Chapter 22 - The Master Terrace
As evening approached, painting the western sky over the Hudson and Great Lakes basins in magnificent strokes of amber, violet, and deep crimson, Adrian and Elena walked out onto the grand master terrace on the third floor of Vale House.
The terrace overlooked the sweeping, snow-covered lawns that sloped gently down toward the dark, frozen waters of Lake Michigan. In the distance, the faint, glittering glow of the Chicago skyline pulsed against the night horizon like a constellation of fallen stars. Down there, the city hummed in endless, orderly waves—police cruisers patrolling clean streets, freight trucks moving seamlessly between automated terminals, and the ancient machinery of the city turning with clockwork precision under an invisible, unyielding management.
Adrian set his empty coffee mug down on the heavy stone balustrade of the terrace, the crisp evening wind billowing his open shirt collar. He turned Elena gently in his arms, pulling her against his solid chest, looking down into her dark, intelligent eyes with an intensity that time would never dull.
"Where to next, Mrs. Vale?" he asked quietly, the wind carrying his words softly out over the lake.
May you like
Elena smiled, looking out toward the endless, glittering horizon where the golden light met the endless blue sky.
"Nowhere," she whispered, resting her hands over his heart as the steady, familiar beat answered her every thought. "We’re right where we’re supposed to be."
