"I understand that children tend to grow up unpredictably—but even then, there has to be a limit, right?"
The words escaped Krista Hell's lips with a sigh, tinged in quiet disbelief.
She walked slowly, almost absently, down the narrow marble hallway of their small castle-like home.
Her steps echoed softly against the finely polished floor, but her mind was far louder—buzzing with confusion, concern, and a growing pressure behind her temple that refused to subside.
An unrelenting headache pulsed behind her eyes.
It wasn't the kind born from fatigue or stress.
No—this one was a mother's headache.
The kind that came from watching your child walk paths that made no sense no matter how much you thought you understood them.