Chapter 15 - Letters from the Other Side
Dominic’s letters arrived every Thursday.
He wrote separately to each child.
To Sophie, he described the prison garden where he grew tomatoes and peppers. To Noah, he sent chess puzzles. To Emily, he answered questions about her mother, Gordon, and the years before she was born.
He also wrote to Vivienne.
She did not always respond.
His first letters contained too many apologies and too much self-explanation.
Eventually, they changed.
He stopped asking whether she missed him.
He stopped describing the choices that led him to betrayal and began naming the harm itself.
I made your privacy into a hiding place for my lies.
I used your trust in me as a financial asset.
I allowed Sophie to believe my absence was honorable.
Vivienne saved the letters in a locked drawer.
Not because she wanted them.
Because one day Sophie might.
Two years after the gala, Dominic became eligible for a supervised family visit.
The meeting took place in a prison garden surrounded by tall fencing.
Vivienne brought Sophie.
Celeste brought Noah.
Emily arrived alone.
Dominic waited at a picnic table.
His hair had begun to gray at the temples. He wore prison clothing, not a suit. There was no watch, company pin, or expensive car waiting nearby.
Sophie ran the final few steps and hugged him.
He held her carefully.
“You got tall.”
“You got gray.”
“I noticed.”
Noah shook Dominic’s hand, then surprised everyone by hugging him briefly.
Emily sat across from him.
“You look like Gordon now.”
Dominic flinched.
“Is that an insult?”
“I haven’t decided.”
They shared sandwiches from the vending area.
The children asked practical questions.
Was the food terrible?
Did people fight?
Did he have a television?
Was he afraid?
“Yes,” Dominic answered. “Sometimes.”
“Of what?” Sophie asked.
“Of leaving and discovering I don’t know how to live honestly.”
Vivienne looked at him.
“That is probably a useful fear.”
He nodded.
Daniel waited outside the visitation area.
Vivienne had been seeing him for ten months.
The relationship was slow.
He did not demand access to every part of her life. He did not treat patience as a favor. When Vivienne questioned something, he answered without making her ashamed for asking.
Sophie liked him.
That made everything both easier and more frightening.
Dominic had learned about Daniel from Sophie’s letters.
Near the end of the visit, he asked to speak with Vivienne privately.
They walked to the edge of the garden, still visible to the guards.
“Is he good to you?” Dominic asked.
“Daniel?”
“Yes.”
“He is.”
“Does Sophie like him?”
“Yes.”
Dominic looked through the fence.
“I imagined I would be angry.”
“Are you?”
“No. I’m jealous. But that is not the same thing.”
Vivienne appreciated the distinction.
“He isn’t replacing you.”
“I know.”
“He also isn’t responsible for preserving your place.”
“I know that too.”
Dominic took a breath.
“I signed the remaining civil settlement documents.”
The agreement transferred his personal assets to employee and victim funds. It also established education trusts for all three children under independent control.
“Thank you,” Vivienne said.
“It was never mine.”
“Some of it was.”
“Not in the way I believed.”
He looked at her.
“I loved you.”
Vivienne did not look away.
“I know.”
“I also used you.”
“I know.”
“Both things were true.”
“Yes.”
“I used to think admitting love would cancel everything else.”
“It doesn’t.”
“No.”
He swallowed.
“Are you happy?”
“Sometimes.”
“That’s more honest than yes.”
“I am building a life I recognize.”
“I’m glad.”
The guard announced ten minutes remaining.
Dominic reached into his pocket and removed something wrapped in paper.
He handed it to Vivienne.
Inside was the single silver cuff link Sophie had mailed him after the fundraiser.
“I can’t take this out when I leave,” he said. “I want her to keep it until then.”
“You could store it with your property.”
“I don’t want it locked away.”
Vivienne closed her hand around it.
When the visit ended, Sophie cried.
Dominic knelt.
“I’m still here.”
“But we have to leave.”
“Yes.”
“Will you come home?”
“One day. But home may not look the way it used to.”
Sophie looked toward Vivienne and Daniel waiting beyond the gate.
“Mommy says home is people who tell the truth.”
“Your mommy is right.”
Sophie kissed his cheek.
“You can be part of home when you’re ready.”
Dominic closed his eyes.
“Thank you.”
Outside the prison, Daniel did not ask what Dominic had said.
He simply opened the car door for Sophie and waited until Vivienne was ready.
On the drive home, Sophie fell asleep.
Daniel glanced at Vivienne.
“Difficult?”
“Yes.”
“Worth it?”
“Yes.”
He nodded.
After a few miles, Vivienne placed her hand over his on the center console.
May you like
It was a small gesture.
But unlike the life she had lived with Dominic, it was entirely her choice.
