Chapter 59 - CH 58 - The Weight of the Weld

The echo of Paulie Garrity's anger did not simply fade; it seeped into the very concrete of the shop, a permanent stain on their collective consciousness. In the days that followed, a new, more somber rhythm took hold. The work on the Chimera's frame continued, but the joyful anticipation was now tempered with a grim determination. Each tube Adrian notched, each weld he laid, felt like an act of defiance against the legacy of ruin his father had left behind. He worked with a quiet intensity, his focus so absolute it was almost frightening. It was as if he were trying to physically weld his atonement into the very skeleton of the car.