Chapter 42 Whispers In The Garden

The garden behind the Hollow Ridge Community Center had become a sanctuary. It was quiet, walled by climbing roses and framed by neat hedges. The air was scented with lavender and wet earth from the storm the night before. Isabella had come out alone, needing space from the congratulations, the smiles, the polite questions about funding and expansion. She loved what they were building—but sometimes she still needed the hush, the silence that had once been her only company.