The storm had passed, leaving behind a low mist that curled around the trees like secrets not quite ready to be spoken. Inside Jack’s cabin, the fire crackled, casting long, golden shadows across the worn wood floors and knotty pine…

The mountain air was thick with summer; woodsmoke curled from Jack’s outdoor firepit, dancing between the trees like ghosts of past lovers. Inside the cabin, the air was even hotter. Evelyn and Elena hadn’t spoken much after the earlier confrontation…

The morning air was sharp with citrus and damp from early sprinklers. Somewhere outside, the garden was being trimmed, the hum of distant clippers blending with birdsong. But inside Maddie’s room… there was only silence. And the aftermath. The sheets were…

The house was quiet. Too quiet. Maddie lay on her back in the center of her massive bed, arms above her head, golden hair spilling like liquid sunlight across the silk pillows. A light summer breeze whispered through the open…

It had been nearly a week since the last visitor. Jack had split his time between deep woods lumber work and finishing up a walnut slab dining table commissioned by the mayor’s wife. The solitude was good for him. Cleansing.…