The homestead is eerily silent since we returned. There’s been a strange atmosphere in the whole place and even the village out back seems still and devoid of noise. Everyone is home licking their wounds, absorbing the reality of what we did and went through, and homes are filled with warm reunions and an aura of hope. The air is lighter, brighter, and the fog is completely gone. It feels like something huge is now settling to dust yet spirits are high despite the need for peace.

Colton is sat on the bed drying his hair after the third shower he took to rid himself of a weeklong buildup of...