For some reason, she expected it to look different—more inviting, maybe. Instead, it felt oddly cold. I’ve just been away too long. Ten days, to be exact. Ten long, exhausting days - days filled with prayers and fear, conversation and hope. Days filled with more time to think clearly than she could remember in a long time. She dropped the stack of mail on the kitchen countertop and stepped back to look over her home. Sooner or later she would feel right about being here again. In the meantime, something felt off, odd. “What’s that smell?” She looked around, nose wrinkled. Ah. They must have exterminated while she’d been away. No doubt, many things had happened while she was in Greenvine. The first thing to tackle would be the monstrous stack of mail on the kitchen counter. She gave it a quick glance-over. Bills. Ads. Junk, mostly. One caught her eye, however. She ripped open an envelope and glanced at her bank statement inside. Her heart lifted as she took in the total.
