Owen made room on the couch.

Mason handed me Captain Seal, who had survived hospitals, investigations, and more washing cycles than any stuffed animal deserved.

“Read the ending,” Mason told me.

I looked at the three of them, then at the page.

Outside, the harbor wind moved through the trees.

Inside, the boys leaned close and listened.

There was no humming in the walls, no sweet chemical smell, and no voice telling them their questions were unwelcome.

For the first time, everyone in that room understood what a safe home was supposed to feel like.

And that was the ending we had worked so hard to reach.