Chapter 4: Broken Pride**
Arthur turned slowly. When he saw his daughter running toward him in the freezing downpour, soaked and barefoot, the hardened fatigue on his face shattered into pure fatherly panic.
“Elena! What are you doing? You’ll catch your death!” Arthur wheezed, hobbling back toward her as fast as his injured leg would carry him.
She collided into his chest, burying her face into the damp, coarse wool of his brown cardigan. The familiar smell of his pipe tobacco and engine grease broke every wall of vanity she had built over the last five years.
“I’m sorry... I’m so sorry,” she wept hysterically. “I threw you out. I called you an embarrassment. I believed him, Dad. I was so stupid!”
Arthur’s rough, calloused hands wrapped around her trembling shoulders, pulling her close. He didn't say *I told you so*. He didn't show an ounce of resentment. He simply held her against the storm, just as he had done when she was seven years old and terrified of thunder.
“You’re safe now, Ellie,” Arthur murmured gently, using her childhood nickname. “That’s all that matters. You’re safe.”
May you like
Tires screeched behind them. A black luxury SUV pulled up at the gate, its high beams blinding them in the rain. Julian stepped out under a large black umbrella, accompanied by two hulking private security officers.
---
