Violet
I lay awake in my bed until late at night, twisting and turning every few seconds because my brain refused to stop thinking, to figure out how the hell fate played such a cruel game with me and how Nate showed up in my new life yet again.
And Elijah…those scars, his silence that felt a lot like betrayal…all of the thoughts crowded my mind, wanting attention and breaking my heart over and over again.
The way he called me Vi.
Sleep refused to come.
I lay on my side staring at the unfamiliar ceiling, listening to the manor breathe around me. Ironcrest never truly went quiet. There was always a distant creak, a whisper of air through old stone corridors, the low hum of something ancient settling and resettling beneath the floors.
Every time I closed my eyes, I saw Elijah’s scars
