I stand on the deck, watching the storm that awaits us. Hoping for a break that doesn’t come.

I don’t hear Daphne approach. I don’t know she’s there until she slips her hand into mine. I wrap my fingers around hers.

I don’t know what the future holds. I don’t know how or if we’ll get through this. But for the first time in my life, my destiny is in my own hands.