(Dual POV – Present Tense)

Karen

The river is quieter now.

Not still, not silenced, just softer, like it’s finally learned to carry its secrets without breaking its surface.

I come here sometimes when the noise in my head grows too loud.

The same bend where everything began, where truth was born out of whispers and ruin.

The air smells of rain and cedar.

The path is overgrown, the wildflowers reclaiming what was once scorched by grief.

It’s been six months since the last storm.

Six ...