Chapter 10 - Sunshine and Warmth
Four years later.
The summer sun beamed down on the sprawling green lawn of our coastal home. The air smelled of salt water, blooming hydrangeas, and sweet barbecue smoke.
It was Josie’s eighth birthday.
Our backyard was filled with laughter and activity. Half a dozen children from Josie’s school were running through a sprinkler on the lawn, their shrieks of joy ringing across the garden.
At the picnic table, Mr. Jenkins was busy helping Josie assemble a solar-powered model airplane he had bought her for her birthday. They were leaning over the blueprint together, head to head, deep in serious debate about where the propeller snapped in.
Sarah Vance was sitting on the porch patio with me, enjoying a glass of homemade lemonade.
“You know,” Sarah said, leaning back against the wicker chair, “I got a notification from the state database this morning. Travis was released last week on mandatory supervision. He’s living in another state, working a construction job, restricted from entering this county or making any contact.”
I took a slow sip of my lemonade, watching Josie adjust the tiny plastic wings of her airplane.
Once, that news would have made my stomach drop. Now, it felt like reading a headline about a stranger in a distant land. Travis Vance was a ghost from a previous life, a ghost that had no power over the bright, beautiful present we had built.
“Mommy! Look!” Josie shouted, running across the grass toward the porch, her face glowing with pride, holding the completed yellow airplane high in the air. “It works! When the sun hits the solar panel, the propeller spins on its own!”
She held it up, and sure enough, under the brilliant afternoon sun, the tiny blades whirred into a smooth, buzzing blur.
I knelt down and pulled my daughter into a tight, warm hug. She smelled of sunshine, ocean air, and pure happiness.
“It’s amazing, sweetheart,” I said, kissing her forehead. “Just like you.”
“Mr. Jenkins said that as long as there’s sunlight, it’ll keep flying,” Josie said proudly, turning to wave at the old firefighter, who gave her a cheerful salute from the table.
May you like
“He’s right,” I said, standing up and holding her hand as we walked back toward our friends, our family, and the life we had reclaimed. “As long as there’s warmth, nothing can ever stop us.”
The winter storm was long gone, and in its place was a sun that would never set on our peace.
