All Chapters of Heartbreak And Wars: Chapter 161 - Chapter 170

Wakes's POVEvelyn's middle school graduation arrived on a warm June afternoon, marking the end of her childhood in ways that made me uncomfortably aware of how quickly time passed. My daughter was fourteen now intelligent, confident, navigating adolescence with grace I certainly hadn't possessed at her age."Dad, you're going to embarrass me, aren't you?" Evelyn asked while I helped her with her graduation gown that morning."Absolutely. That's my job as parent." I straightened her collar. "But I'll try to keep the embarrassment to socially acceptable levels."Blake and Aloe were hosting the graduation celebration at their house afterward. The entire blended family gathering to celebrate Evelyn's achievement another demonstration of how far we'd all come from the toxic dynamics that defined our past.At the ceremony, I sat between Blake and Aloe, Daniel sleeping in carrier beside us. James and Hope were with Sofia a few rows back, their excitement manifesting as barely-controlled cha

Sofia's POVHeron proposed on a rainy November evening at the foundation office, which was perfectly appropriate given that our relationship had started with work and remained intertwined with it. We'd been dating for two years, living together for six months, and I'd known for a while that this was heading somewhere permanent."Sofia Martinez," he said, getting down on one knee beside the conference table where we'd first strategized Blake's security together, "you're the most dedicated, brilliant, occasionally terrifying person I've ever met. Will you marry me?""Yes. Obviously yes." I pulled him up to kiss him. "Though proposing at work is very on-brand for us.""I considered the romantic restaurant option, but we've done our best work in this building. Seemed appropriate."We told Blake and Aloe first, at family dinner the following week. Their reaction was enthusiastic, though Blake couldn't resist teasing."Sofia's getting married. To the man who helped frame me for federal crim

Blake's POVMy final legislative session began in January with bittersweet awareness that every vote, every committee meeting, every floor debate would be my last as elected official. Six years in the Oregon House of Representatives—longer than I'd spent in prison, long enough to make real difference, short enough to leave wanting more."You're unusually melancholy," Sofia observed during strategy meeting in my capitol office. She was eight months pregnant now, moving more slowly but maintaining the sharp focus that made her invaluable."I'm going to miss this. The work, the challenges, even the frustrations of legislative process." I gestured around my small office. "This became part of my identity. State Representative Blake Matthew. Now I'm just Blake Matthew again.""You're never 'just' anything. You're founder of the Second Chances Initiative, bestselling author, national advocate for reform." Sofia adjusted in her chair, looking uncomfortable. "Blake, you've accomplished more th

Wakes's POVEvelyn's college graduation arrived four years after she'd started at University of Oregon, studying political science with focus on criminal justice reform. My daughter had become the person I'd hoped she'd be intelligent, compassionate, driven to fix systems rather than exploit them."Dad, you're crying again," Evelyn said when I picked her up for the ceremony. "You've been crying since I got my acceptance letter four years ago.""I'm allowed to be emotional. My daughter is graduating college." I wiped my eyes. "With honors, I might add. And acceptance to three different graduate programs.""I haven't decided which one yet. Maybe none of them. Blake thinks I should work for the foundation for a year before committing to grad school.""What do you think?""I think Blake's probably right. I've spent four years studying theory. Practical experience would be valuable before more theory." Evelyn adjusted her graduation gown. "Plus, the foundation work is where I can make imme

Aloe's POVThe Second Chances Initiative celebrated its tenth anniversary in November with gala event at Portland's convention center. Ten years since Wakes and Blake had founded it, since they'd transformed from enemies to allies working toward shared purpose of preventing wrongful convictions and supporting reform."A hundred and forty-three exonerations," Sofia announced during her presentation, Maya now four years old and sitting quietly in the audience beside Heron. "Combined total of 1,847 years of wrongful imprisonment prevented. Reforms implemented in nineteen states based on our advocacy work. This is what ten years of dedicated effort accomplishes."The audience—foundation staff, donors, exonerees, legislators, advocates applauded sustained recognition of achievements that had seemed impossible when the organization first launched.Blake was scheduled to speak, but he'd asked me to introduce him. "You've been part of this from the beginning," he'd said during planning. "You