People say your past doesn’t define you. That’s bullshit. It does—but it ain’t the whole story.

Name’s Mike Callahan—Big Mike, if you know me. I’ve done things I regret. Spent fifteen years inside learning how to stop throwing punches at everything that moved. I came out different. Quieter. Not softer, just... clearer.

These days, I keep to myself. I work on old cars in my garage—Mustangs, Chevelles, machines that make sense. They don’t lie, don’t talk back. You fix what’s broken and it runs. If only people worked the same way.

There was a woman once—Marlena. I loved her. Still do, in a way. If I could undo anything, it’d be how I lost her and the boys.

But life moves. I’ve got a good woman now—Loretta. Strong, steady. The kind that holds you up without making a show of it. She’s helped me become someone I can look in the mirror at, most days.

I ain’t askin’ for forgiveness. Just tryin’ to do better than I did before. That’s the best I’ve got.