Chapter 14
Embrace of Relief
Sarah pulls Lily into a tight hug, tears of relief streaming down her face. Lily, sensing her mother's strong emotions, hugs her back tightly, the bond between them palpable.
The salty air, usually a balm to Sarah’s soul, felt thick and heavy in her chest. She squeezed Lily tighter, burying her face in the little girl’s sun-warmed hair, a scent of brine and summer blossoming around them. Tears, hot and fast, traced paths through the salt spray on Sarah’s cheeks, each one a silent testament to the terror that had gripped her just moments before. It felt like an eternity since she’d last seen that familiar flash of iridescent mermaid scales, the gleam of heart-shaped sunglasses. The sea, so often a source of joy and wonder for Lily, had shown its teeth, its vastness a gaping maw that had threatened to swallow her precious daughter whole.
Lily, usually a chatterbox, was quiet, her small arms wrapped around her mother’s neck with surprising strength. She felt the tremble in Sarah’s frame, the ragged breaths Sarah took, and she understood, in the way only a child can, that something very, very bad had almost happened. The usual playful squirming was absent; Lily simply clung, a tiny anchor in the sudden stillness that had descended after the storm’s fury had abated. The wind had begun to soften its howl, and the waves, though still formidable, were no longer a raging torrent. They lapped gently at the wet sand, as if apologising for their recent ferocity.
“Mommy?” Lily’s voice was a small, reedy sound against Sarah’s ear.
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