Chapter 17 - A New Beginning|
Montana was exactly what we needed. The air was crisp, the mountains were vast, and the silence was healing.
For the first six months, I jumped at every shadow. Every time the floorboards creaked in our new cabin, I thought it was Daniel coming to finish the job. But as the seasons changed, so did I.
Lily thrived. She made friends, joined a local soccer team, and stopped crying on Sunday nights. The shadow of her father slowly faded from her young mind.
Carter visited often. He had kept his promise and transferred to a base three hours away. He became a fixture in our lives—helping with homework, chopping firewood, and showing me what it felt like to be respected by a man.
One evening, while Lily was asleep upstairs, Carter and I sat on the porch, nursing mugs of hot cider. The snow was gently falling, blanketing the world in white.
“You look happy, Sarah,” Carter said softly, looking at me over the rim of his mug.
“I am,” I admitted, pulling my blanket tighter. “For the first time in a long time, I feel safe.”
Carter reached out and took my hand. His fingers were warm and calloused. I didn’t pull away.
“The FBI called today,” Carter said, his tone turning serious. “They found a body washed up on a beach in Mexico. The dental records are a match. It’s Daniel.”
I froze, my breath turning to vapor in the cold air. “He’s dead?”
“He’s dead, Sarah. The current must have pulled him under when he tried to swim away from the pier. It’s truly over.”
A single tear slipped down my cheek, but it wasn’t from sadness. It was the final release of a terror that had haunted me for years.
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I leaned my head on Carter’s shoulder, watching the snow fall. The monster was dead. We were finally free.
But a week later, a package arrived in the mail.
