Chapter 10 - One Soul, Three Windows
Late that evening, after the last guests had departed and the stars filled the clear autumn sky, the Manor was quiet and peaceful.
A warm fire glowed in the fireplace of the second-floor sitting room.
Arthur sat in a large armchair, reading a book.
The door opened quietly, and Clara, Anne, and Sophie stepped into the room wearing matching pajamas. They walked over to his chair and piled onto the large cushions beside him, just as they did every night.
Major, the golden retriever, curled up on the rug at their feet, his tail thumping softly against the wood floor.
Arthur wrapped his arms around all three of them, pulling them close.
"Dad?" Sophie asked, resting her head against his shoulder.
"Yes, sweetheart?"
"Do you think Mom can see us right now?"
Arthur looked out the tall glass windows at the brilliant stars shining brightly over the rolling hills of the estate.
"I know she can," Arthur said softly. "She's watching us right now."
"Grandma Margaret used to say God gave Mom one soul and divided it into three windows," Anne said, looking at her sisters. "Clara is the strength, I am the heart, and Sophie is the hope."
Clara looked up at Arthur with her bright gray eyes. "And what are you, Dad?"
Arthur smiled, kissing the top of Clara’s head, then Anne’s, then Sophie’s.
"I am the house that keeps the windows safe," Arthur whispered.
The three girls laughed softly, cuddling closer into his arms as the warm firelight danced across the room.
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Outside, the wind blew gently through the dark trees, carrying the quiet, peaceful beauty of the night. The hunger was gone. The cold was gone. The fear was gone forever.
Standing together in the light of their home, the broken stems of the past had finally bloomed into a bright, beautiful future.
