Chapter 10 - The Calm After the Storm
Two years had passed since the heavy iron gates of the prison closed behind my father and sister.
I sat on the wooden deck of our new beach house, sipping a cup of hot chamomile tea.
The ocean breeze carried the smell of salt and sunscreen through the warm air.
Down by the shoreline, Liam was running through the shallow waves, chasing our new golden retriever pup.
He was ten years old now, taller, stronger, and completely free of the fear that had once haunted him.
We had used a small fraction of the trust fund to build a quiet, beautiful life away from the toxic high society.
I checked my phone briefly, swiping away a news notification.
An article had popped up about Richard Sterling being transferred to the prison infirmary after a fight in the yard.
I didn't click on it.
I didn't care what happened to him anymore; he was merely a ghost from a past life.
Chloe occasionally sent me long, begging letters from her cell, asking for money for the prison commissary.
I threw every single envelope directly into the fireplace without opening them.
They had made their choices, and they were paying the price exactly as they deserved.
I set my teacup down on the railing and smiled as Liam waved at me from the water.
“Mom, watch this!” he yelled happily.
He dove smoothly into the crashing waves, swimming with strong, confident strokes.
He wasn't afraid of the water anymore.
He wasn't afraid of anything.
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We had survived the worst they could throw at us, and we had emerged victorious.
I walked down the wooden steps toward the sand, ready to join my son in the beautiful life we had built.
