Chapter 5 - Three Years Later
The sun was setting over the hills of upstate New York, casting a warm golden glow across a simple, beautiful two-story farmhouse surrounded by apple trees and green rolling lawns.
On the wrap-around porch, Ethan Cole sat in a wooden rocking chair, wearing a simple blue sweater and jeans. Beside him sat Maria, her hair soft around her shoulders, wearing a yellow sundress, holding a newborn baby boy wrapped in a soft white blanket.
Down on the lawn, six-year-old Lily was running through the grass, kicking a soccer ball toward a wooden goalpost, her dark curls bouncing in the evening breeze.
"Lily! Dinner in ten minutes!" Maria called out warmly from the porch.
"Okay, Mommy!" Lily shouted back, before kicking the ball one last time and sprinting up the porch steps.
Lily ran over to Ethan, throwing her arms around his waist. Ethan laughed softly, scooping her up into his lap and adjusting her sweater.
"Did you score a goal?" Ethan asked, tapping her nose.
"Three goals!" Lily declared proudly. Then she reached into her pocket and pulled out a fresh, brand-new red crayon, handing it to Ethan. "Here. For your desk."
Ethan took the crayon, looking down at it with a quiet, profound gratitude.
He looked at Maria, who offered him a soft, loving smile as she rocked their newborn son, Leo. Then he looked at Lily, who was leaning her head contentedly against his chest.
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Ethan put the red crayon into his shirt pocket—right over his heart.
He had built a four-billion-dollar empire. But as he sat on the porch watching the sun dip below the horizon with his family beside him, Ethan knew he had finally found his real wealth.
