Love's Redemption (Chris and Maddie)

"I'm from the Greenland Park Demolition Permits Office. We posted the demolition notice in the community earlier. There are still some procedures that need to be completed. You're the last one we're waiting for, so please come over right away."

This instantly made my already gloomy mood even worse.

I had known about the demolition procedures for a while, but I kept putting them off.

To me, it felt like if I didn't sign the papers, they couldn't demolish the place, and my home would still be there.

But I couldn't delay things any longer. I still had to sign the papers, and the place would be torn down.

I couldn't be the holdout who delayed the entire demolition process. I didn't want to be the one preventing others from moving into their new homes.

After all, the neighborhood was very old. Who wouldn't want to live in a new community with new houses?

"Okay, I'll come over right now," I agreed promptly.

After hanging up, I took a deep breath and drove to the Demolition Permits Office. There, I signed the papers as they had requested.

I needed to provide their death and cremation certificates. Only then

these were normal procedures, but I found

gone for over ten years, but I never canceled their registrations. In my heart, as long as our three names

through the process of closing their records, erasing

cruelty was raw

and sorrow, I had no

The clerk said I needed a death report from the Accident Investigation Center to

to return to the department where I had retrieved the records of my parents' car accident. This time, unlike the last, I didn't encounter any difficulties. But the person still asked me, "It's been so long since the accident. Why are you only doing this now?" My throat tightened. "Because

opened his laptop, checked on the accident from that year, then

"Is there a problem? Or do I

at the screen and starting to type on the

7

sheet of paper emerged, followed by a freshly stamped

a look," he reminded

reading the report confirming death at the scene. My heart