Page 128 of Rescuing Aria

“Everything,” I admit. “How different things were just a few months ago. How much has changed.”

“Regrets?” The question holds no judgment.

I consider it, honestly examining the complex tangle of emotions that remain. Grief for illusions lost. Pain for truths revealed. Fear for paths unknown.

But beneath it all, something stronger emerges. Something steady and enduring and real.

“No,” I answer truthfully. “Not regrets. Just—recognition of the journey.”

His arms tighten slightly around me, anchoring me in the present moment. “We keep moving forward. Together.”

The simple certainty in his voice settles something inside me. Whatever comes next—the continuing investigations, therebuilding of businesses, the memories that sometimes still wake me gasping in the night—we face it as a unit. Not handler and client. Not operative and assignment. Just Jon and Aria, connected by choice rather than circumstance.

“Together,” I agree, the word carrying the weight of promise.

I am Aria—not defined by Marcus’s crimes or Wolfe’s biology or even the trauma of what I’ve survived. Defined instead by the choices I made, by the truths I’ve embraced, and by light created from darkness.

Tomorrow I’ll return to the shop. Hope will continue developing her Celestial collection. Jon will balance Guardian responsibilities with our shared life. The journey continues, path unfolding with each step forward.

But tonight, in this moment of quiet connection, I recognize the most important truth revealed through everything we’ve survived: Family isn’t inherited. It’s chosen, day by day, moment by moment. Built through presence, truth, and unwavering support when darkness threatens to consume everything.

And like the candles that have become my signature, the brightest flames emerge from the deepest shadows. Not despite the darkness, but because of it. Transformed by it. Made more valuable through contrast.

Truth, illuminating whatever comes next.

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