Leaving Midnight

At exactly midnight, sixteen-year-old Kade Erikson makes the hardest decision of his life-one that could save his family, or shatter it forever. After years of enduring the volatile wrath of his father, Kade can no longer stand to see the bruises on his mother's face or hear the muffled sobs of his seven-year-old sister, Jazmine, echo through the house they used to call home.

With his father passed out drunk on the kitchen floor, Kade seizes the moment. He gathers what little they can carry-Jazmine's sparkly pink duffel stuffed with her favorite toys, his own weathered high school gym bag, and a bag his mother hesitates to pack, her fear etched in every glance. But Kade is done waiting for things to get worse. He's driving them away from the life they've been forced to endure, into the unknown, into freedom.

"Leaving Midnight" is a powerful, emotionally charged story about survival, the unbreakable bond of family, and the strength it takes to leave behind the darkness you know in search of the light you dream of. Told with raw honesty and quiet hope, this is the journey of three hearts learning how to heal-one mile at a time.