The town of Ashwood was eerily quiet. It wasn't the same silence that had haunted the streets before, the kind that carried the weight of secrets and unseen horrors. This silence felt differentâlike the air after a storm, when the sky is still dark, but the worst has already passed.
Lucas Grey sat on the front steps of the sheriff's station, exhaustion sinking deep into his bones. He hadn't slept. After everything that had unfolded in the last few days, the thought of closing his eyes felt impossible. Every time he did, he saw Ben's face, heard his voice as he spoke about Rachel, about the Brotherhood's sins, about the town that had lived in shadows for decades.
The weight of it all pressed on him.
Even with the arrests, even with the truth exposed, he couldn't shake the feeling that the ghosts of Ashwood weren't finished with him yet.
"Mind if I join you?"
Lucas turned to see Sheriff Margaret Cole standing beside him, a steaming cup of coffee in her hand. She looked just as worn out as he felt, but there was something in her eyes that hadn't been there before.
Relief.
Lucas gestured for her to sit, and she did, letting out a long breath as she handed him the extra coffee she'd brought.
"For the record," she said after a moment, "I always had my suspicions."
Lucas took a sip, the warmth doing little to thaw the exhaustion inside him. "About Ben?"
Cole nodded. "And the Brotherhood. I knew something wasn't right in Ashwood. I could feel it. But I never had the evidence. I never had anything solid enough to take them down." She shook her head. "I tried. God knows I tried. But every time I got close, the trail went cold. Witnesses backed out. Evidence disappeared. And I was left chasing ghosts."
Lucas glanced at her, seeing the regret in her face.
She had been fighting this battle long before he ever set foot in Ashwood.
"But then you came along," Cole continued, looking at him with something close to admiration. "And you did what I couldn't."
Lucas exhaled. "I just followed the truth."
Cole smiled, but there was sadness in it. "That's all it ever takes, isn't it? Just one person who refuses to stop digging." She took another sip of her coffee, then turned serious. "You gave this town something it never had before, Lucas."
"What's that?"
She met his gaze. "Closure."
The word settled between them, heavy with meaning.
For the families of the victims. For those who had spent years wondering what had happened to their loved ones. For Emma.
For herself.
Cole sighed, shaking her head. "I was ready to go my whole life thinking I'd never find out what happened to Emily. But now I know. And for that... I owe you more than I can ever say."
Lucas looked down, a part of him wanting to brush it off, to say he was just doing his job.
But it wasn't just a job.
It had never been just a job.
Before he could respond, Cole's voice softened.
"There's someone else who needs closure too."
Lucas didn't have to ask who she meant.
Emma.
"She's strong," Cole said. "But she's also grieving. Her whole world just got turned upside down. And whether she admits it or not, she needs someone to help her pick up the pieces."
Lucas swallowed hard.
Because deep down, he already knew that.
Lucas found Emma at the cemetery again.
She sat on the ground, knees pulled to her chest, staring at the two graves in front of her. The wind tugged at her hair, but she didn't move.
He approached slowly, his footsteps crunching against the frost-covered grass.
She didn't look up, but he knew she heard him.
"I keep thinking about what they were like," she said quietly. "My parents. Who they really were. What kind of people they would have been if they hadn't been trapped here."
Lucas lowered himself beside her. "They would've been proud of you."
Emma gave a hollow laugh. "For what? Surviving?"
"For being strong," Lucas said. "For not letting the past define you."
She shook her head. "I don't feel strong."
Lucas hesitated before speaking. "Strength isn't about not feeling pain. It's about what you do with it."
Emma exhaled sharply, gripping her arms tighter. "I don't know what to do now, Lucas. My whole life, I thought I knew who I was. That my parents died in a robbery gone wrong though I had my suspicions, that my grandmother took me in because she loved me. But it was all a lie. And now I'm just... lost."
Lucas watched her, his chest tightening. He knew what it was like to feel untethered, to feel like everything you'd built your identity on had been stripped away.
"You're not lost," he said. "You just have to decide where to go next."
Emma finally turned to look at him, her eyes searching his. "And what if I don't know where that is?"
Lucas held her gaze. "Then I'll help you figure it out."
For a long moment, she just stared at him. Then, slowly, she nodded.
Over the next few weeks, the town of Ashwood began the long process of healing.
With the Brotherhood dismantled, people started speaking openly for the first time in years. Stories that had once been buried were now told. Families who had lost loved ones found some form of closure, even if it didn't erase the pain.
The sheriff's department was undergoing a complete overhaul. New officers were being brought in from the state, ones untainted by the corruption that had run rampant for so long. Cole had been offered the position of sheriff permanently, and though she was hesitant at first, she eventually accepted.
One of her first actions was to ensure that Emily Hayes was given a proper memorial.
A plaque was placed near the old Hayes house, a tribute to the girl who had tried to bring the truth to light long before anyone else.
People visited often, leaving flowers, notes, and small trinkets.
It wasn't justice. But it was something.
One evening, as Lucas stood outside the motel, staring up at the Ashwood sky, Cole joined him again.
"You ever think about sticking around?" she asked.
Lucas smirked. "Didn't think I was wanted here."
Cole scoffed. "After what you did? This town owes you more than it can ever repay." She crossed her arms. "But that's not why I'm asking."
Lucas studied her. "Then why?"
Cole gave him a knowing look. "Because I see the way you look at Emma."
Lucas's jaw tensed.
Cole chuckled. "Relax, I'm not playing matchmaker. I just think you care about her more than you let on." She took a breath. "She needs someone, Lucas. Someone who understands what she's going through. Someone who won't let her shut herself off from the world."
Lucas looked away, staring out at the darkened streets.
"Think about it," Cole said, before turning to leave.
Lucas stood there for a long time, watching as the stars blinked overhead.
For the first time since arriving in Ashwood, he realized something.
He had come here looking for the truth.
But maybe, just maybe, he had found something more.
Something worth staying for.