~Nadia
I didn’t sleep when I got to my room.
I lay on my side, staring at the wall, listening to the house breathe around me. The quiet felt heavier than Lucian’s anger ever had. It pressed into my chest, slow and suffocating, until every inhale felt borrowed.
Lucian’s words wouldn’t leave me alone.
She didn’t want you there. She wanted you gone.
I squeezed my eyes shut, shaking my head faintly, as if I could physically dislodge the thought. It didn’t work. The words stayed, sinking deeper, threading themselves into places I didn’t want touched.
Vanessa was my best friend.
She had been there before Lucian ever became… Lucian. Before the pack, before the rules, before the weight of everything I carried now. Vanessa knew my fears. My secrets. She knew how small I felt in this house so
