Two weeks later, we walked out together and started over in a quiet town called Cedar Ridge in Colorado.
We built a simple life with basic furniture, steady routines, and a sense of safety we had never known before.
Jenna started sewing again, Mia began to laugh freely, and I learned to channel my intensity into something that protected rather than destroyed.
Sometimes Jenna would wake up at night and ask quietly, “Is it really over now?”
“Yes, it is over,” I would answer, and this time we both believed it.
People once called me dangerous and broken, but I finally understood that feeling deeply was never the problem.
I am Avery Collins, and after ten years of being locked away, I learned that what made me different was also what saved us.
This time, that difference gave us back our future.
