THE LULLABY KEY : THE FALL
CHAPTER 49: The Proposal
They found the seventh vault on a Thursday.
It was hidden in the most obvious place in the world: the Crane family plot in Cold Spring, New York. Not in the grave. Not in the locket. In the headstone.
Lena had walked past it a hundred times. She had read the inscription: “Elena Vasquez-Crane. Beloved Wife and Mother. Rest in Peace.”
But she had never touched it.
She touched it now.
The stone was warm. Warmer than it should have been.
She pressed her palm against the letters of her mother’s name.
The stone slid open.
Inside: a small cavity. And inside the cavity: a single piece of paper.
Lena unfolded it.
It was a handwritten letter. From her father. Dated the day before he died.
“Lena,
If you’re reading this, you’ve found the seventh vault. Congratulations. You’re smarter than I ever was.
The seventh vault doesn’t contain evidence. It doesn’t contain secrets. It contains a question. The same question your mother asked me on her deathbed: ‘What are you going to do with the time you have left?’
I didn’t have an answer then. I do now.
I’m going to spend my time fighting. Not running. Not hiding. Fighting. For you. For your mother. For everyone who can’t fight for themselves.
You can do the same. Or you can walk away. No one would blame you. You’ve done more than anyone could ask.
But if you choose to fight, know that I’m proud of you. And I love you. And I’ll be watching.
—Dad”
Lena folded the letter.
She put it in her pocket.
She looked at Marcus.
“I’m going to fight.”
“I know.”
“I’m going to find Marchetti. And I’m going to bring him down.”
“I know.”
“And I’m going to do it with you. If you’ll have me.”
Marcus stepped closer. He took her hands.
“Lena Ashford. I’ve been running from my past for fifteen years. I’ve been hiding from my feelings for even longer. But I’m done running. I’m done hiding.”
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small box.
“I know this is crazy. I know we’ve only known each other for a few months. I know the world is falling apart. But I don’t care. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Fighting. Building. Loving. Whatever comes.”
He opened the box.
A simple gold band. No diamonds. No frills. Just a circle of gold that caught the sunlight.
“Will you marry me?”
Lena stared at the ring.
Her heart raced.
Her hands shook.
“Yes,” she whispered. “Yes.”
He slid the ring onto her finger.
She kissed him.
The cemetery was quiet. The willow tree whispered in the wind.
And somewhere, in some other world, Elena Vasquez-Crane was smiling.