Chapter 3
Ethan turned back around. Lauren was still on the floor, the three boys—Leo, Max, and Sam—tangled in her lap, wiping her tears with their tiny thumbs. Ethan slowly sank back down to the floor, completing the circle.
He didn’t care about the dirt on the floor, or the smell of bleach, or the cheap pink uniform. He reached out and pulled Lauren into his chest, burying his face in her hair as he finally, after three years of suffocating grief, allowed himself to break down and cry.
“I’m so sorry,” he wept against her shoulder, his arms wrapped tightly around her and their sons. “I am so, so sorry I didn’t protect you.”
Lauren squeezed him back with all her might, the missing pieces of her soul finally snapping right back into place. “You’re here now,” she whispered into his suit jacket. “We’re all here.”
“Mommy’s staying?” Leo, the brave one in the green sweater, asked, looking up with wide, hopeful eyes.
Ethan pulled back just enough to look at his boys, a true, genuine smile breaking across his face for the first time in years. He looked at Lauren, wiping a stray tear from her cheek.
“Yeah, buddy,” Ethan said, his voice thick with emotion but steady with a promise. “Mommy is never going anywhere ever again.”
Note: This story is a work of fiction inspired by real events. Names, characters, and details have been altered. Any resemblance is coincidental. The author and publisher disclaim accuracy, liability, and responsibility for interpretations or reliance. All images are for illustration purposes only
