A week had passed since the accident and the night Kael had seen his daughter teeter on the edge of the world he’d tried so hard to keep her from. He’d tightened his grip on her ever since, hovering like a storm cloud—silent, brooding, protective.
But this morning, Ashara’s laughter echoed in the halls like sunlight breaking through a dense fog.
Her room was a mess—textbooks, notebooks, hairbrushes, perfumes, and clothes scattered across the bed. She twirled in front of her full-length mirror for the fifth time, adjusting her denim jacket over a pastel green top. Her eyes sparkled with a rare joy as she checked herself from every angle.
“Perfect,” she whispered to her reflection, cheeks slightly pink with anticipation.
Today was the day.
Her first day of college.
And more than that—freedom. Her first taste of the life she always imagined, even if she had to walk through a lie to get there.
Downstairs, Kael stood in the kitchen, the aroma of freshly made pancakes and eggs filling the a
