Where dark things grow

Marla Elizabeth is sixteen, lost in a haze of drugs, self-destruction, and the aching emptiness of a life that never felt like hers. She has long since stopped hoping for things to get better-until everything gets worse.

When her abusive father is released from prison, the fragile world she's built around herself begins to crack. Home is no longer just a place she tries to escape-it's a reminder of the nightmares she's spent years trying to forget.

Then she meets Arlo. Thirty-four, dangerous in ways she doesn't recognize at first, and exactly what she thinks she needs. He sees her, listens to her, makes her feel something again. But Arlo isn't a savior. He's a storm, a slow unraveling, a man who will take every last piece of her and leave her with nothing.

As Marla spirals deeper into addiction, toxic love, and the ghosts of her past, she's faced with a choice: drown in the life that's been forced upon her, or fight for the one she deserves-if it's not too late.

A dark, emotional story about trauma, survival, and the people who break us.