Chapter TWENTY-TWO-AVERY

I didn’t know how much time had passed since I had Rosie back in my arms.

Minutes?

Hours?

It felt like a blur, the kind of haze that comes after the adrenaline fades and reality starts to sink in.

The sky outside the big picture window in her bedroom was a moody dark gray, heavy with clouds that seemed ready to burst at any moment.

I stared at them, absently wondering if snow would fall again tonight. Winter had a way of sneaking up on you out here, blanketing the world in quiet and cold.

Rosie shifted slightly in her bed, her tiny body curled against my side like she used to do when she was a toddler.

My sweet baby girl.

She was so worn out, her breaths soft and even, her lashes fluttering against her flushed cheeks as she dreamed.

I couldn’t blame her. She’d been through so much today.

My fingers moved gently through her soft hair, untangling the little knots she always seemed to collect during her wild adventures.