Chapter 38: The Quiet Before the Next Step
The Petersons’ barn was still glowing with the last strands of Christmas lights when Emery and Brent stepped out into the cold night air. Their breath puffed in front of them, mingling in the space between them as the door swung shut behind them.
Voices still murmured inside — neighbors lingering, planning, reassuring one another. The sound felt like a heartbeat. A steady one.
Brent stood still for a moment, hands in his pockets, staring out at the dark stretch of road.
“You okay?” Emery asked softly.
He didn’t answer right away. He just looked up at the sky — a wide, star‑scattered expanse — and exhaled.
“I didn’t expect this,” he said. “All these people… standing with us.”
“With you,” Emery corrected gently. “And with each other.”
Brent
