Hardened Hearts: A Psychological Fiction of Secrets and Shattered Trusts

Even the strongest survivors can break.

Parrish seems to have it all together. She’s just been named Employee of the Year at the domestic violence shelter where she works, and her charming boyfriend has proposed. Her life looks nothing like the stories of the women she helps. But beneath her composed exterior lies a past she refuses to confront.

Dillon, a passionate art teacher at the shelter, is open about her history—she lost a parent to domestic abuse and now uses that pain to help others heal. But she’s hiding something too. A secret that, if exposed, could destroy her career—and her closest friendship.

As the weight of their work grows heavier, Parrish and Dillon are pushed beyond the limits of compassion. Desperate and disillusioned, they cross a dangerous line in pursuit of justice.

Hardened Hearts is a raw, emotionally charged novel about resilience, reckoning, and the blurred line between justice and revenge.