Emily found herself glancing at the clock more often than usual that Friday afternoon. Grace had told her Lucas would be stopping by to check in on some of the new residents, but she hadn't expected the ripple of anticipation that followed.
When the front door finally creaked open and familiar footsteps echoed in the hall, Emily sat up straighter on the sofa, a tattered book forgotten in her lap.
"Emily?" came the familiar voice.
She stood, her lips tugging into a small smile before she could stop them. "Hey, Lucas."
He looked the same—calm, steady, with that quiet warmth that made even the most guarded feel seen. He was carrying a stack of pamphlets and files, but the moment he saw her, he set them down and walked over.
"You look better," he said honestly, taking in the subtle change—less weight on her shoulders, more focus in her eyes.
"I feel… better," she replied, then gestured to the empty armchair across from her. "Do you have time?"
"For you? Always."
They settled in, and for a moment, silence hung between them, not uncomfortable but filled with everything unspoken. Then Emily exhaled and began.
"I've been staying in the safe house," she started. "Clara and the girls—Sade and Zoe—have been kind. Not nosy, not fake. Just… there. Like normal people."
Lucas nodded, listening intently.
"Grace got me into the engineering pathway program. Orientation was this week. It still doesn't feel real. I sit in these classrooms and touch these tools and solve problems, and for a few hours, I forget. I forget what happened."
"That's good," he said. "That forgetting part? That's healing."
She looked down at her hands. "I don't think I'll ever forget completely. But… I'm not sinking anymore. I've even started journaling again."
He raised a brow, impressed. "Look at you, becoming the scholar and the survivor."
A soft laugh escaped her, and it felt good—foreign but good.
"And then," she added, her voice lowering slightly, "I met Margaret Evans."
Lucas's expression shifted. "Margaret? As in—"
"Yes," Emily said, eyes gleaming. "She used to be a victim. Now she owns her own tech company. Grace introduced us. She offered to mentor me."
Lucas leaned forward, visibly impressed. "That's huge, Emily."
"She told me I don't have to forgive to move forward. That I could fight, smart and steady. That revenge doesn't have to be about rage—it can be about rising so high they can't reach me anymore."
Lucas smiled, pride shining through. "That sounds like her."
"I'm scared," Emily admitted. "But I'm not empty anymore."
Lucas nodded. "Good. Because you were never meant to stay in that darkness."
They sat in silence again, but this time, it was a silence filled with mutual understanding.
"You're becoming someone powerful, Emily," Lucas said quietly. "Not just because of what happened to you, but because of what you're choosing to do next."
She looked at him, eyes soft but fierce. "I don't want to just move on. I want to walk back into that town and make them feel everything they tried to erase."
He didn't flinch. "Then I'll be right here. When you're ready."
Emily's heart swelled—not with longing, but with something steadier. Belief.
She still had so far to go. But with Grace guiding her, Margaret mentoring her, and Lucas rooting for her, she was no longer walking alone.
This was only the beginning.
And she was ready to write the next chapter—on her terms.