Chapter 15 - The Sunrise
"Let her go!" a voice boomed from a megaphone. Multiple armored FBI vehicles breached the tree line, their blue and red lights flashing brilliantly against the white snow. The husband's men dropped their weapons instantly, knowing it was over. But the husband held tight, his grip on her hair painful, the cold steel of his gun pressed to her temple. "You ruined everything," he hissed in her ear. She didn't cry. She didn't tremble. She looked him dead in the eye. "You did this to yourself," she whispered. Suddenly, a deafening crack echoed through the clearing. The husband stiffened, his eyes going wide. The gun dropped from his hand as he collapsed into the snow. The mother fell to her knees, looking back at the cabin. The hunter was lowering his smoking rifle. As federal agents swarmed the area, putting her husband in cuffs and calling for medics, she ran back into the cabin. She scooped Lily into her arms, holding her so tightly she never wanted to let go. As they walked out to an ambulance, wrapped in warm blankets, the morning sun finally broke through the clouds, melting the snow, and casting a warm, golden light on their new beginning.
