“Thank you,” Serena whispered into her hair. “Thank you for seeing me.”

Addie blinked fast, pretending she wasn’t crying.

“I just… knew,” she mumbled.

A Family Built From A Moment Of Truth

Tessa was sentenced and placed where she couldn’t reach anyone again. Miles cooperated and faced consequences that followed him like a shadow.

But the real story wasn’t the courtrooms.

It was what came after.

Grant and Serena didn’t “save” Addie like a headline.

They kept her.

They made her family.

Addie went from selling gum on corners to sitting in a real classroom, wearing clean clothes, learning to breathe without waiting for danger.

But she didn’t lose her edge—she kept the sharp instinct that had made her speak when adults stayed silent.

Serena started a foundation to help locate missing people and support families stuck in paperwork and waiting rooms. She named it after Addie, because she said courage deserves its name spoken out loud.