Chapter 10 - The New Foundation
One Year Later.
The autumn leaves were turning brilliant shades of orange and gold outside the window.
I wasn't in Elmwood, Pennsylvania anymore. I was sitting on the back deck of a beautiful, single-story ranch home in Virginia.
After the trial, I finally sold the old house. It was hard to leave the memories of Eleanor behind, but I realized that my wife's spirit wasn't in the drywall or the floorboards. Her spirit was in the family we had created together.
I used the equity to buy this smaller, perfect house, exactly five minutes down the road from Sarah and her husband.
The back door slid open, and Sarah walked out onto the deck carrying a tray with two mugs of hot apple cider.
"It's getting chilly out here, Dad," she smiled, handing me a mug.
"It's perfect," I said, taking a sip and looking out at the tree line.
I had a new, state-of-the-art security system installed, but I rarely worried about it. I was surrounded by a community that looked out for each other, and my daughter was just a mile away.
Sarah sat down in the deck chair next to me.
"You know what today is?" she asked, a playful glint in her eye.
"It's Friday," I replied.
"Yep." She pulled her cell phone out of her pocket and set it on the patio table between us. "But I don't have to call you at eight o'clock anymore to ask if you're alone."
I chuckled, wrapping both hands around the warm mug.
May you like
"No, you don't," I smiled, looking at her with absolute contentment. "Because I never will be again."
We sat together on the deck as the sun dipped below the horizon, the fear of the past completely gone, replaced by the quiet, unbreakable warmth of family.
