Brandon didn’t sleep.
By dawn, he sat on the edge of the motel bed—head in his hands, elbows pressed to his knees—staring at the floor as if the answer to everything might crack through the tiles. Julia watched from the doorway, her chest tight with a fear she couldn’t name.
He hadn’t looked this defeated since the day he walked away from his family. Except now, he wasn’t walking—he was drowning.
“I ruined your life,” he murmured, voice gravel rough. “You lost your job, your safety… everything because of me.”
“That’s not true,” she whispered.
But he didn’t hear her. Or maybe he didn’t want to.
He stood abruptly, pacing the length of the room. “You should’ve stayed away. You should’ve—”
“Brandon.” She grabbed his arm. “Stop.”
His whole body went still, but the storm didn’t leave his
