I remained at Violet's grave long after the sun had set, time becoming meaningless as I knelt on the cold ground. My knees ached, my tears had dried, but I couldn't bring myself to leave her. Not again. Not like I had so many times before.
"I should have been there," I whispered to the small tombstone, tracing her name with trembling fingers. "Your birthday, your school events, your—" My voice broke. "Your final moments."
The moon rose high above, casting silver light across the cemetery. In that ethereal glow, I could almost see her—Violet, with her mother's emerald eyes and my dark hair, smiling shyly as she held out one of those flower crowns Genevieve had mentioned.
I'd never worn a single one.
My phone vibrated in my pocket again. I ignored it, as I had for hours. Nothing mattered outside this small plot of earth where my daughter lay.
"Alpha King."
