My first instinct was to pull Liam closer. I didn’t know this man. I didn’t know his story. All I saw was the rough exterior. But Liam tugged gently at my sleeve.
I froze. “Are you sure, sweetheart?”
He nodded slowly, with a determination that surprised me. “Please.”
Something inside me softened. Maybe it was the way Liam looked at him — not with fear, but with curiosity. Maybe it was the sense that my son, even at the end of his life, was still reaching out to the world in ways I didn’t understand.
The biker noticed us watching. He looked confused at first, then stood up — slowly, respectfully. When he approached, he didn’t loom over us the way I expected. Instead, this huge man knelt down so he was eye-level with Liam.

“Hey buddy,” he said gently. “Name’s Mike.”
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