The sun had just begun to set beyond the edge of the city skyline, streaking the sky in hues of orange and lavender. From the window of her hotel room, Amara sat watching it quietly, her knees pulled to her chest on the couch. It had been a few days since her release from the hospital, and the world around her moved on. But her heart hadn’t.
She thought the quiet would bring her peace.
She was wrong.
The moment she left the hospital and stepped into the hotel room, a heavy stillness followed her inside. Not the comforting kind—but the kind that reminded her that Sera wasn’t with her. That the girl’s laughter hadn’t echoed in days. That even if she was safe, no one knew where she was. And Amara had made it out alive… alone.
She had tried to convince herself to rest. To plan a life. Mayb
