Chapter 4
The Pacific coastline of Oregon rose like a jagged, emerald-green fortress against the relentless pounding of the slate-gray Pacific Ocean. Amy pulled her gray sedan off Highway 101 and parked directly in front of a weathered wooden building bearing a hand-painted sign: Harbor Books & Coffee. The bell above the door chimed a cheerful, nostalgic tune as she stepped inside out of the brisk ocean breeze, inhaling the comforting scent of old paper and roasted espresso beans.
A woman with warm hazel eyes and a flour-dusted apron emerged from the back room, freezing instantly when she recognized the travel-worn visitor standing before her. "Amy? Oh my god, Amy Vance... is that really you after all these years?" Sarah cried out, dropping her cleaning rag and rushing around the counter. Sarah had been Amy’s college roommate at NYU before life, corporate marriages, and cross-country moves severed their daily contact.
May you like
The two women embraced tightly, tears instantly spilling over Amy’s eyelashes as the overwhelming weight of the past forty-ếp hours finally broke her composure. "I need a safe place to hide, Sarah, just for a few months, away from New York and away from Daniel," Amy whispered into her friend's shoulder. Sarah didn't ask questions, pulling back to look into Amy’s red-rimmed eyes with fierce, unwavering loyalty.
"You can stay in the loft apartment upstairs above the bookstore; the lease includes total privacy and a private back staircase facing the harbor," Sarah promised immediately. As they climbed the creaking wooden stairs to the cozy second-floor retreat, Amy looked out the circular bay window at the fishing boats bobbing on the tide. For the first time in years, the suffocating pressure in her chest began to ease, replaced by the quiet, resilient strength of a mother protecting her child.
