Page 105 of The Summer We Mended
They sat there, the four of them, wrapped together in a ball of love and tears and overwhelming, breathtaking relief.
When the crying softened and Anna could finally breathe again, she looked down at Blaze.
“You were right,” she said, brushing back his curls.“You dreamed true.”
Blaze smiled through his tears.
Anna leaned her forehead against his.“Daddy’s coming home.”
She didn’t know what he’d look like, what state he’d be in, or how bad the injuries really were.But for the first time in months, hope bloomed bright and wild in her chest.
Luke was alive.
And that was enough.
For now, that was everything.
They moved back into the kitchen eventually, and the mundane rhythm of breakfast returned, but everything was different.The air felt lighter.Every sound clearer.
Anna checked her phone constantly, waiting for the call from the doctors.She stared at the screen so long that her eyes burned.
Her mom poured her coffee and held her hand, rubbing small circles against her knuckles.
She didn’t speak much.There weren’t words big enough for this feeling.
Joy.Terror.Gratitude.Fear.
Anna was still shaking.She knew there were hard days ahead.Recovery.Pain.More uncertainty.
But they would face it together.
She looked at the children now sitting at the kitchen island again, eating cereal with trembling smiles.
Together.That was what mattered.
The phone still hadn’t rung by the time the sun climbed high into the sky, but Anna no longer watched it with dread.Now she waited with hope.
He would call.Or someone would.
She sat beside her children, pulled them close, and kissed the tops of their heads.
“Daddy’s coming home,” she whispered.
And in her heart, she said it again and again, a prayer and a promise and a dream come true.
She didn’t know what to expect when the doctors called.She didn’t know what injured really meant, as they could be in for a very long road ahead of them, but he was alive, and they would handle whatever the world threw at them one day at a time.
Luke was coming home, and that was all that mattered.
ChapterForty-One
Lily
“I’ll make the phone calls and let everyone know,” Lily said as she stood up.“You keep your phone open.”
“Thanks, Mom,” Anna said with a wide grin.
“Can we go outside?”Blaze asked.“I want to tell Mr.Tom that our dad’s been found.”
