Chapter 18 - Rebuilding
Over the next six months, peace returned to our lives.
Without the constant drain of Ben’s financial sabotage, my consulting business flourished. I took on three major national clients, working from the sunlit home office of the house that now belonged entirely to me and Lily.
Lily began attending weekly sessions with a wonderful child therapist named Dr. Aris. Week by week, the shadow of that awful birthday faded. Lily learned that love wasn't something you had to earn by being quiet, hungry, or obedient. She learned that she was worthy of space, celebration, and joy.
Ben took a job working night shifts at a freight distribution warehouse fifty miles outside the city, earning an hourly wage that was automatically garnished to rebuild Lily’s college fund. His monthly supervised visits were awkward and brief; Lily was polite, but she no longer looked at him as her protector.
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She knew who held the shield in her life.
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