CHAPTER 15: THE FUTURE
CHAPTER 15: THE FUTURE
It's been three years since that day.
Carter's Table is still open, but I'm not running it anymore. Hannah took over, and she's doing a better job than I ever did.
The Carter's Table Foundation has helped hundreds of women escape abuse and start new lives. It's become a haven for women who had nowhere else to go.
And Madeline is growing up. She's smart, kind, and independent. She reminds me of Hannah at her age.
My brother Robert was arrested last year. He's serving life in prison for the murder of my husband. The Holloways are gone. Grant is in federal prison, and Margaret is living in a homeless shelter.
And I've found peace.
I sit on the porch of my house, watching my daughter and granddaughter play in the yard, and I feel something I haven't felt in a long time.
Hope.
"Mom," Hannah calls out. "Come join us."
"Coming."
I stand up and walk toward them.
And I think to myself: All those years of fear, all those years of hiding, all those years of watching and waiting—they were worth it.
Because my daughter is free.
My granddaughter is safe.
And I am finally, unapologetically, myself.
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THE END
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