He Signed My Freedom Now He Wants Me Back Chapter 42
Chloe rested her chin in her hands and watched us, then suddenly said, “I wish we could stay with Evelyn forever.”
Something in my chest stirred—and in the same moment, I thought of Noah and Iris.
Not their faces when they pushed me down the stairs.
But the way they had once wrapped tiny fingers around mine just after they were born.
I lowered my eyes and said nothing.
Elias immediately pushed the ceramic bowl he had made toward Chloe.
“Look at this one.”
He didn’t use a child’s words to force a promise from me, and he didn’t ask what I was afraid of.
After pottery class, he didn’t take me straight back to the bookstore. Instead, he asked if I wanted to walk along the seawall for a bit. I nodded, and he had Chloe walk between us, deliberately slowing his pace to match my leg.
The sea wind was cold, and the old injury began to ache. For the first time, I didn’t say I was fine. I just stopped to rest.
Elias stopped, too. He didn’t urge me on, and he didn’t reach out as though he could decide for me whether I needed support.
“People from Highridge will be here soon,” I said, looking out at the gray water. “They may say a lot of ugly things.”
“What do you want me to do?”
Not “I’ll protect you.” Not “Leave it to me.”
He asked what I wanted.
“Stay with Chloe. Don’t let Lucian’s Alpha pressure scare her,” I said. “As for the rest, I’ll answer for myself.”
“Okay.”
Only then did I realize that real support didn’t always have to stand in front of me. It could also stand exactly where I asked it to, and let me defend my own boundaries with my own hands.
Later, I went to change the water and caught sight of myself in a mirror. I looked far healthier than I had when I left Highridge. The shadows under my eyes had faded, and the injury in my leg now allowed me to walk without a limp.
Ember’s senses were whole again.
The rain in Tidewatch, the sea wind, and a companionship free of coercion were mending me, little by little.
When I returned to the worktable, I sat down beside Elias of my own accord.
“Give me some time,” I said softly.
He didn’t pretend not to understand.
“You have all the time in the world.”
Outside, a car from Highridge rolled to a stop.