beach (3)

She liked it like this—empty but not lonely. Farther down the shore, a figure stood near the rocks. Motionless. A lighthouse-shaped silhouette wrapped in a dark coat. Lena hesitated, heart thudding harder than it should.

The smart thing would be to turn back, pretend the letter had been a prank or a mistake. But she wasn’t here to be smart. She walked, each step slow but deliberate, sand muffling her approach.

The wind picked up, dragging strands of hair across her face, and she didn’t bother fixing them. The closer she got, the more familiar the stance became.