Chapter 7 - SAFE HARBOR
The storm was reaching a crescendo. Julian’s truck skidded to a halt near Centennial Park—the exact place they had first met.
Julian ran through the mud, lightning illuminating the deserted playground. He remembered Maya’s words from that first day: It is a home if you know where to hide.
He sprinted toward the old, abandoned maintenance shed behind the public restrooms. He kicked the rusted door open. There, huddled in the corner, shivering violently in her soaked yellow dress, was Maya.
"Maya!" Julian dropped his flashlight and slid into the mud, pulling her freezing body into his chest.
"Let me go!" she sobbed, hitting his chest weakly. "Marcus will hurt Leo! I have to stay away!"
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"Marcus will never touch you or Leo ever again," Julian fiercely promised, wrapping his heavy coat around her. "I am Julian Vance. I protect what is mine. And you, Maya, are mine. You are my daughter."
Maya finally broke, burying her face in his neck, sobbing not out of fear, but out of the overwhelming realization that she was finally loved.
