He leaned forward, eyes steady on Elise.
“So believe me when I tell you this—if you’re brave enough to speak… I’m not going to let you stand there alone.”
Elise’s crying eased into something quieter. She wiped her face with the blanket, embarrassed like she still thought she owed the world composure.
Jake stood and went to the window, looking out at his land.
Quiet prairie. Big sky.
He had spent years minding his own business. Years choosing peace because peace was easier than fighting old ghosts.
But hearing what Elise had gone through dragged something up from inside him—something he thought he’d buried with his wife.
A need to protect.
A need to make something right, even if it cost him.
He turned back to her.
“Elise,” he said, “if what you’re saying is true… then this is bigger than both of us.”
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