A month later, a woman arrived at the headquarters—tall, with dark hair and eyes that looked just like Salvatore's. She introduced herself as Sofia, his sister.
"I got his letter," she said, her voice shaking. "He told me what he did, why he did it. I came to say… I'm sorry. For everything he put you through."
Clara sat down with her in the garden, away from the noise of the office. "He was trying to protect you," she said. "We know that now."
Sofia nodded, tears streaming down her face. "I didn't know," she said. "I thought he'd abandoned me. I thought he'd become a monster. But he was just… scared. He loved me so much."
"We understand," Clara said, putting a hand on her shoulder. "And you're welcome here. Anytime. Salvatore may be gone, but you're still family."
Sofia looked up, surprised. "Really?" she asked.
"Really," Clara said. "We're building a family here—one that includes everyone, even those with a complicated past. You don't have to be alone anymore."
That evening, Sofia joined them for dinner. Enzo talked to her about Salvatore—about the good times, before everything went wrong. Alessandro told her about their plans for the future. And Clara watched, her heart full, as the ghost of Salvatore's past was finally laid to rest.