Chapter 34 - A Knock in the Rain
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Autumn returned to our town, painting the trees in brilliant shades of amber, deep crimson, and dark gold.
It was a cold, rainy October night. The wind was howling through the gutters, driving heavy sheets of rain against our living room windows. Emma was fast asleep upstairs in her room, wrapped safely in her warm blankets.
James and I were sitting on the couch, watching a movie with a soft fire crackling in the hearth.
Suddenly, above the sound of the rain and the roaring fireplace, a sharp, metallic sound echoed from the front porch.
Thump.
James immediately sat up straight, his eyes darting toward the front door. He muted the TV with the remote, his body instantly tensing into that familiar, protective stance.
"Stay here," he murmured, standing up from the couch.
"James, check the security cameras on your phone first," I whispered, my heart beginning to race.
He pulled out his tablet and checked the live feed of the front porch. The infrared camera showed the empty porch steps slick with rain. No one was standing there.
Caution guiding every step, James walked to the front door, unlocked the heavy deadbolt, and pulled it open two inches, keeping the safety chain engaged.
He looked down at the welcome mat.
Sitting in the middle of the wet mat was an unmarked white envelope, soaked through by the driving rain.
James reached out, grabbed the envelope, locked the door, and walked back to the fireplace. He tore open the damp paper.
Inside was a single, dried pressed flower—a yellow marigold—and a tiny, torn piece of a photograph showing a toddler's hand holding a wooden spoon.
Underneath the photo fragment was a single line written in pencil:
May you like
Some bonds can never be broken.
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