Chapter 14: Healing Scars
That evening, the coastal fog rolled gently over the bluff, wrapping the small cottage in a blanket of quiet comfort.
A stone fireplace crackled in the living room, casting a warm golden glow across the polished fir floors. Clara sat curled up on a plush rug, sketching the ocean in a leather-bound notebook, while Bruno lay stretched out beside her, his head resting securely across her lap.
Gabriel brought two mugs of warm cider to the table. He sat beside them, watching his daughter trace the outline of a great dog running beneath a bright sun.
“Daddy?” Clara asked, not looking up from her drawing.
“Yes, baby?”
“Do you ever miss our old house?”
Gabriel paused, reflecting on the cold marble halls, the surveillance cameras, the armed men patrolling the perimeter, and the crushing anxiety that had poisoned his every waking hour.
“Not for a single second,” Gabriel answered softly. “This is our home now. Where we belong.”
Clara looked up, her hazel eyes bright and clear, completely free of the terror that had once haunted them. “Bruno likes it better here too. He doesn't have to stay awake all night anymore.”
May you like
Gabriel reached down and stroked the dog’s broad head. Bruno let out a long, contented sigh, his tail giving two gentle thumps against the floor before closing his eyes.
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