The Woman by the Sea
Every dawn, Clara Bennett wheeled herself to the beach with her golden retriever, Buddy. The ocean had taken her husband, Daniel, and left her paralyzed after a violent storm eighteen months earlier. His body was never found. Since then, the shore had become her place of mourning and hope. Each morning she whispered to the waves, “Good morning, love. I’m still here.”
That day began like any other — quiet, pink light stretching across the horizon. Buddy rested beside her.
Then suddenly, he stiffened.
His ears twitched, his body tensed, and he began barking urgently at the sea — breaking the silence and changing everything.