The following morning was cloudy and grey, just like the weight that had descended on my chest following Leah's visit. All night, I had been up and down, repeating what she had said until it was just a hum of static in my head. I knew she had good intentions, but her presence exposed the wounds I had worked so hard to hide. I had spent months concentrating on moving forward, starting a new life, and putting my past behind me. Now, though, it seemed like every step echoed back to the location I had made such a concerted effort to forget.
There was the usual morning chatter in the diner at work. Amelia entered with a worried expression in place of her trademark contagious smile.
As I wiped down the counter for the third time, absorbed in my thoughts, she eyed me and remarked, "You look like you had a rough night."
I forced a tiny smile. "I suppose it was just one of those evenings."
Pulling a small, colourful envelope out of her bag, she said, "Well, I have something that might cheer you up." "I thought it might be enjoyable, but it's nothing major. I wanted you to accompany me to the park tomorrow for a little celebration.
I felt a wave of warmth wash over me. Unknowingly, she had provided me with the ideal justification to escape my thoughts. I needed something to divert my attention from the jumbled thoughts that Leah had left behind.
Her face brightened when I said, "I'd love that."
Fantastic! I'll come get you at eleven o'clock. Wear something comfortable because it should be warm.
---
As I was getting ready for bed that night, I couldn't help but look down at the framed picture on my bedside table. A candid photo of Leah and I laughing, taken long before Logan entered my life, was the only photo I had left of my former existence. The simplicity of a world devoid of packs, Alpha titles, and other later complications glistened in our eyes.
A twinge of desire flared in my chest as I ran my finger along the frame. For Leah. for the group. For life, I would never really go back to it.
But I pushed those ideas out of my mind. I would concentrate on Amelia, the small moments that now occupy my days and the present tomorrow. Only for a few hours, tomorrow would be my opportunity to overcome my past.
---
The air was alive with the festival's excitement as the following day broke bright and sunny. Amelia was on time and full of her typical enthusiasm. I felt the burden of yesterday's conversation slightly lessen as we drove to the park.
By the time we got there, the festival was well underway. The air was filled with the aroma of grilled corn, cotton candy, and funnel cakes. Children with balloons ran by, their laughter bursting into the air. It was a sensory overload that somehow calmed my mind, leaving no space for suppressed feelings or regrets.
As we moved from booth to booth, Amelia and I tried some of the food, looked at the handcrafted items, and even played a few games. I allowed myself to forget everything for a moment. Before Logan, before rejection, before everything had changed, I was the same person I was before Logan, and I joked and laughed.
My daughter then died in my throat as a daughter of a group of performers. A subtle, well-known smell permeated the crowd: wolf. As I looked around me, my senses pricked and my heart lurched. Since leaving the pack, I hadn't smelt another wolf, and for a brief instant, I wanted to flee and hide.
Amelia's brows furrowed as she saw my shift in attitude. "Ariana, are you okay?"
"Yes," I said, trying to smile. "I just thought I recognised someone."
She looked around and shrugged, saying, "Oh, no worries." Most likely merely a doppelgänger. There are a lot of people in this city who appear to be familiar, right?
In the hopes that she wouldn't notice the tightness in my voice, I nodded. However, I couldn't get rid of the sensation that I was being watched as if someone from my past had somehow discovered me here and dragged me out of the shadows I had so diligently tried to hide in.
I tried to ignore the thoughts and returned my focus to Amelia. We kept walking, but the tension that had gripped me like a second skin had replaced the earlier lightness.
Amelia's eyes brightened with a sudden smile as we arrived at the festival's edge. "Look!" She indicated a tiny booth offering delicate carvings made of wood. "My sister adores this type of content! Would you mind if I stopped by for a moment?
I nodded and said, "Of course."
Amelia vanished into the crowd, leaving me to think alone and to smell the odd wolf odour that permeated the air. I tried to convince myself it was nothing more than my paranoia as my eyes darted around the festival, looking at faces.
Then I caught sight of him.
A familiar figure stood on the far side of the park, half hidden by the crowd. He had his intense, dark eyes fixed on me, and his expression made me shudder. A thousand recollections rushed forward—of the pack house, of glances exchanged, of times when it seemed like someone else was in charge.
Logan Alpha.
Panic flooded my senses as my heart slammed against my rib cage, the distance between us suddenly feeling unfathomably close. He appeared worn out and exhausted, his once-sharp features softer but more eerie. However, his intense stare, which burned into me from the other side of the room, was unmistakable.
My mind screamed, running. Get out now, before he approaches. However, the weight of his presence held me firmly in place, entangling my legs in a maelstrom of deeply buried memories and emotions.
I instinctively retreated as he took a step forward, my hand flying to my stomach as a protective gesture. His gaze dropped when he noticed the movement and his expression wavered with something I couldn't quite make out.
Amelia reappeared at that moment, unaware of the tension. She held up a tiny, finely carved wolf and smiled. "Observe! Isn't this ideal?
I was startled out of my reverie by her voice, and I forced myself to look away from Logan while numbly nodding. "It's stunning."
But my pulse was pounding loudly in my ears, and the world around me felt fuzzy. His stare was like a tether drawing me back to the life I had left behind, to the man who had let me down, and to the fact that I would never be able to fully escape my past.
"Hey, are you certain you're alright?" Amelia followed my eyes across the park and asked, her voice tinged with worry. However, Logan had disappeared when she looked, fading into the crowd like a ghost and leaving only a faint hint of his existence.
With my knees suddenly going weak, I muttered, "I... I just need to sit down for a moment."
Amelia's hands tightened around my arm as she worriedly looked into my eyes. "Let's locate a bench. You appear pale.
I nodded, letting her lead me through the throng while my thoughts continued to focus on Logan's face and the knowledge that he was in this city and that our paths had somehow crossed once more. The weight of his stare remained as we sat down, a silent reminder that no matter how far I ran, I would never be able to shake the past or the hold he still had over me.