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James had said. "He s a good man. He s going to do great things." Ruth had felt a surge of love and pride and grief. "He s our son," she had said. "He s our son, and we couldn t protect him. We had to let him go." James had nodded, his eyes filled with tears. "I know," he had said. "I know. But he s going to be okay. He s going to be more than okay. He s going to be a hero." CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE: THE FORGIVENESS The forgiveness had come slowly, like the first light of dawn after a long night. Ruth had spent years blaming herself, hating herself, punishing herself for the choice she had made. She had believed that she was a failure, a monster, a mother who had abandoned her child. She had believed that she was unworthy of love, unworthy of forgiveness, unworthy of happiness. But James had helped her see the truth. He had helped her understand that she had done the only thing she could do, that she had made the only choice she could make, that she had given her son a chance. "You saved him, Ruth," James had said. "You saved his life. You gave him a future. That s not something to be ashamed of. That s something to be proud of." Ruth had wept, her body shaking with the force of her grief and relief. She had held James, clung to him, refused to let go. "I don t know if I can ever forgive myself," she had said. "I don t know if I can ever forgive myself for leaving him." James had held her, his arms wrapped around her, his voice soft and comforting. "You don t have to forgive yourself right away," he had said. "But you have to start trying. You have to start believing that you deserve forgiveness. Because you do, Ruth. You deserve it more than anyone I know." Ruth had looked up at him, her eyes filled with tears. "James, I m so sorry," she had said. "I m sorry for everything. I m sorry for the years we lost. I m sorry for the pain I caused. I m sorry for the life we could have had." James had shaken his head, his eyes filled with love. "You don t have to be sorry," he had said. "None of this was your fault. We were both victims of circumstances beyond our control. But we re together now. And that s all that matters." She had looked at him, at the man she had loved, the man she had lost, the man she had found again. And she had known that she still loved him, that she had never stopped loving him, that she would always love him. "James," she had said. "I love you. I never stopped loving you. I will always love you." He had pulled her into his arms, his voice soft and trembling. "I love you too, Ruth. I never stopped loving you. I will always love you." They had held each other, two broken people who had finally found their way back to each other. They had talked for hours, sharing their stories, their pain, their hopes. They had made plans for the future, plans to find the evidence, plans to stop the men, plans to finally be free. And Ruth had felt, for the first time in years, a glimmer of hope. The days that followed had been a whirlwind of activity. James had shown her the evidence, the proof that could