Page 124 of Before the Night Falls

She threw her hands into the air. “That’s amazing. Why did they change their minds?”

“They decided to invest in efforts that have long-term results instead of a quick fix. Plus, we received some donations that helped us secure all the financing we needed to fully fund this project.”

Olivia reached over and squeezed his hand. “That’s wonderful news. We should celebrate tonight.”

“We should. Maybe by staying in and cooking a nice meal and then taking a walk afterward?”

She smiled again. “That sounds perfect.”

As she sat there with Tyson staring out at the horizon, Olivia realized how much had changed in her life. For starters, the nightlights she once needed were still there, but she found herself relying on them less and less.

“You know,” she said softly, “Lyle told me something once that I didn’t fully understand until now.”

Tyson turned to her, his eyes warm. “What’s that?”

“He said when you know night is falling, you prepare. You turn on lights to see your path. You start a fire to keep warm.” She looked up at Tyson. “I spent so long just being afraid of the darkness. I never thought about how to face it.”

Tyson’s fingers intertwined with hers. “And now?”

“Now I realize that being prepared doesn’t mean the darkness won’t come. It just means you have tools to face it when it does.” She smiled up at him. “You were one of those tools for me, Tyson. You still are.”

He leaned closer. “And you for me.”

As the morning light warmed their faces, Olivia felt the last remnants of her fear dissolving. Perfect love—not just romantic love, but the perfect love of God working through the people He’d placed in her life—had done what seemed impossible.

It had cast out fear.

Not immediately. Not easily. But persistently, day after day, sunrise after sunrise, until finally she could face each morning knowing that whatever darkness came, she wouldn’t face it alone.

And that made all the difference.

~~~