Chapter 8 - The Confrontation at the HearthElaine stepped up the wooden stairs, standing beside her husband, her wool shawl wrapped around her shoulders.
When Catherine saw her motherâlooking healthy, beautiful, and peaceful, her brown eyes clear and free of painâshe burst into wild, uncontrollable sobs.
âMom... Mom, Iâm so sorry!â Catherine wept, dropping to her knees in the damp moss. âWe were terrible children! We forgot about you! Please... please forgive us!â
Richard dropped the legal folder onto the ground, falling to his knees beside his sister, followed by Michael, Sarah, and David.
For the first time in twenty years, the five wealthy, arrogant city executives were stripped of their pride, weeping on the forest floor beneath the ancient Douglas fir, begging their abandoned parents for a second chance.
âWe don't care about the four million dollars, Dad,â Richard sobbed, holding Haroldâs worn leather boots. âKeep the land! Reject the contract! Just please... don't lock us out of your life forever.â
Harold and Elaine looked down at their children.
Elaineâs eyes filled with soft, warm tears. She stepped out onto the moss, kneeling down to wrap her arms around Catherine and Sarah, pulling them against her heart.
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âWe never locked you out, my children,â Elaine whispered gently, kissing her daughterâs wet hair. âYou just stopped coming to the door.â
Harold knelt down beside them, wrapping his strong arms around his three sons, pulling them into a tight, loving embrace that healed fifty years of unspoken pain.
