The Reluctant Vow

holding her body together could somehow stave off the emptiness that threatened to swallow her whole. Above her, the sky was a dull gray, thick cloud threatenin

known. He wasn't just her father. He had been everything to her-her rock, her guiding hand, and her best friend. He had always been the one who believed in her dreams, the o

back finally broke free, streaming down her face. She couldn't hold it together anymore. There was no hiding the pain. The

him talk about the future he dreamed for her, a future full of promise and hope. He had always told her to aim high, to never settle for l

hen his body was ready to let go. It had been a battle-a battle neither of them had won. And now, Clara found herself standing here, alone. The storm

her voice cracking. Her father's last words rang in her

w, they felt like an impossible task. How could she be strong when everything was falling a

gazed at the headstone. Her father had left her with so much-a home filled with memories, a love that had never wavered, and drea

d grown up in, the place that held all of her memories of her father, was at risk. She could lose it all-everything he had worked for, everything he had given her. The idea of walking away from th

hat she couldn't dig her way out of on her own. She had tried everything. She had sold whatever small valuables she had left, taken on odd

ther creditor calling. But when she looked at the screen, it was a number she didn't recognize. A strange

nswered, her v

you. It's regarding a matter that could help you with your c

a Blackwood was a name she had heard before, one associated with wealth and power in the city. Clara had no idea what the

empty promise? She didn't know what to make of it, but part of her-a small part-wondered if this c

ituation. The small apartment she had returned to felt even more stifling now, its walls closing in on her. She barely noticed th

ver felt m

rived that morning-a reminder that she was on the verge of losing everythi

the room envelop her. She needed to find a way forward, a way to move past t

ght, she allowed herself the briefest of reprieve

this world

t, she promised herself she would try. Tomorrow, she will figure out what to do. But tonight, Clara let