When Alessia heard Victor's words, she became a little anxious.
She didn't want to see either Enzo or Dominic get hurt.
Alessia left the room, and Victor wiped his mouth, proudly sighing. "Raising such an outstanding granddaughter is troublesome, always attracting trouble."
When Alessia arrived at the mountaintop, she saw two equally damaged sports cars parked to the side.
The two owners of the cars were hanging on the slope, climbing up while fighting and pulling each other back.
"What are you doing?" she called out to the two men risking their lives in this senseless fight.
"Sia."
"Sia."
Both of them, upon seeing Alessia, reached out their hands, hoping she would help them.
Alessia thought for a moment and then extended both hands to pull them up.
"You two, use some strength and climb up first."
Both men were dissatisfied with Alessia's decision to help them both simultaneously.
Just moments before, they had been fighting each other fiercely. Now, they exchanged a glance and formed a temporary alliance.
Almost simultaneously, they released the hand still gripping the slope.
Without any support, Alessia could only focus on pulling one person up due to her physical strength.
This forced Alessia to make a choice!
Seeing her face turn red from exertion, refusing to give up on either of them, Enzo spoke up, "Sia, let go of me. I'll be fine. You know I grew up in a boxing ring, I'm tough."
"Shut up! Just because you grew up in a boxing ring doesn't mean you don't feel pain! I promised to take you away from there. I'm sorry for breaking my promise."
Alessia held on tightly, angrily apologizing.
A look of joy flashed in Enzo's eyes. "Sia, you've regained your memory! You remember everything about us! I'm so happy."
Their shared past.
Some were happy, some were not. Dominic's face darkened, and he spoke in a mix of sulkiness and probing, "Alessia, let go of me. We haven't reconciled yet, I don't need you to save me."
However, Alessia was reaching her limit.
Her body tilted forward, almost pulled down by both men. At a critical moment, her shoe got caught on a tree, preventing her from falling.
But this was only temporary; she couldn't hold on much longer.
Alessia looked at Enzo, then at Dominic. Finally, she closed her eyes and released Dominic's hand.
She gave up on Dominic.
Enzo's eyes flashed with joy as Dominic fell past him.
"Enzo, hold on tight. I'll pull you up."
"Okay." Enzo nodded.
With one less person to hold, and with Enzo's cooperation, Alessia quickly pulled him up.
"Sia, thank you for choosing me." Enzo stood up and extended his hand to the still seated Alessia.
Alessia glanced at his hand, lightly patted his palm, and then stood up on her own.
"Enzo, you are my brother. I will never give up on you, but..." Alessia paused, looking down the slope at Dominic, who had fallen and whose condition was unknown. "I have someone I want to be with."
Without any hesitation, she jumped down in the direction Dominic had fallen.
Enzo watched, his soul almost leaving his body.
He hadn't expected Alessia's feelings for Dominic to be so deep.
At the bottom of the slope.
Dominic leaned against a tree, coldly watching Alessia roll down.
The ground was soft with branches and dirt, so aside from being dirty, there were no other injuries.
Alessia brushed off the dirt and looked at Dominic awkwardly. "So you weren't hurt?"
"You wanted me to be hurt?" Dominic responded arrogantly.
"No," Alessia denied, honestly. "I just thought that falling from such a height would cause injuries."
"You thought I'd be hurt and still jumped down. How foolish." Dominic said irritably.
Alessia frowned.
Dominic, realizing his tone was harsh, softened his voice. "I twisted my ankle, come here."
"Oh." Alessia walked over, and Dominic dominantly pulled her into his arms.
He rested his chin on her shoulder.
"Do you know how angry I was when you chose Enzo? Angry enough to want to slap myself, but seeing you follow me down, my anger vanished. Alessia, let's get back together-"
"Okay!" Before Dominic even finished speaking, Alessia nodded.
So quickly that Dominic thought he might have misheard. He asked again in disbelief, "Sia, what did you just say?"
Alessia smiled and repeated in his ear, "I said okay, silly. When shall we go back to the Niagara Escarpment?"
"What?" Now it was Dominic's turn to be confused.
Alessia stood up and looked down at Dominic with a joyful tone, as if she had forgotten all the past unpleasantness and remembered only the good times.
"Dominic, I remember everything. I am IronRose, the one who talked with you about whether the east wind or the west wind would blow today."
Dominic's pupils dilated, and he grew increasingly excited. Finally unable to contain his joy, he stood up despite his injured ankle and tightly embraced Alessia.
Their lips met in a passionate kiss.
In the distant bushes, Enzo held the struggling and bedraggled Tiffany, trying to keep her quiet.
Tears and a complex mix of emotions appeared on Enzo's face. His words were unclear if they were meant for himself or Tiffany.
"Sia and Dominic are really well-matched. They met in their youth, married at the most beautiful time, and their feelings took root and blossomed at the perfect moment. We outsiders shouldn't interfere."
Enzo didn't let go of Tiffany until Alessia and Dominic had left.
Tiffany lay on the ground, gasping for air, almost suffocated by Enzo.
"You're crazy!"
Enzo, sitting on the ground, nodded in agreement instead of denying it.
"You're right, I am crazy. But if you try to disrupt Alessia and Dominic again, you'll see what a real madman looks like. Last night's encounter with the three wolves didn't scare you enough, did it?"
Tiffany shivered at the memory of the three wolves surrounding her and remained silent.
Satisfied, Enzo stood up to leave.
Tiffany, still defiant, called out, "Enzo, you clearly like Alessia. Isn't it foolish to do all this for someone else?"
Enzo paused briefly, then continued walking without answering her. Instead, he muttered to himself, "Not foolish. She has never abandoned me. She has the right to pursue happiness."
Soon, Alessia and Dominic descended the mountain.
With the antidote brought back by Victor, Eleanor's fetal poison was successfully cured, and she grew stronger each day, soon surpassing her two brothers in weight.
Months passed, and the Carter family hosted a birthday party for their three children, attended by all the prominent figures in Toronto.
The Laroux family also sent gifts early, as Gordon and Evelyn were eager to make amends with their daughter.
Amid the festive scene, some guests gathered to gossip.
"Have you heard? Mr. Carter's ex-wife is quite something."
"What's so special about her?"
"I heard she has multiple identities. She's a lyricist, designer Al, hacker Cobra, top surgeon Dr. Athena, and the long-lost daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Laroux. Despite their attempts to reconnect, she refused to acknowledge them."
"Wow, it seems Dominic Carter wasn't good enough for her. No wonder she left him."
Dominic, looking elegant in his suit, maintained a cold and reserved demeanor. Yet privately, since officially getting back with Alessia, he had become quite the amorous husband.
As the party was about to begin, he sneaked Alessia behind a rockery for a kiss, overhearing the gossiping ladies.
Alessia looked at him smugly, "Mr. Carter, everyone says you're not good enough for me."
Dominic, unashamed and even proud, gazed at her with loving eyes, "I am not worthy of you, so I must rely on you to support me."
"Shameless!" Alessia exclaimed.
"I can be even more shameless," Dominic said, leaning in for another kiss.
Their playful banter was interrupted by the sudden appearance of their three children, who asked in unison, "Daddy, Mommy, are you making a baby sister for us?"
Alessia and Dominic turned to see Bianca, heavily pregnant, supported by Riley, and the recently discharged Jessie, followed closely by Dylan.
All of them had curious expressions, as if eagerly awaiting the announcement of when the new baby would arrive.
Everything was moving in a beautiful direction, and their story continued to unfold day by day.
***END***