She was standing beside the table, sorting dried beans into jars.
The late-afternoon light touched her hair.
A small lock had fallen loose beside her cheek.
She looked up as he entered.
For a moment, relief crossed her face.
"You're home."
Gabriel nodded.
"Yes."
She wiped her hands on her apron.
"Did you speak with the lawyer?"
He placed the satchel on the table.
"Yes."
Clara approached cautiously.
Gabriel took out the documents.
Set them in front of her.
Then explained what Finch had said.
He didn't exaggerate.
Didn't promise that Edmund couldn't bring a claim.
Didn't pretend the matter was settled.
He simply told her the lawyer believed she should preserve her letters, avoid signing any proposed agreement without advice, and require anyone asserting legal authority to provide proper documentation.
Clara listened.
For a moment, she seemed unable to breathe.
Then she whispered, "So he can't just come here and take the baby?"
Gabriel took a slow breath.
"Not simply because he says he can."
Her eyes filled.
She looked down.
For several seconds, she said nothing.
Then she sat.
Gabriel watched her.
"Clara?"
She covered her mouth.
Tears slipped between her fingers.
He felt his chest tighten.
He pulled out a chair.
Sat beside her.
Then waited.
When she finally looked up, her face was wet.
"I've been so frightened."
Gabriel nodded.
"I know."
She shook her head.
"No. I don't think you do."
He said nothing.
She continued.
"Every day in Missouri, I expected a letter. A man at the door. Somebody telling me I'd run out of choices."
Her voice trembled.
"I kept thinking that once the baby was born, they'd come and take it."
Gabriel looked toward her stomach.
For a moment, something inside him shifted.
He had imagined the child as evidence of Clara's deception.
A living reminder that another man had been part of her life before him.
But Clara wasn't looking at her pregnancy that way.
She was looking at it as the one thing she still had the power to protect.
Gabriel took a breath.
"Clara."
She looked up.
"I can't promise Edmund will never cause trouble."
She nodded.
"I know."
"But we'll find out what he can actually do before we let him frighten you again."
Her lips trembled.
She stared at him.
Then whispered, "We?"
Gabriel hesitated.
For a moment, he seemed to realize what he'd said.
He looked toward the table.
Then back at her.
"You're living under my roof."
Clara's expression changed.
He continued.
"And we're married."
Her eyes filled again.
Gabriel swallowed.
"That means I have responsibilities too."
She pressed a hand against her mouth.
For a moment, she couldn't speak.