Damon POV

Talking to Kalilah after all this time was surreal, but it also helped me get my head on straight.

Just hearing her voice—steady, sharp, a little colder than I remembered—cut through the noise that had been building in my mind for days. Weeks, if I were honest.

We didn’t say everything. Not even close. There was too much history, too much pain still sitting between us like a live wire. But the fact that she picked up at all? That meant something.

It reminded me of who I was doing this for. What I was fighting to protect.

Who I was still trying to become.

Right now, I...