Matthew stood, his hands trembling. “Then she stays.”
When Denise objected, accusing and cold, Matthew ended the conversation with finality.
“You are dismissed,” he said.
The house changed after that. Talia and Ava were given a sunlit room. Matthew kept his distance but never his presence. Ava laughed when she saw him. She reached for him without fear.
One afternoon, under the open sky, Ava took her first steps toward him, the silver medal swinging gently against her chest. Matthew caught her, laughing through tears he no longer hid. They stood together, bound not by blood alone, but by memory, loyalty, and a love that refused to be buried.
And in that quiet moment, something broken finally began to heal.
