Chapter 10 - The Harvest of Grace
Five years later.
The morning sun cut across the glass gate of the Pechersk estate, warming the damp asphalt and casting a golden glow over the immaculate rows of roses and vibrant greenery. The air smelled of blooming jasmine, rich earth, and fresh coffee.
At the front entrance, a sleek black sedan stood waiting with its engine running quietly. Mykola stood by the rear door, holding the keys firmly in his left hand while opening the door with his right, exactly as he had done for years.
I walked out of the house, dressed in a sharp charcoal suit, carrying my briefcase in one hand and my phone in the other. But before I reached the car, a young woman in a crisp white university blazer stepped out from the garden path, holding a fresh green sprig of rosemary.
Eighteen-year-old Marichka—now a freshman honors student in agricultural biotechnology at the National University of Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, with her own successful grant-funded agricultural startup—stopped right in front of me. She tucked a stray lock of hair behind her ear, smiling brightly.
“Mr. Roman,” she said, her eyes sparkling with intelligence and warmth. “Before you leave for your board meeting in Munich, you need this for good luck. Certified organic, grown right here in our greenhouse.”
She tucked the sprig of fresh rosemary into the lapel of my suit jacket. The scent was clean, sharp, and invigorating.
I looked down at her, feeling an immense swell of paternal pride that words could scarcely capture. The frightened little girl with the cracked phone and dirt-stained fingers had blossomed into an extraordinary young woman who was shaping her own destiny—and helping to anchor mine.
“Thank you, Marichka,” I said softly, adjusting the sprig on my lapel. “I think I have all the luck and protection I will ever need.”
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I stepped into the car, looked back one last time at the sunlit estate, the thriving greenhouse, and the young woman smiling by the gate, and gave a confident nod to Mykola.
The car glided smoothly out onto the open road
