LOGINZoe Beatrice's barn was on fire, not literally. But from the way she was shouting, I thought it might be. I ran down the lane, my boots slipping on the wet grass, and found her standing in front of the old red structure, her hands on her hips, her face twisted with frustration. "The roof is collapsing," she said, pointing at the sagging beams. "It has been leaking for years. I can not fix it alone." I looked at the barn. It was large, weathered, its paint peeling, its doors hanging crooked. It had not been repaired in decades. "I can help," I said. She turned to look at me, her flint eyes narrowing. "You know how to fix a roof?" "I can learn." Liam was not happy. "You volunteered to fix a barn?" he asked, his brow furrowed. "We just moved in. We have our own house to repair." "I know." "And you have never fixed a roof in your life." "I know." He stared at me for a long moment. Then he sighed. "I will help." The next morning, we walked to Beatrice's farm. The children cam
Liam The study was a disaster. Boxes everywhere. Papers stacked on the desk, on the floor, on the windowsill. I had been organizing for three hours, sorting through files I had not touched in years, and I was no closer to finished than when I started. Zoe had taken the children to town. The house was quiet. Too quiet. I had forgotten what silence sounded like without the patter of small feet and the endless questions of a four-year-old. I pulled another box toward me, its cardboard soft with age, and opened the flaps. Old notebooks. Photographs. A broken watch. And at the bottom, a stack of envelopes tied with a rubber band that had long since lost its stretch. I lifted the bundle and turned it over. The envelopes were addressed in my own handwriting. The stamps were yellowed with age, and the ink faded. I had never mailed them. I set the bundle on the desk and sat down. The first envelope was addressed to my father. I opened it slowly, my fingers careful, and pulled out the let
Zoe The knock came at seven in the morning, sharp and insistent, the kind of knock that meant business. I was still in my robe, the baby on my hip, the coffee only half made. I opened the door to find a woman standing on the porch, her arms crossed, her grey hair pulled back in a tight bun, her eyes the color of flint. "You are the new owner," she said. It was not a question. "I am." "I am Beatrice. I live at the end of the lane. The farm with the red barn." I nodded, waiting. "Your fence is on my property. Three feet of it. I have the survey to prove it." I did not invite her in. I did not offer her tea. I simply stepped onto the porch, the baby still on my hip, and followed her to the boundary line. She was right. The fence was crooked, leaning into her field, the posts rotted, the wire rusted. It had been there for decades, probably built by the previous owner, probably ignored by everyone since. "I will fix it," I said. She looked at me, her flint eyes narrowing. "When?"
Zoe The moving truck arrived at dawn, its engine rumbling through the quiet street like a distant storm. I stood on the porch, my coffee growing cold in my hands, and I watched the men load the last of our boxes into the back. The house behind me was empty now. Every room stripped bare. Every corner echoing with the memory of what had been. Liam was inside, doing a final walk-through. I could hear his footsteps on the wooden floors, the creak of doors opening and closing, the soft murmur of his voice as he said goodbye to each room in his own way. I did not go with him. This was something he needed to do alone. The morning was gray, the sky heavy with clouds that threatened rain. I pulled my coat tighter around myself and walked to the edge of the property. The garden was still frozen, the soil hard, the tulips sleeping beneath the surface. I knelt and pressed my palm flat against the cold earth. "I will come back," I whispered. "When the flowers bloom. I will come back." The wi
Liam The courtroom was full, every seat was taken. Reporters lined the back wall, and their cameras pointed at the judge's bench. The jury sat in their box, twelve faces I had memorized over the past week, twelve people who held our future in their hands. Zoe was beside me, her grey eyes fixed on the judge. Eleanor sat in the witness box, her hands folded in her lap, her face calm. She had testified for three days. She had answered every question. She had told the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Now we waited. The judge entered. The bailiff called the court to order. The room fell silent. "Has the jury reached a verdict?" The foreman rose. A middle-aged man with grey hair and steady hands. He looked at the judge, then at the paper in his hand. "We have, Your Honour." The silence stretched, thick and heavy. I felt Zoe's hand find mine beneath the bench. Her fingers were cold but steady. "On the charge of first-degree murder," the foreman read. "We find the d
Zoe The garden was dead. I stood at the edge of the property, my breath misting in the cold air, and I looked at the rows of withered stalks, the brown leaves, the frozen soil. The tulips were gone. The lavender was gone. Everything we had planted, everything we had nurtured, everything we had hoped would bloom again, was buried beneath the frost. It was the first time I had been back since the trial began. Liam was behind me, his hands in his pockets, his dark eyes fixed on the same barren ground. He did not speak. He did not need to. "The trial will be over soon," I said. He nodded, a slow, almost imperceptible movement. "Two more days." "Then what?" He was silent for a long moment. Then he spoke. "Then we leave. Like we talked about." I turned to look at him. His face was drawn, the exhaustion of the past weeks etched into every line. He had been strong for so long. He had carried so much. But I saw the cracks now. I saw the weariness beneath the armour. "You are tired," I







