Calla’s POV

I had been looking at the photographs Marcus left behind for what felt like hours, trying to understand the smiling woman in them compared to the mother I grew up with. Elena seemed genuinely happy in those pictures, unlike the rare times I had seen her smile during my childhood.

This raised a tough question: Did her decision to run from this “pack” make her unhappy? Had the effort to protect me taken away the life she truly wanted?

Suddenly, I was pulled from my thoughts by ...