Liam POV
I walked until my legs gave out beneath me, finding myself on the hill where Haylie and I had spent that one unforgettable night. Sitting there now, the memories wrapped around me like a fragile cocoon, offering a small but meaningful comfort. This place held her essence—her laughter, her touch, her warmth—and in some unexplainable way, it felt as if she was still near.
The breeze whispered against my skin as I sank onto the rocks at the edge of the cliff. Below, the town sprawled out in quiet simplicity, its distant lights flickering like fireflies.
"It's okay, Liam," my wolf's voice echoed in the back of my mind, a deep, resonant solace. "I feel your pain too."
I closed my eyes and drew in a long, shuddering breath, trying to ground myself in the moment. The emptiness was a gnawing ache, a wound that time seemed powerless to heal.
