Chapter 14 - The Harbor at Sunset
The summer evening breeze blew gently across the wooden dock of my private coastal home in Kennebunkport, Maine.
The property was everything the Vance estate never was: bright, open, filled with natural light, surrounded by wild roses and the endless, soothing roar of the Atlantic Ocean.
I walked down the stone pathway toward the water without a cane. My leg had healed completely, carrying me with effortless strength and grace.
Phoebe walked beside me, holding two glasses of chilled Sauvignon Blanc, laughing as her golden retriever chased seafoam along the sandy shore.
"Did you see the European quarterly report?" Phoebe asked, handing me a glass. "Aura Logistics just closed the Rotterdam port expansion. We beat out Maersk for the automated green-terminal contract."
"I saw," I smiled, clinking my glass against hers. "Arthur sent me the signed contract an hour ago."
"You built an empire out of the ashes, Mabel," Phoebe said softly, looking out at the horizon where the sun was dipping beneath the water in a blaze of gold and violet. "Most people would have broken. Most people would have signed those papers in that hospital bed."
"They thought my strength came from their name," I said, taking a sip of the crisp wine. "They never understood that the engine was always inside me. They were just passengers who tried to hijack the train."
"And now?" Phoebe asked. "What’s next for the great Mabel Sterling?"
May you like
I took a deep breath, filling my lungs with the clean, salty ocean air. There was no fear in my chest. No anxiety. No shadows lurking in the corners of my home.
"Now," I smiled, turning to look at the beautiful house behind us, where friends and colleagues were gathering on the deck for dinner, their laughter drifting across the lawn, "I finally get to live."
