Chapter 14 - Twenty-Five Years The court sentenced his mother to twenty-five years in a secure psychiatric facility.
David didn't attend.
He didn't need to.
There were no more calls.
No packages.
No footsteps outside.
No mysterious figures across the street.
No fear of someone entering the nursery.
He deleted her number.
His finger hovered over the screen for several seconds.
Then he pressed delete.
He expected to feel sadness.
Instead, he felt something he hadn't felt since childhood.
Peace.
Leah found him sitting alone that evening.
"Are you okay?"
David nodded.
"I think so."
She sat beside him.
"Do you hate her?"
David looked out the window.
"No."
Leah waited.
"I just don't want her in my life."
Leah took his hand.
"That's enough."
And David finally understood something important.
Forgiveness didn't require access.
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Compassion didn't require surrender.
Sometimes the healthiest ending was simply a locked door and the courage not to open it again.
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