Beneath Their Scars

Epilogue

*TW: Suicide*

Third Person POV

It was eleven in the morning on a Saturday in Italy. Sage Sinclair put on her long sleeve black dress that met just above her knees, accompanied by a white pearl necklace. She pulled her hair back into a low bun and didn't bother with any makeup.

She stepped into her plain black heels and grabbed a pair of black shades. Then she was off.

She sat solemnly in the back of a black SUV until she'd arrived at her destination. She got out and walked toward a pristine church.

It was in a pretty secluded area, and she walked down a long path in order to get to the door.

Once she finally entered it all became real. She is about to say her final goodbyes to the love of her life.

She swiftly slid on her glasses and began making her way toward the pews. She's mentally preparing herself to get through this day.

She thought about not coming at all. She thought about it a lot... but she needed to do it for him. She took a seat in the very back, away from her three friends.

She felt like she needed to be alone for this. As much as she could use their support right now, she didn't want to be a burden.

So, she went through it all alone.

As she sat through the service, it was finally time for words from any friends and family. She waited for everyone else to speak before she decided to go up.

With slow, timid steps, she walked down to stand in front of everyone. She let out a shaky breath when she grabbed the mic.

"I've spent days trying to figure out what I'd say in this moment, and I've come up with nothing. What do you say when you lose the other half of your heart?" She says, as her voice begins to crack. She lifts her glasses to wipe her eyes. "I wish it would've been me instead of him."

She shifts uncomfortably as she tries to put her words together during this unbearably painful moment.

"See... you all knew one version of him. The way too serious, rude, and lethal Roman.

But you didn't know the real Roman.

You didn't know the Roman that danced with me to Frank Sinatra just because I liked the song.

You never met the Roman that would come and comfort me after a nightmare.

You didn't get to meet the Roman that would listen to Disney songs in the car just because I wanted to.

You never knew the Roman that would follow me around a bookstore without a complaint.

You didn't know the man that would do anything to protect me because that's how much he cared."

Sage is incapable of stopping the stream of tears that is now pouring out.

"My love for him is undying and I will never feel for anyone else the way I feel for him." She expresses sincerely. "My heart will always be his and his will always live through mine." She ends before placing the mic back into the stand and with that she walks away.

She makes eye contact with her friends, giving them a nod before walking straight out of the church.

She begins walking back down that long pathway and allows her head to wrap around everything. She couldn't bear to stay at the funeral any longer after paying her respects.

For some reason, after speaking she felt lighter. She hoped that everyone that heard what she had to say, could at least begin to understand the man that Roman truly was. The man that he will always be.

Her heart was still pounding, and her mind was still in a million different places, but she felt like she could actually breathe for the first time in two weeks.

Once she got to the end of the pathway, she began walking down the stretched winding road completely consumed by her thoughts and emotions.

There wasn't much else in the area besides the church, and they made sure of that so that the funeral could be in private.

Sage finally reached the end of the road and there was her ride. She previously made sure that the driver would wait for her at the end of the road, so that she could take this long walk to sort out her thoughts.

The driver, dressed in all black got out and opened the back door. She slid in and let out a long exhale. The driver returned to the driver seat and pulled off.

"How did I do?" she asks nervously from her seat on the right side of the back.

A strong hand reached over from the seat next to her and gently squeezed her thigh.

"You did great my love." Said Romano Armani as he leaned over to place a kiss on her temple.

His words instantly gave her a sense of relief because this was the last part.

Her moving speech was the last chapter of the story that they had read to everyone.

The suicide was real, only to everyone besides their fantastic five. Elliot Jacobs, Grace Armani, and Isabella Morales all knew what had really happened.

At first they wondered how? How could he have survived the injection? How was he alive?

That is where the late Salvatore Armani came in. Roman's father.

The document that he'd left Roman is what saved his life. Roman read it as soon as he got into the car, on the way to his ball.

Salvatore found out about the Espertel production and hired several of his men to "betray" him and cross over to the American mafia. In doing this, they were able to report back, everything they found about the drug serum, including the possible antidote. Jackfruit.

Having ingested jackfruit within 24 hours of being injected with Espertel, it is probable to not kill the victim, but only leave them unconscious for several hours.

This was not confirmed but Roman had gut feeling after reading the documents from his father. He made a pit stop on his way to the ball and consumed an entire can of the uncommon fruit.

When it was time for him to inject himself, he had no clue, how long he'd been passed out before, or if the jackfruit would even affect the serum. But he did it anyway.

He did it, not caring about the possible outcomes because, in that moment, Sage's safety was all that mattered. He luckily made it out alive.

The world had been fed this awful tragedy and everyone believed it. Roman found a perfect way out. A perfect way to be happy. A perfect way to please his mother from above and a perfect way to keep the love of his life safe.

Now Grace will be the next in line to lead. She will be the first female Mafia boss in history. It's all she'd ever wanted.

Elliot will be right under her while having Izzy there to support them through it all.

Maybe at some point down the line Roman may make an epic comeback to the mafia world. Who knows?

But, for now that chapter in Sage and Roman's life has officially ended.

They've finally found the happiness beneath their scars.

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A/N: oh my gosh I can't believe it's actually over.
I've finished my first book, this is all so surreal to me.
I want to thank allllll of you for reading Sage and Roman's story and sticking through this long, wild ride!
These characters and this book mean so much to me and it will always have a special place in my heart.
I know I definitely scared you guys lol but it was all for the best.
I want to hear all your feedback on the book as a whole and I want to know what you think I could have improved so that I know for my next book!
If you enjoyed my book please share it!

I love you all so so so so much and thank you again
for reading Beneath their scars
Until next time <3
                                          ~ vanee