Chapter 9 - The Restoration of Peace
With the legal battles completely finished, Daniel and I made a major decision. I resigned from my out-of-state corporate job, and Daniel requested a transfer to the regional federal headquarters located just a few miles from my mother’s town.
We moved into a beautiful house just down the street from Mom, ensuring that she would never be alone or unprotected ever again.
Daniel’s team at the Inspector General's office was recognized with a national commendation for their work in dismantling elder financial fraud rings, and his reputation as a brilliant, unyielding investigator was solidified across the state. But to my mother, he wasn't a federal investigator—he was just the son who had wrapped his coat around her when she was cold.
One Saturday afternoon, Daniel and I helped Mom replant her garden. The rose bushes that Vanessa had neglected were pruned, fertilized, and blooming with bright red petals once again.
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"You know, Claire," Mom said, wiping her brow as she looked at the beautiful yard. "When I was sitting under that bridge, I thought the world had completely forgotten me. I thought that because I was old and sick, my life didn't matter anymore."
I walked over and knelt beside her in the soil, taking her hands in mine. "Your life is our foundation, Mom. Kyle and Vanessa thought they could erase you because they only value money. But they forgot that justice has a number, and we know exactly how to count it."
