A message came through my phone.

“I’ll testify if needed. He must never hurt anyone again.”

Mrs. Callahan.

I replied:

“You saved us. Thank you.”

Her response came quickly:

“You saved your son. Now save yourself.”

She was right.

Survival wasn’t just about living through it.

It was about refusing to let it define us.

And this time—

we were choosing to live.