Chapter 4 — Hidden Letters and Lost Hopes

Evie

The fire crackled softly in the hearth, casting flickering shadows across the walls of Snowdrop Cottage. Evie sat curled in the deep armchair by the window, wrapped in a thick knit blanket. The warm glow of the flames couldn’t quite reach the edges of her mind, where doubts lingered like shadows. The memory of her afternoon in the town square—its bustling energy and handmade whimsy—had stirred something within her, but it wasn’t enough to silence the gnawing ache of uncertainty.