Chapter66: Chapter 66

Chapter 66 The evening had unfolded with a domestic rhythm that felt both foreign and completely natural to me. After the intensity of our warehouse encounter with Ramon, coming home to help the boys with homework felt like stepping into a different universe entirely—one where the biggest crisis was Troy struggling with long division and Lake needing help with his science project on the solar system. Celeste and I had worked together with an ease I couldn't remember experiencing before. When she helped Soren sound out difficult words in his reading assignment, I fetched his favorite pencil and adjusted his desk lamp without being asked. When I explained mathematical concepts to Troy, she appeared with his favorite snack and a glass of milk, timing it perfectly for when his concentration started to waver. We moved around each other in the kitchen and living room like dance partners who had been rehearsing for years. "Dad, can you check my math problems?" Lake asked, bringing his workshe