meticulously constructing a massive Lego spaceship. His leg was completely healed. There was no limp, no sign of the horrific spiral fracture that had nearly crippled him. More importantly, the shadows had left his eyes. He was a child again.

He looked up from his Lego set, pushing a piece of hair out of his eyes. “Uncle Thomas, can we go to the lake tomorrow? Dante said he’d teach me how to fish.”

“If Dante said it, then we’re going,” I replied. “But you have to promise to bait your own hook. I don't do worms.”

Leo giggled, a pure, innocent sound. “You’re scared of worms?”

“Terrified,” I lied, winking at him.

I leaned back in my chair, looking at the two incredible children who had crawled to my door broken and desperate. They had saved me just as much as I had saved them. They had forced me to tear down my dark empire and build something beautiful in its place.

I was no longer the most feared mafia boss in Austin. I was a real estate mogul, a philanthropist, and an uncle.

Ethan had made me promise his children would never become part of my dark world. I hadn't just kept that promise; I had destroyed the dark world entirely so they could live in the light.

Maya ran up to the patio, the puppy trailing behind her, and threw her arms around my neck.

“I love you, Uncle Thomas,” she whispered, kissing my cheek.