Chapter 157

NOAH I remained seated in one of the pews as Olivia followed the church assistant toward the side office to collect her belongings. The church was quiet. Too quiet. I lifted my gaze to the wooden cross mounted above the altar. The surface was cracked in places, the varnish faded from years of neglect, yet it stood firmly in place. There was something steady about it. Unshaken. My eyes drifted lower and settled on a framed Bible verse mounted near the front wall, just beneath a narrow stained-glass window that filtered the dull daylight into muted colors. Proverbs 3:5–6. I rose slowly and walked closer, reading the words engraved beneath the glass. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths. I read it once. Then again. The words felt simple, almost ordinary. But something about them unsettled me. Lean not on your own understanding. I had always relied on my own judgment. My own decisions.