Chapter 149

Violet’s POV

Recovery didn’t arrive the way I expected.

There were no sudden epiphanies, no clean lines dividing before and after. Healing crept in quietly, settling into corners of my life like dust that only revealed itself when the light shifted just right.

The mountain facility breathed again.

That was the first thing I noticed.

Not literally—though the generators’ low hum had softened, the constant vibration beneath the floors easing into something almost gentle—but emotionally