Chapter 13 - Unspoken Forgiveness
One evening, as rain tapped against the cabin roof, Sophie sat at the dining table working on a scrapbook. She had glued photographs of her father, Elena, Hope, and Maria onto colored construction paper. Near the back of the album, there was an empty white page.
Daniel sat down beside her, dipping an apple slice into peanut butter and offering it to her. She accepted it happily.
"Daddy?" she asked, pointing her pencil at the empty page. "Is Evelyn still in time-out?"
Daniel paused, choosing his words with care. "Yes, Sophie. She is in a place where people must think about the wrong choices they made, and where she cannot hurt anyone ever again."
Sophie stared at the empty page for a long moment. She didn't draw a monster, nor did she scribble over it with black ink. Instead, she drew a single small window with sunlight streaming through it.
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"I hope she learns to be nice," Sophie said quietly, turning the page to resume coloring pictures of her puppy. "Because being hungry hurts too much."
Daniel looked at his daughter, humbled by the boundless grace of a child's heart. Sophie was not carrying the hatred that Evelyn had tried to plant in her. She had chosen life, love, and light.
