The Little Protector

"Don't worry about me, sweetheart. I am fine." Valerie forced a bright, reassuring smile onto her pale lips. She looked down at the anxious boy standing by her bedside. The agonizing pain radiating from her fresh stitches made every breath a grueling battle, but she refused to let Rowan see the true extent of her suffering. Her main goal was to calm his frayed nerves after the terrifying ordeal at