Mira's hands trembled as she drove.
Her wolf had retreated completely, a hollow silence in the back of her mind. The rejection had carved something out of her—a wound that would take time to heal. Yet beneath the ache, she felt it: a lightness she hadn't known in three years. The weight was finally lifting.
She felt free.
Her phone rang as she pulled into a rest stop, breaking through her thoughts of escape and new beginnings. The screen flashed a name that made her stomach drop.
Karen.
Interesting timing.
She answered without preamble. "Yes?"
"Mira." The older woman's voice was ice-cold, precisely clipped. "I trust you've had an eventful afternoon."
"I have," Mira replied carefully. There was no point in pretending. Adrian would have told her by now.
A pause s
