Chapter 45 - The Cliffs of Newport
The sun was beginning to set over the jagged, ice-rimed cliffs of Newport, Rhode Island, casting long, bruised streaks of purple and gold across the churning Atlantic Ocean.
A sleek black town car rolled slowly up the sweeping, wrought-iron gates of Vance Manor. The massive gothic-revival mansion loomed against the coastal sky, its slate roof dusted with snow, its towering stone chimneys silent for decades. As the car approached the grand circular driveway, the heavy iron gates swung open automatically, creaking slightly in the Atlantic gale.
Claire stepped out of the vehicle, pulling her wool coat tightly around her. The salt air whipped her hair across her face, but she stood tall, gazing up at the magnificent, sprawling estate that was now entirely hers.
Marcus and Julian stepped out behind her, watching with respectful silence.
“It needs work,” Julian remarked, surveying the ivy-covered stone walls. “Thirty-four years of sea salt and silence leave their mark.”
“Not work, Julian,” Claire corrected gently, a brilliant smile illuminating her face. “Restoration. Just like my life.”
She walked up the grand stone steps, her boots crunching against the frozen slush. She pulled the heavy brass key from her pocket, slid it into the ornate iron keyhole of the massive oak double doors, and turned it.
*Click.*
The lock yielded with a deep, resonant sound that echoed across the cliffs. Claire pushed the door open. A wave of cool, cedar-scented air washed over her—a smell of history, legacy, and untamed potential.
She stepped inside into a soaring grand foyer flanked by sweeping dual staircases and a magnificent crystal chandelier overhead that still caught the dying rays of the sunset through the high stained-glass windows.
May you like
She was home.
***
