By week’s end, Redline Development pulled out completely. The land was designated a protected recovery area and no future construction permitted. The floodlights were dismantled, the noise gone. What remained was silence, wide and familiar.
That evening, Walter fed the koi in the clean pond. The water shimmered gently under the fading sun. The air smelled of wet grass and the faint mineral scent of well water. He sat back on his porch, hands steady for the first time in months, and watched the fish glide in slow, peaceful circles.