Chapter 37 – "Peace in Pieces"
They talked.
Dante sat across from Barry in the Cortex, a cup of coffee in his hand, the steam curling up gently between them like a silent breath of relief. Neither of them spoke at first. After everything—after the rage, the battles, the losses—words felt too small to hold the weight of what they'd been through.
But Barry broke the silence.
"I finally did it," he said softly. "I freed my dad."
Dante raised his eyebrows. "You did?"
Barry nodded slowly. "After you killed Eobard… a few days later, something came to the lab. A message. A will, apparently. Eobard left it behind before he died. Like some kind of final twisted game."
"What did it say?"
Barry leaned forward, placing the cup aside. His voice dropped. "He confessed. On video. Said everything. That he killed my mom. That my dad was innocent. He even included details—things only the real killer would know."
Dante's jaw clenched slightly, but his face remained composed. "Why would he do that?"
"I don't know," Barry said. "Maybe part of him wanted to be remembered. Maybe it was guilt. Or maybe he just wanted to see what would happen."
Barry shook his head and continued. "I took it to Joe. We brought it to the judge. With everything… the meta stuff, the time travel, it still held up. They couldn't deny the truth. After so many years…"
Dante sat up straighter. "He's free now?"
Barry smiled for real this time, eyes bright with emotion. "Yeah. He moved out of the city. Found a small wooden cabin up north, surrounded by forest. Quiet. Peaceful. He always loved that kind of life. Said he never wanted to see another prison wall again."
Dante smiled, and this time it was warm, proud. "I'm happy for you, Barry."
"Thanks. I owe it to you. If you hadn't stopped Eobard—"
Dante raised a hand. "You don't owe me anything. I did it because I wanted to. Because I had to."
Barry looked at him, eyes soft with respect. "Still… thank you."
Dante offered a small nod and stood up. Without a word, he vanished in a blur of black and red lightning.
They all watched it from the monitors. The streak wasn't as sharp, wasn't as wild as before. But it was fast enough to blur the air.
He returned just a few moments later. Out of breath, but smiling. "Guess I'm slower now," he said.
Barry smiled. Cisco leaned in the doorway, arms crossed, watching Dante with a quiet appreciation.
"No," Cisco said. "You're calmer now."
Everyone understood.
The rage that had once driven Dante's every step was gone. The Void Force was still within him, still burning, but now it was like fire under glass. Controlled. Tempered. That meant he had found peace.
That meant he was healing.
Dante turned, holding a small wrapped box in his hands. He stepped forward, approaching Ronnie and Caitlin.
"Congratulations on the wedding, you guys," he said with a gentle smile.
Ronnie blinked, clearly surprised, but he broke into a smile and stepped forward. "Thanks, man."
Caitlin froze. Her heart tripped in her chest.
She had expected something else—maybe tension, maybe bitterness—but instead she found herself staring at a version of Dante she didn't recognize. Serene. Kind. Peaceful.
He handed them the gift, a small rectangular box wrapped in silver paper. "It's not much. Just something I found in China. Thought of you two."
Ronnie took it with a nod. "Thanks, Dante. It means a lot."
Caitlin stood beside her husband and smiled, but something inside her twisted. Not with guilt. Not with regret.
Just… confusion.
Because he wasn't angry.
He wasn't cold.
He wasn't hurt.
He was okay.
And that's what scared her the most.
Because a part of her—buried deep, secret, quiet—wanted him to not be okay. A part of her wanted him to still feel the ache, the pull, the love he had for her. But he didn't show it. Not even a flicker.
She adored Ronnie. Loved him fiercely. She always had. But Dante had been something else entirely. A storm that made her feel alive.
And now… he was calm. The storm had passed.
She was happy for him. But she wasn't sure why she also felt a little sad.
As conversations moved on around her, Caitlin stood in place, her thoughts quiet but loud in her chest.
Barry clapped Dante on the back. "Hey," he said, "want to come to CCPD with me? Captain Singh might want to know you're not, y'know, dead."
Dante laughed. "I should hope not. I left a half-eaten bag of chips in my locker."
Cisco snorted. "Gross."
Dante turned to Barry. "You think he'll let me have my old job back?"
Barry raised an eyebrow. "As a janitor?"
Dante smirked. "I liked that job. No one bothers you. You get to listen to music and clean up after other people's chaos. Kinda poetic."
Barry laughed. "Well, Singh is still Singh. We'll find out."
Dante turned to the others. "I'll see you all later."
He nodded to Ronnie, smiled again at Caitlin—who smiled back, this time with something unreadable in her eyes—and walked out of STAR Labs with Barry beside him.
The glass doors swung closed behind them.
And for the first time in a long time, Dante wasn't running away.
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