The air in Aurora Skies is refreshing. It’s cold, of course—near freezing—but the smell of precipitation is preferential to that of pollution and people.
Inside the Bee home, Dominic reclines on their bed, the letter in hand. It’s one of the only items he brought back from Bridgeport. He reads it almost daily, though he has not shared it with Lark. Sometimes she peers over his shoulder in an attempt to catch the words. He doesn’t stop her. But he doesn’t share.
“Everyone should be here soon,” she says.
Dominic nods. The doorbell rings. Carefully, he folds the paper. His exactness allows Lark a glimpse of the final lines, the only lines she’s ever managed to read from the letter:
Despite my many failures as a father, you’ve grown into a man of unparalleled courage and conviction. My deepest apologies, and my unending love.
It ends with a scribble, which she can only assume is Bastian’s signature. She can guess how he failed Dominic, but the litany detailed in the letter will forever remain a mystery.
Dominic rises from the bed, and she follows him. They invite their guests inside, and the night goes on without incident.
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